Absolution
by The Struggling Warrior
Summary: Everyone thought that the trials would be over when the war was finished. With traitors and threats to their existence still active, though, the ghosts must keep the peace while gaining new allies such as a team of young heroes. Unfortunately, this is made difficult with past mistakes and new tragedies proving just how difficult it is to forgive and forget. (Sequel to Obsession)
1. The Day

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"I guess we all like to be recognized not for one piece of fireworks, but for the ledger of our daily work."

Neil Armstrong

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><p>Chapter 1: "The Day"<p>

_I think I remember some of my memories from those days too fondly. Perhaps it's the nostalgic part of my personality, but I often daydream of the days after the GIW War. Of course, if someone told me that back then that I would be yearning for such days of trial once more, I think that I would have kicked him._

_Yeah, I wasn't in a good mood in those days. At least, that's what I recall. The war took its toll on everyone, but I was a bit more jaded, more reluctant than everyone else to just accept it and move on. After all, my entire world was turned upside down in a short amount of time._

_I hated people trying to protect me, but I later realized why. Despite being able to outmuscle people three times my size, I was still a child. I lacked the experience and skill needed to play a big part in the war. Going out there just to see my own brother getting torn apart without being able to do anything about it hurt in so many ways. Before that day, I had never been thrown into the deep end without someone there to help me. And when it finally happened, when I was put in the same situation that Danny had been in so many times, I almost drowned._

_And I hated myself for it. I hated my weakness so much that I couldn't even truly appreciate what was happening. It was a time of great change, when ghosts and humans finally came to a point where they could live in somewhat peace. My list of friends grew each passing week. My family expanded and I eventually found a brother that was as close to me as Danny._

_But as I said, I think I remember them too fondly from my standpoint._

_They were not easy times. Far from it in fact. Every fight was a struggle to survive. Every enemy and challenge brought suffering that I wasn't ready for. I was forced to adapt, and it was a painful change._

_Especially because of the people that suffered and were lost along the way. Even now, I remember them. Perhaps they weren't the best people in the world, but we've all done things we aren't proud of. Despite everything, though, none of them deserved their fate. None of them had to die, but our enemies thought differently. After all, anyone who stood in their way was shielding the world from the Light and from Reality itself, and, to them, that was a sin deserving death._

_-From the personal memoirs of Danielle Masters_

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><p>(Saturday-July 3, 2010)<p>

He floated above his city. It may seem arrogant to claim a city the way he did, but Phantom didn't care. This was under his protection, well his and his family's protection. They had fought long and hard to keep Amity Park safe despite the constant threats that plagued the city for almost a year.

Sighing, Phantom looked up to the cloud covered skies. The moon was shielded from view by the dark mist that floated above him. It left the city without any light from above. It made him feel isolated, like the rest of the world was different than them.

"That's not a lie, though," Phantom muttered to himself. His neon green eyes closing as the memories flooded through his mind once again.

Amity Park was the most haunted place in the world. It had been plagued by ghosts for almost an entire year now, ever since Phantom obtained his powers and tore a permanent hole between the realities that separated the ghosts from the humans. It was for this reason that Amity Park was different.

Ghosts, good, evil, and in between, flooded into the town and made it their own. No one outside of the city really took notice at first. Even when the city disappeared during the resurrection of Pariah Dark. No one had died after all, the world was plagued with villains and problems after all. How was a town dealing with a few strange events any different?

Well, that process changed when a ghost caused an entire city block to blow up taking six people with it. Phantom remembered that ghost well. It haunted his nightmares. Blood red eyes. A forked tongue dancing out from sharpened teeth. A burning DP symbol that they both shared.

Phantom took a shuddered breath. It had been him. Another version of him at the very least that did it. His future self arrived from a dark future, killed everyone he ever cared about, and caused the world to turn its eyes to Amity Park. He was responsible for all of it. His parents...His friends...his teacher...They all died because of mistakes he was going to make if things had continued.

That was only the beginning, though. There were so many attacks and so many enemies that wanted to bring ruin to him and his city. The ghosts. Klarion the Witch Boy. The League of Shadows. And especially the Guys in White.

Opening his eyes, Phantom looked down at his opened palms. He was grateful that he had people that arrived to help him. New friends and family alike helped to not only survive, but win. But even that had consequences.

Slowly, Phantom's hands began to glow an eerie green. Ectoplasm danced around his fingers, but it was not the same as before. His energy was different, lighter…weaker. That's how it had been for over a month now. Like everything, the war with the Guys in White changed it.

Letting the energy die out, Phantom let his arms drop. His eyes once more stared out to his city, his home. It was this city that was the very base of his obsession, the reason for his continued ghostly existence. The city had brought him untold pain, but it also brought him happiness, new family, and a purpose.

For that, he would protect it. To do that, though, he would have to branch out. They could no longer be so isolated. If they wanted to survive, they needed allies. They needed to have the Justice League on their side, much more than before at least.

For that reason, he had to work to keep strengthening their relationship. He was the only ghost that was on the League's good side. Everyone knew it. He was the bridge between their groups. As such, he needed to be the peace keeper.

That was why he was meeting with them tomorrow. He had been invited to the Hall of Justice by Superman, the Big Guy himself, to come by on Independence Day. Apparently, other young heroes, sidekicks to the Leaguers, would be there. Apparently, they were taking their first steps to joining the Justice League themselves.

Phantom didn't know what to think about that. He once dreamed about being a Leaguer himself, but those were days long passed. Now, his concern lied solely on Amity Park and the people he cared about. For them, he would do anything, even be treated like a sidekick.

"Tomorrow…" Phantom mumbled to himself, "Tomorrow is the day."

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><p><strong>Thank you all for reading and please remember to...<strong>

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	2. Independence

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."

Martin Luther King, Jr.

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><p>Chapter 2: "Independence"<p>

(Sunday-July 4, 2010)

"How bad is it?" Danny Phantom asked. The fifteen year old boy looked over at his mentor with his neon green eyes. His pure white hair was long and shaggy.

Usually, the teenager would wear his black trench coat with white trimmings, white flames on the bottom, and his famous DP logo on the back surrounded by a pentagon. But the halfa had forgone his coat to be hooked up to the machines. Without the coat, Phantom's sleeveless black shirt with white stripes down the sides and another DP logo on his chest.

The color scheme continued with the teenager's lower body. His jean were black with white trimmings and white stripes down the side. In addition, the halfa was wearing white boots on the top and black on the bottom.

"Very bad." Vlad Plasmius stated solemnly. "The power readings have dropped to half than what it was before the war."

The man in the room had an unusual appearance. His skin was blue, his eyes were red, and his hair was curved into horns. The man was wearing clothes that were the opposite of Phantom's clothes. Plasmius's cloths were mostly white and had black at the collar, belt, and boots. In addition, the man was wearing a cape that was white on the outside and red on the inside.

"That's not good…" Phantom sighed as he removed himself from the machines and placed his coat back on. "Do you know why?"

"No." Plasmius shook his head. "You're completely healthy. For some reason though, your power has dropped significantly. In fact, you can no longer be considered an S-rank ghost."

That was the difference between these men and normal individuals. These men were half-ghosts. They were humans that obtained ghost powers. In fact, they were so powerful that they could be considered to be as powerful as S-rank ghosts. An S-rank ghost was a ghost which had the power to use a Haunting Aura, the ability to impose your emotions on your enemies.

"Crap…" Phantom grunted. "Will it be that noticeable in battle?"

"To someone who already knows and recognizes your level of power? Completely, but everyone else won't be able to tell." Plasmius noted.

"I see…" Phantom muttered. "Then I'll just have to use skill instead of raw power until my full powers returns."

"And when will that be?" Plasmius worked with the various machines in the basement lab of Masters Mansion. Across the room were various equipment, weapons, and even the newly rebuilt Ghost Portal. "It has already been more than a month since the war, and your powers have only become worse."

At the end of May, the ghosts of the Ghost Zone had went to war with the UN sponsored Guys in White. The war had its fair share of consequences and outcomes for everyone. Phantom's problems stemmed from his close encounter with death…because he actually died. Luckily, the energy released by the war allowed Phantom to come back with a temporary power boost, but that didn't last long.

After Phantom released the energy into the air, his power and energy quickly began to drop. Now he was only at half his original strength. Considering the amount of time Phantom spent in battle…this was a bad thing.

Of course, Phantom believed that this problem might have stemmed from his other problem. His powers relied on two factors, his stamina and his emotions. His stamina was fine, which meant that something was wrong emotionally. The emotional problem could be described in two words…

Survivor's guilt.

Phantom had survived many situations where others died in his place. His old response was to become angry and blame others. Phantom no longer allowed himself to do that, though. No, Phantom could only blame himself, and it was showing.

"Considering this problem, do you really think it's wise to leave the city without any backup?" Plasmius questioned.

"Oh come one, Vlad." Phantom rolled his eyes. "I can't exactly take anyone with me. The invitation was only for me, and after the war, the only ghost the Justice League would completely trust besides me is Dani, and she isn't exactly ready to be running around the Hall of Justice just yet."

"I understand…" Vlad sighed. "But I still don't think this will end well."

"Vlad, I already promised to go. Besides, it's just a tour of the hall, and the Justice League will be there." Phantom shrugged. "What could happen?"

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><p>"I can't believe that you're going to the Hall of Justice without me!" Danielle 'Dani' Masters glared up to her adopted older brother. She was normal height for an eleven year old girl. The girl was wearing red shorts and a short sleeved blue shirt. On the top of her head was her normal red hat.<p>

"I already told you that I'm sorry, Dani." Danny tried to comfort his adopted younger sibling. He was currently in his room trying to spend time to relax before he left. Considering that they were in a mansion, Danny's room was quite large. It had simple furniture, a large screen television, and various posters spread across the room. "There's not much that I can do about it, though."

"Yeah, yeah…" Dani pouted. "You can't just take me when only you were invited. By why wasn't I invited?"

"Dani…" Danny sighed. "The real reason the League invited me is because I'm a possible risk. I have proven that I'm not a direct enemy, but they want me close to keep an eye on me just in case."

"And I'm not that big of a possible threat?" Dani frowned.

"Not yet." Danny sighed. "Not yet…"

"Well…bring me a souvenir or something." Dani flopped down on Danny's couch. "Or some pictures."

"I don't know if that will be possible…" Danny noted.

"It better be possible." A female barged into Danny's room. She had pale skin, green eyes, and long blue hair pulled up into a ponytail. Her makeup, clothes, and demeanor could all be classified as a punk rocker. "Because you canceled our date for this."

"Canceled?" Danny raised an eyebrow. "Yesterday, you demanded we go out and enjoy the parties, but I told you that I already have plans."

"In my mind, that means canceled." Ember McLain huffed at her boyfriend. "And this little party at the Hall does not register as a crisis, so you're in trouble."

"…" Danny sighed. "Alright, alright. I'll try to bring back something."

"And you need to be back by the time the fireworks go off." Ember demanded.

"Yes, ma'am." Danny nodded.

"Whipped!" Dani exclaimed.

"…I know…" Danny grumbled. "It's worth it, though."

Ember smirked. "Yes it is…"

"No!" Dani jumped to her feet. "I don't want to hear this!"

Ember and Danny laughed at her.

"Really? You don't want to know about-"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Danny's phone went off. The halfa had built the phone himself. It was one the young inventors biggest projects, the Tucker Phone. It was a sleek black phone with a touch screen. Most of its more advanced features were what really made it stand out. Extremely fast and efficient loading time, advanced voice recognition, and incredible durability were some of the phone's many features.

That and all the good publicity the tech received thanks to the work of Harriet Chin were the reasons that the newly released phone was so popular. The Tucker Phone had only recently been available on the market, and its sale's numbers were fantastic. Danny was sure that Tucker would be proud to have a piece of tech inspired by him, thus why Danny made sure to give a percentage of the revenue to Tucker's parents.

"Hello?" Danny answered his phone. "Technus? What is it?...Yeah, I have time before I have to leave….Something's wrong with the current project?...Alright, I'll be there in a minute."

"Again?" Ember sighed at her boyfriend. "I thought you hired Technus to deal with these things."

"Well, there's tension at Axion Labs." Danny shrugged as he walked to the door. "Humans and ghosts don't normally work together after all."

"Do you have to go?" Dani frowned.

"Yeah." Danny smiled at his sister before he gave his girlfriend a kiss. "I have to. Not much choice, but I'll make it clear that I won't be able to help later this afternoon."

After Danny left the room, Ember turned the younger halfa. "…Are you alright, kid?"

"Yeah, I guess…" Dani mumbled. "I just wanted to hang out with Danny a bit before he left…"

"So did I, but we'll just have to get him later." Ember shrugged.

"But that's the thing." Dani looked down. "Danny and I used to spend so much time together. Now, he's always so busy with his work, trying to make up all the school work he missed, and you, that we don't get to be together unless we go out for patrol, and even then nothing happens."

"I don't really think that's fair." Ember noted. "You spend a lot of time with those friends of yours. Most of what Danny does isn't exactly considered fun…except me, of course. I'm a riot."

"I guess you're right…about me being busy, at least." Dani rolled her eyes at the older girl. "Nyx, Raven, and Youngblood are all coming over today to get fireworks."

"Sounds fun." Ember smirked. "We can have our own private firework show. Fire in the sky, who doesn't love that?"

"Yeah…" Dani nodded.

"Great! I know some good places to…" Ember continued to talk even though Dani's thoughts drifted.

Nyx, the daughter of the ancient ghost Pandora, already had plans to get fireworks, but Dani was sure that Rachel would come up with more…legal methods of obtaining the explosives. No, Dani wasn't worried about that. She was concerned with her brother. This wouldn't be the first time that he left Amity Park without her, but lately, Dani was upset that he was leaving so often.

Did he not realize what happened? Did he truly not comprehend the events that had happened over a month ago when the Ghost Zone went to war with the Guys in White? Dani tried to, but…

_"Danny…" Spirit stumbled forward. Her premonition was screaming at her. She had to get there._

_Spirit's legs gave out and she fell on her face. Tears ran down her face. The premonition was over. It was too late._

_"No…" She sobbed._

_She had failed…_

_Despite the fact that she disobeyed her father and left the safety of the inner Ghost Zone to save Danny, she hadn't made a difference at all. Despite the fact that she had the ability to feel other people's intentions, she couldn't stop it. Despite the fact that she was Danny's sister, she couldn't save him._

_Dani, in her ghost form, felt tears run down her face as she watched her brother's body dissolve. The hulking form of the Fenton Exoskeleton stood above the rapidly fading body. Even if Spirit could move, she wouldn't get to the body._

_Soon, all that was left was a green puddle._

"_NO!"_

"No, what?" Ember raised an eyebrow at the young girl.

Dani felt sweat run down her neck. She had to fight off tears. That memory was so intense. She couldn't let herself think about that...

"Nothing! I love your idea!" Dani sprung to her feet and began strutting to the door. "But I need to go the bathroom first!"

"…Okay…" Ember watched as the young girl left.

The sound of rushing water filled the hall as Dani used the sound of her shower to drown out the echoes of her sobs and tears.

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><p>It was later that day that Danny Phantom began to approach the Hall of Justice by flying. The giant white building stood in front of a large fountain. It had a round roof and large rectangular dividers separating the building into three parts. The glass entrance and tourists seemed odd considering the fact that this was the Justice League headquarters, but who was Phantom to judge? His HQ was his home (Danny refused to call it a lair).<p>

Because he turned invisible, Phantom was unseen by the mass below, despite the fact that the halfa was floating right above the large building. He stayed there for a moment, he idly noted that the other younger heroes had arrived with their mentors. The Flash and Kid Flash appeared to be running late.

Phantom sighed. "Today is the day…"

Deciding that it was now or never, Phantom turned intangible and flew into the building. He could have used the entrance, but he didn't want the unnecessary attention. At one time, Phantom relished in any form of positive praise, but today was not the day to boost his ego. He had enough of that in Amity Park. The city already built that billboard of him and his sister stating that it was the ghost's home.

Phantom slowly floated behind the group of heroes as they entered the building. Apparently, he missed a part of the conversation, because he heard Robin say, "You're overwhelmed. Freeze was underwhelmed. Why isn't anyone just whelmed?"

Robin caught sight of the giant statues of the founding members of the Justice League. "Oh…that's why."

Now safely in the building, Phantom decided to turn visible, so the League wouldn't think he was trying to sneak into their building. All four mentors in front of him seemed to sense this, as they looked back and glanced at him.

Flash was dressed in his red and yellow suit. The blond Aquaman stood in his scaled orange shirt and green pants. Green Arrow appeared like a hooded Robin Hood. Batman's black cowl twisted as he noted the appearance of the ghost. None of them said anything to him, because they knew he would be coming. They all had their own protegees to feel proud of.

The heroes approached the metal door which was below the giant statue of Superman. The door read "Authorized Personnel Only." It slid open to reveal the green Martian Manhunter and the red android Red Tornado.

The Martian Manhunter spoke, "Robin, Speedy, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Phantom…Welcome."

All four of the young heroes looked surprise to see that Phantom was right behind them, but considering that he hadn't made any noise and their mentors blocked their view of him at first, they didn't voice their shock. All of them greeted him, though. Phantom was glad to see that they weren't upset to have him here. This was supposed to be their day after all. Their mentors must have already talked to them…

Speedy was dressed in in a similar outfit to Green Arrow, except that is was red and he was wearing a feathered cap. Kid Flash was dressed in a yellow version of the Flash's except his red hair was showing. Robin was wearing a black cape over his red top with his famous 'R' and black pants. Finally, Aqualad wore dark blue pants and a sleeveless red shirt hat showed his eel tattoos.

Next, all of the heroes entered the metal doors as Martian Manhunter began to explain to them about all the access they had. Phantom didn't plan to come here all that often, but paid attention anyway. It was always necessary to know what you could and could not enter…Especially when you're walking into the restricted area being talked about.

Phantom looked around the library. Compared to the Ghost Writer's library, it wasn't anything special. The halfa did note the widow that allowed the tourists to look into the library. Phantom saw that they were taking pictures. Great, he could just imagine the publicity from this…

"Make yourselves at home." The Flash smiled.

All the younger heroes besides Speedy instantly sat down in the comfortable furniture. In fact, Speedy seemed to appear mildly upset, especially when Batman mentioned that they were leaving for a minute to discuss something about ice villains…

"That's it?!" Speedy exclaimed and caused the Leaguers to turn around. "You promised us a real look inside, not a glorified backstage pass."

"It's a first step." Aquaman mentioned. "You've been granted access few others get."

"Oh really?" Speedy gestured to the window above the library. "Who cares what side of the glass we're on?"

Phantom had to concede to Speedy's point. He personally didn't care all that much, but there wasn't that much difference between them and the people behind the glass.

"Roy, you just need to be patient." Green Arrow approached the young man. Phantom idly noted that Speedy's real name was Roy, but that didn't mean much to Phantom.

"What I need is respect." Speedy stated and turned to his peers behind him. "They're treating us like kids…worse, like sidekicks. We deserve better than this."

The four younger heroes all shared a look. None of them were all that bothered by what was happening. Despite the difference only being glass, it was a difference that only a few people had.

"You're kidding, right?" Speedy glared as he punched his palm. "You're playing their game? Why? Because you think they play fair? Today was supposed to be the day! Step one to becoming full fledged members of the League."

"I wouldn't exactly call this a game. I mean, sitting in a library isn't exactly whelming." Phantom noticed Robin's brief amusement over the reference. "But I don't think any of us came here expecting a life or death mission."

"Yeah…" Kid Flash nodded at Phantom. "Isn't step one a tour of the HQ?"

"Except that the Hall isn't the League's real HQ!" Speedy exclaimed. "I bet they never told you that the hall is just a front for tourist and a pit stop to catching Zeta beam telleporter tubes to the real thing… the orbiting satellite called the Watchtower!"

Phantom's eyebrows rose in shock. The League had a secret base in space? That sounded…so cool…Not to mention that was good info to know. Phantom had to wonder if the Ghost Zone's greatest strategist Vision knew about this.

During Phantom's thoughts, he missed Green Arrow's confession to Batman and Aquaman's chastisement of Speedy, but Phantom regained focus as Speedy snapped. "Or what? You'll send me to my room? And I'm not your son! I'm not even his." He looked at Green Arrow. "I thought I was his partner…but not anymore."

Speedy threw his yellow hat on the ground, much to everyone's shock.

"Guess they're right about you three, you're not ready…" Speedy strode past Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash, but stopped at Phantom and glared. "And you! You're a hero on your own, in fact, you have your own younger partner. Are you just going to sit there and act like second best?"

"Look, I'm not here to judge you, them, or the League. I was only invited a few days ago, and I don't know if I actually deserve to be here." Phantom met Speedy's glare without flinching.

"You're damn right you don't!" Speedy seemed outraged. "You are a symbol to us that the young can be just as tough as the League. I used to respect you, but it turns out that you're not who I thought you were."

"And who did you think I was?" Phantom questioned.

"A weakling that can't stand up for himself when the grownups say not to." Speedy explained. "Or are you going to prove me wrong and leave like me?"

"I ain't leaving just because you're throwing a temper tantrum…" Phantom noted. He remembered a time when he used to let his anger get the better of him like that, but now he knew that the anger did not make life any easier.

"Whatever!" Speedy began to storm out of the room. "Who needs you!?"

'Who needs me, indeed…' Phantom sighed at the thought.

The next few minutes passed in a blur. Superman called in that Project Cadmus had an accident and there was a fire. Batman seemed intrigued at the chance to investigate, but was interrupted by Zatara, who called and informed them that a sorcerer named Wotan was trying to block out the sun. Cadmus was put on hold as the Leaguers left with the instructions not to leave.

This, of course, did not sit well with the young heroes. They argued with their mentors, but what really drew Phantom's attention was Green Arrow's mention of a 'you-know-who' and Red Tornado's almost…reluctant look…maybe? It was hard to tell with an android.

Phantom didn't know if he was looking too much into things right now, but Vlad had drilled into him to examine every scenario. You could only have that pounded into you so many times before you get the message.

"Tch!" Kid Flash frowned. "When we're ready...How are we ever supposed to be ready if they treat us like…" He flung his hands in the air. "Like sidekicks!"

Aqualad bowed his head in disappointment. "My mentor…my king…I thought he trusted me."

"Trust? They don't even trust us with the basics! They've got a secret HQ in space!" Kid Flash pointed up.

Phantom would have intervened here, but he knew it wasn't his place. If Vlad had a secret like that, Phantom would surely be upset. The reason wouldn't matter. To have your mentor…your teacher…the person you trusted most just lie to you like that…Phantom knew that it would be upsetting.

"What else aren't they telling us?" Aqualad wondered.

"I have a better question..." Robin looked at his companions. "Why didn't we leave with Speedy?"

"Because your respect for them outweighs your anger." Phantom put in his two cents. "They may have hurt your trust, but you care about your mentors too much to turn you back on them. I'm not saying that your anger isn't justified, but I do get the vibe from Speedy that he has respect problems."

None of the other young heroes argued with that. Robin even nodded. "You're right, but I still don't like this."

"Then do something about it." Phantom shrugged.

"But what?" Kid Flash questioned.

"I've always found that the best way to win respect is a good old fashioned fight." Phantom mentioned as he remembered his encounters with Colossus and Torch.

They did not look pleased at the idea of fighting their mentors.

"A good second option would be to show them what you can handle." Phantom suggested. "Batman seemed pretty into that thing about Cadmus."

This got the attention of the young heroes. Robin went to the computer and hacked it to let them look at the files. It made sense that the computer was similar to the Batcave considering that Batman was in charge.

"Alright, Project Cadmus, genetics lab, here in DC…" Robin read the file. "That's all there is…But if Batman's suspicious, maybe we should investigate."

"Solve their case before they do." Aqualad noted. "It would be poetic justice."

"Hey, hehe, they're all about justice." Robin laughed.

Aqualad sighed. "But they said stay put."

"For the blotting out the sun mission, not this!" Robin smiled.

"Wait, are you going to Cadmus? Because if you're going, I'm going!" Kid Flash was excited.

"Just like that? We're a team on a mission?" Aqualad questioned.

"We didn't come here for a playdate." Robin smirked.

'No, I thought there would be food involved, though.' Phantom thought.

Aqualad just smirked at his fellow heroes.

Phantom grimaced as their attention turned to him. He felt really out of place here. The halfa wasn't a side…partner to some major superhero.

"What about you?" Robin asked. "Are you coming?"

"Look, you know that I'm only here because the League wants to keep an eye on me." Phantom reasoned. "This seems more like your adventure rather than mine."

"You act like you don't belong here." Aqualad noted.

"I don't." Phantom shrugged. "I don't have any affiliation to the League. Speedy was right about that."

"Hey, man," Kid Flash zoomed over to his side to pat him on the back. "You've more than proved yourself as a hero. None of us have a problem with you being here. Speedy was just…angry at the League. Don't take it personally."

Phantom was flattered by their sincerity, but he was still reluctant. Last thing he needed was to be on the bad side of the League. "I don't…"

"That settles it!" Robin grabbed him by the shirt and began to drag him. "You're coming."

Phantom could have fazed through the grip. He could have let them go and stayed, but he didn't. He let them lead him towards Project Cadmus.

And so it begins…

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><p>"So smooth." Robin smirked as they watched Kid Flash dangle out a window.<p>

Phantom didn't blame the speedster for running ahead. Two of the scientist from Project Cadmus had been blasted out a window. Kid Flash had run ahead to save them, but ended up in a rather unusual situation. Fortunately, he managed to get them to the roof.

"At least the scientists are saved." Phantom defended Kid's actions.

"Yes, but does he always have to run ahead?" Aqualad questioned. "We need a plan."

"If he didn't, I would have." Phantom mentioned. "Besides, Robin's doing the same thing."

The two older teens watched as Robin ran and flipped his way to the building. After using his grappling hook, the Boy Wonder landed on the window which Kid Flash was dangling from. In a moment, they both disappeared.

"Okay…a plan." Phantom shrugged. "I get the dudes off the roof and you put out the fire?"

"Fair enough." Aqualad nodded.

Phantom flew alongside the running Atlantian. When they reached the nearby fire trucks, they separated. Phantom quickly lowered the scientists to the ground as Aqualad used his Water-Bearers to calm control the firehouses water to douse the flames and raise himself up to the window.

As both the young heroes entered the building, Aqualad stated. "Appreciate the help."

"In his defense, we are a water user and an ice user." Phantom shrugged. "Not like the fire was a problem for us."

"Exactly!" Robin smirked. "Besides, were here to investigate."

"That is not the point…" Aqualad sighed.

"You guys find anything?" Phantom questioned as he joined their search.

"Nothing." Kid Flash muttered. "Nothing that's not boring and dumb at least."

They all paused as they heard the sound of an elevator door closing. Kid Flash, Robin, and Phantom quickly joined Aqualad at the doorway.

"There was something in the…" Aqualad stared at the elevator.

"Elevator should be locked down." Kid Flash noted.

"Apparently it is for us." Phantom noted as the elevator refused to open for them.

"This is wrong." Robin instantly tried to examine the elevator using his gauntlet computer. "Thought so…This is a high speed, express elevator. It doesn't belong in a two story building."

"Neither does what I saw." Aqualad stated as he forced the elevator open.

"And what did you see, exactly?" Phantom questioned.

"I have no clue." Aqualad noted as they all looked down the elevator shaft. It was so deep that they couldn't see the bottom.

"And that's why they need an express elevator." Robing used his grapple to hook to the top of the elevator shaft and began to descend. Aqualad and Kid Flash quickly followed on the rope, but Phantom decided to float down.

"Show off…" Kid Flash muttered as Phantom defied gravity.

"Not showing off if you back it up." Phantom commented.

When they reached as far as the rope extended, they stopped and the level SL 26. Robin went to hack it, but Phantom stated. "You do realize that I can pass through…what?"

"What's wrong?" Aqualad questioned.

"I can't turn intangible." Phantom muttered. "But this is regular metal. Something's messing with my powers…Crap, I wonder what else isn't working?"

"That makes this even more suspicious." Robin hacked the door and allowed them in.

"Does anyone else think it's weird that Robin's computer has little pictures of himself as loading screen?" Phantom questioned.

"…Now that you mention it…" Aqualad stated.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." Kid Flash chuckled.

"Yes, just make fun of me. No 'Thanks, Robin, for getting us in there undetected'." Robin muttered. "Alright, go!"

Phantom forced the doors open and was shocked. This lab seemed futuristic like his except…darker. It looked more like an evil lair compared to anything. "Wow…"

"Welcome to Project Cadmus." Robin noted.

Kid Flash ran ahead of them before anyone could react. He was quickly stopped by giant grey beasts. The speedster was that he wasn't trampled.

"Well…" Phantom frowned. "Those things are unusual."

* * *

><p>"Psh!" Ember growled as she looked at her phone. She paced around the living room of the mansion which contained leather furniture, imported carpet, and expensive pictures. "Danny hasn't texted me back yet."<p>

"Busy?" A giant black furred werewolf named Wulf questioned. He was dressed in a simple green shirt and pants.

"Or he might not be able to use his phone in the Hall?" Dani suggested weakly. She didn't really believe that, though.

"Then he should sneak into the bathroom or something…" Ember growled.

"There's still time until the party starts." Dani sighed. "Hopefully he'll be back by then."

"Hm…Friend won't late." Wulf's first language wasn't English, but he was trying to learn.

"He better-"

Rumble! Crash!

The ground trembled and shook. All the ghosts steadied themselves. Dani looked around the room as he caught a falling vase. "What was that?"

The building shook again.

Wulf's growled. "Not earthquake."

"Then what was it?" Ember questioned.

"I really hope that isn't Nyx trying to set off the fireworks early." Dani frowned.

"**ROAR**!"

"…" Wulf looked off in the distance. "Not Nyx."

"What the hell is that?" Ember questioned.

"I don't know, but it's heading for the city!" Dani shouted.

It was true, a large hulking figure was heading straight towards the main part of Amity Park. It was hopping large distance, and each time it landed, it caused the ground to tremble. From this distance, the only thing the ghosts could tell about the figure was that it was huge, muscular, and extremely pale.

"Is that a ghost?" Ember questioned.

"No know…" Wulf's grammar was bad, but it got the point across.

"If it was, why isn't it flying, and why didn't my Ghost Sense go off?" Dani questioned. "But that doesn't matter. I have to stop it."

"What?" Ember raised an eyebrow.

"Look at that thing, it's crushing cars like they're cardboard." Dani shifted her stance deeper. "If it gets to the city, people might be hurt."

"I don't think-"

"I'm going ghost!" Dani's form shifted as a white ring traveled from the top of her head to her feet. Her hat disappeared, and her hair turned white. The girl now had neon green eyes a scarf that hid her face. A black and white bomber jacket with the DP logo on the left side covered the girls black shirt. The right sleeve of the jacket was ripped off and showed black and white tape running down her right arm. Finally, a white skirt was on top of the girl's black spandex pants.

Danielle Masters had turned into her alter ego, Spirit the partner of Danny Phantom.

"Wait!"

That was too late, though. Spirit quickly flew and fazed through the roof. The halfa instantly chased after the retreating wall of muscle. She was surprised by the speed the monster was going at. It took her a few minutes to catch the monster, and by the time she caught him, he was almost at the edge of the city.

Spirit interrupted the pale monster by ramming into him mid-jump. She covered her hands in green ectoplasm as she rammed into the monster. Her blow did cause the monster to falter, but he did not seem injured at all. No, the hit did make him take a few steps back, but that was it.

The monster turned to her. He stood at eight feet tall. He wore a torn vest and ripped pants that did nothing to hide his bulging muscles. The skin of the monster was deathly pale, and his face was sunken and depressed. Yet despite this, Spirit's attention was caught by the monster's familiar neon green eyes.

"What?" Spirit tilted her head. Where had she seen those eyes before?

The monster growled at her. "Solomon Grundy…"

"Born on Monday…" He took a massive step toward her.

"Christened on Tuesday…" The monster took a deep stance.

"Married on Wednesday…" He jumped into the air.

"Took ill on Thursday…" Spirit quickly dodged to the side as he came crashing down at her stop.

"Grew worse on Friday…" The monster brought his massive fists down at the ground and caused it to shake and crack.

"Died on Saturday…" He swiped at her, but she dodged.

"Buried on Sunday…" The monster looked up to the sky and extended his arms.

"That was the end…" The monster then shouted into the air. "OF SOLOMON GRUNDY!"

* * *

><p>"What could could happen…WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING!?" Phantom ran alongside Robin and Aqualad as they went deeper into the bowls of Project Cadmus.<p>

"You actually said that?" Robin questioned. "You were just asking for this to happen, then."

"I know that now!" Phantom groaned.

Ever since he arrived at the lower levels of Project Cadmus with the other young heroes, Phantom noticed that everything that could go wrong had went terribly wrong. It turned out that Project Cadmus was actually manufacturing living weapons called Genomorphs that had razor sharp claws, super strength, and telepathy abilities.

Not only that, but it turned out that the hero Guardian was working for Cadmus as well. At first, Guardian seemed surprised and sympathetic…then he was confused. Then came the random anger and orders to attack them. Phantom was surprised by this random change. It was like he was a different person.

Luckily, they managed to escape…only to get deeper into the bowls of Project Cadmus. Phantom argued against this. Something was messing with his powers. He no longer could use intangibility or flight. This was not a situation he wanted to be in without all of his basic powers, especially with his already diminished powers. No, he wanted to go get the Justice League, but the others seemed determined to finish this mission. Phantom knew that he couldn't go off alone in these circumstances and continued to follow the others.

Robin, Aqualad, and Phantom ran around a corner. They saw that Kid Flash had knocked down a female scientist in front of a closing metal door. The young speedster quickly grabbed a metal container and used it to keep the door open for them. "Hurry!"

Robin, Aqualad, and Phantom all followed Kid Flash through the metal door. They managed to enter just as the Genomorphs and Guardian running around the corner. Aqualad quickly knocked the metal container out of the way, while Robin locked the door.

"I disabled the door. We're safe." Robin sighed.

"We're trapped." Kaldur clarified.

"Better on this side of the huge ass door than the other." Phantom noted. "Now we can come up with a plan."

"Uh…Guys? You'll want to see this." Kid Flash called them over to what appeared to be a containment pod. The speedster hit the on switch and everyone was shocked.

"Woah…" Robin muttered.

Phantom had to agree with the Boy Wonder. Inside the large pod in front of them stood a younger version of Superman. His black hair and face appeared to be completely the same as the Man of Steel. The only differences between them were the fact that the person in the pod was smaller and was wearing a white outfit with Superman's shield.

Kid Flash and Phantom approached the boy in the pod. Phantom noted the tiny Genomorphs sitting above the boy, but they seemed to ignore them. Then, Phantom looked at the symbol on the pod.

"Kr…" Phantom stared at the symbol.

"The atomic symbol for Krypton." Kid Flash was awestruck. He turned. "Clone?"

"Robin. Hack." Aqualad ordered.

"Oh…right, got it." Robin quickly got to work. "Weapon designation: Superboy, a clone forced grown in…16 weeks! From DNA acquired from Superman."

"Stolen from Superman." Aqualad clarified.

"Damn…" Phantom turned to look at the clone. He remember many months ago when he was staring at another clone in a pod. That clone had turned out to one the Phantom's most loved people.

"No way the big guy knows about this." Kid Flash stated.

"The solar suit allows him to absorb yellow sun radiation 24/7." Robin led.

"And these…creatures." Aqualad pointed at the little grey creatures above the Superboy.

"They have telepathy right? Maybe they're teaching him." Phantom suggested. "He can't have knowledge of the world after being forced grown."

"Exactly." Robin nodded.

"Not to mention everything else they've probably been teaching him." Kid Flash frowned. "They're making a slave out of…"

"Superman's son." Phantom interjected. "And this is wrong…"

"You're right." Aqualad noted. "Now we contact the League."

Phantom pulled out his phone as the others tried to use their communication devices. Phantom looked at the miniature hologram on his phone. "No signal…"

"We're too deep." Kid Flash sighed.

"Damn it…" Phantom knew that they should have bailed while they had the chance. "Robin…does he need the pod to survive?"

Robin looked at the data on the screen. "No, he's completely fine physically."

"Then I think we should set him free." Phantom stated. "Any arguments?"

"None." Aqualad nodded.

"Nope." Kid Flash stated.

"Alright then…" Robing quickly pressed some holographic buttons on his gauntlet computer.

The pod hissed and let out smoke as it opened. Now completely freed, the Superboy opened his eyes. Those blue eyes quickly looked at them.

…The next thing Phantom knew, the Superboy had tackled Aqualad to the ground…

The other heroes quickly tried to pull Superboy off Aqualad as Superboy began to hit the Atlantian. Phantom shouted. "I know you're confused and scared, but-"

"RAW!" Superman backhanded the ghost and sent him flying away. Phantom crashed into the wall and slid to the floor.

"I don't want to do this…" Robin used knock out gas to disorientate Superboy. Aqualad quickly kicked the Kryptonian clone away.

Kid Flash quickly followed Superboy and knocked him down again. Robin tried to tase Superboy, but it had effect whatsoever. In one quick moment, Superboy got up, tossed Kid Flash away, and pulled Robin to him. The clone then tried to crush the Boy Wonder's chest with his super-powered foot.

Phantom caught Kid Flash before he could go crashing through glass. "You alright."

"Ug…I feel like I got hit by a sludge hammer…" Kid Flash as he got to his feet.

"Enough!" Aqualad formed his Water Bearers into a giant sludge hammer and hit Superboy to his metal seat.

"Imagine how he's feeling…." Phantom's hands and eyes glowed blue as he began to use his ice powers. Before Superboy could react, Phantom froze him to his previous container.

"Raw!" Superboy growled.

"Well…that's that." Kid Flash walked up to the frozen Superboy.

"We…were are trying to help you." Aqualad explained to the clone. "Please, stop struggling."

"This is bad." Phantom noted as he examined the unconscious Robin. "We won't be able to get out without Robin, and with Superboy holding us back…"

"Yeah," Kid Flash agreed. "Not to mention, they'll open the door soon-"

The speedster was surprised when Superboy managed to break the ice holding him. Kid Flash was quickly sucker punched by the clone. The yellow clad hero was unconscious before he hit the floor.

"Damn it!" Phantom rocketed at Superboy and punched the Kryptonian with an ectoplasm powered punch. "Stay down!"

Superboy ignored the order and continued to attack the ghost. They exchanged several blows before Aqualad sneaked behind them and grabbed Superboy into a Full Nelson grab. The Atlantian's eel tattoos began to glow as he electrocuted the clone.

That didn't work long, however, because Superboy launched them into the air and crashed Aqualad into the ceiling. Phantom intercepted them before Superboy landed and pulled Aqualad away from the clone.

"We can't afford to hold back against him!" Phantom exclaimed.

"You…were holding back…" Aqualad groaned in pain. "What else can we do?"

"I can use my Ghostly Wail." Phantom laid Aqualad down. "Stay down. Hopefully, this won't hurt him too badly."

Aqualad nodded as he tried to regain his bearings. Phantom turned to the Superboy. The clone was glaring at him and was about to charge. Luckily, he was away from Robin and Kid Flash, so Phantom didn't have to hold back. "Sorry about this."

Phantom took a large breath of air into his usually unnecessary ghost lungs. He then went for his most devastating attack…only to be hit by a splitting headache. "Ah!"

Phantom's head felt like it had been cracked opened. He could only hear ringing. There was no way he could concentrate long enough to use his Ghostly Wail.

The halfa had ran out of time, though. Superboy sent a barrage of punches at Phantom. They sent him crashing into the Atlantian behind the ghost. Phantom could tell that he had accidently knocked out the Atlantian, but there was nothing that could be done about that.

Struggling to get up, Phantom managed to get to his knees. Superboy stood above him. He was holding a fist right in front of Phantom's face like he meant to hit Phantom and stopped. The clone was staring at him. "Phan…tom…Mer…cy…"

"What?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

Superboy then clutched his head in pain. In a fit of anger, the clone continued his punch and hit Phantom on his temple. The halfa collapsed onto the ground.

Before he passed out, Phantom saw Superboy walk over to the metal door and open it. Then, everything was dark.

* * *

><p>Spirit was quickly joined by Wulf and her green dog Cujo during her fight with Solomon Grundy. That was a good thing considering that nothing she did seemed to hurt the massive being. Granted, none of Grundy's attacks could hit her. Spirit's natural grace and her Premonition ability made Grundy's slow attacks futile.<p>

Unfortunately, that meant they were at a standstill. Neither opponent could hurt the other. It would be a battle of who had the most stamina, and considering the fact that Grundy didn't look tired at all, Spirit was sure that she would eventually wear herself out or find a way to hurt Grundy. Luckily, Wulf and Cujo's appearance destroyed that option.

With the three on one attack and their good teamwork, Wulf, Cujo, and Spirit seemed to be pushing Grundy back, but the monster didn't appear to feel pain. It wasn't that their attacks didn't do any damage, it was just that Grundy didn't feel pain, and his injuries healed at an incredibly rapid pace.

Spirit quickly kicked Grundy in the face and dodged the massive hand swiping at her. "Where's Ember?"

"Went get help!" Wulf roared as he rammed into Grundy from behind.

Cujo took this opportunity to swipe the massive monster on the side of his head. The massive monster stumbled to the side with a grunt. He didn't even appear to acknowledge the bruises and claw marks as they rapidly healed.

"I have to admit!" Spirit sent a barrage of blasts at Grundy. "It's nice to fight again! The past month has been soooooo boring!"

"Rough!" Cujo barked as bit Grundy's large ankle. The monster actually grunted in pain and went to punch the huge dog. Wulf intercepted him, though, and jumped on the monster's back. Grundy struggled to get the furred ghosts off him, but it was too late.

Spirit was not in front of him and sent several punches at Grundy's muscled midsection. She managed to get dozens of hits in before Grundy finally he finally shouted in outrage. In a show of great strength, Grundy threw three ghosts away a single motion. All three ghosts went tumbling away.

"Wow!" Wulf exclaimed as he pushed himself up.

Spirit couldn't help but agree. Grundy's strength was incredible. She was glad that she didn't get hit. If she did get hit…it would definitely hurt.

Grundy began to smash the ground in anger. He beat on the ground like a drum and caused the earth to shake. This did not influence the ghosts, though, because they were floating above the ground.

All three ghosts charged at the giant monster. They sent a barrage of attacks at Grundy. Grundy tried to knock them away, but none of them were hit. In fact, Spirit was gleefully dancing around the monster's strikes.

For her, this was as close as things had been to normal for a month. This was her element. This was where she thrived. This was where…

"RAW!" Wulf found a large opening in Grundy's defense. The wolf ghost's dimensional claws extended. He clashed his claws from Grundy's right should to the monster's left ribs. All the ghosts were surprised to see green blood gush out of Grundy's wounds.

As the large monster held his wounds, Spirit stared. That wound…The green blood…The terrible pain…

_Dani, in her ghost form, felt tears run down her face as she watched her brother's body dissolve. The hulking form of the Fenton Exoskeleton stood above the rapidly fading body. Even if Spirit could move, she wouldn't get to the body._

_Soon, all that was left was a green puddle._

"_NO!"_

"Move!" Wulf cried, but Spirit ignored him. She even ignored her Premonition as it screamed at her to get out of the way of Grundy's strike.

"Ah!" Spirit cried as Grundy's massive hand grabbed her.

"No!" Wulf and Cujo desperately tried to save their friend, but Grundy managed to knock them away when they left an opening.

Spirit struggled to escape the monster's grasp, but she couldn't overpower him and couldn't focus enough to turn intangible. "Ahg!"

"RAW!" Grundy brought his other fist and tried to smash Spirit's head. She watched in fear as the giant hand almost came closer to her head.

Suddenly, the fist stopped. Grundy blinked at her. "Eh?"

He brought her really close to his face. Spirit could see every wrinkle on his face, his yellow teeth, and familiar green eyes. Where did she know those eyes?

"Where does Grundy know girl?" The monster grunted.

"What?" Spirit whispered.

"Grundy knows girl. Grundy…can't…hurt girl." Grundy trailed off and looked away. "Grundy don't hurt Dani."

Spirit's eyes widened. "How do you…"

"AHHH!" Grundy released Spirit and clutched his arm. There was a deep gash on the monster's bicep. Green blood was pouring out of the wound, but it quickly healed.

"Well…" A deep and rather dramatic voice called out. "It appears that fears are beyond, you heathen. Is it bravery, or lack of intelligence?"

The Fright Knight was covered in black armor. He wore grey gauntlets, boots, and helmet. His helmet hid his face, but did nothing to hide his fiery purple hair. In his right hand was a pure green sword. It was the Soul Shredder. Normally, the sword could sent a person to an alternate dimension of fear, but Grundy seemed immune to that effect.

The Fright Knight grabbed Spirit and pulled her back. A little over a week ago, the Fright Knight had sworn his loyal to Danny Phantom. Thus, his loyalty was also to Phantom's family and friends. Thus his interference.

"Grundy crush you!" Grundy went to lunge at the Fright Knight, but was stopped when a blast of pink magenta energy crashed into him and sent him tumbling.

"Please." Vlad Plasmius floated above Grundy. "You no longer have even a chance of victory."

"RAW!" Grundy tried to get up, but the Fright Knight sent a large flaming jewel at the monster to keep him down.

Wulf took this opportunity to pounce on the monster. Showing his own strength, Wulf managed to get Grundy on his back and hold the monster's pale hands behind his back. Plasmius then took this opportunity to use his energy to lock Grundy's hands and feet together. Grundy was trapped.

"Tsk." The Fright Knight approached the monster. "That was boring."

"He might have been dangerous to one of us individually, but he didn't have a chance with all of us here." Plasmius noted.

"Indeed." Fright Knight nodded, then he turned to the approaching Ember. "Thank you, siren. Your warning was very helpful."

"Well, with Danny gone, I thought that it was best to get some help." Ember shrugged. "Guess it was a good idea."

"Indeed." Plasmius eyed the struggling monster. "Perhaps we should contact the League to pick this guy up. He is not a ghost."

"Yet I sense some ectoplasm from him." The Fright Knight noted.

Wulf and Cujo sniffed the monster. "Magic too."

"Hmm…" Plasmius looked down at Grundy. "Quite the combination. Usually, that doesn't work. Tell me, what are you?"

"Grundy kill you!" Solomon Grundy exclaimed.

"Fair enough."

Meanwhile, Spirit stood back and watched Grundy as he struggled against his restraints. She knew where she had seen those eyes before. It was eyes that she saw every day when she looked in the mirror.

The halfa didn't know how…but Grundy was connected to her somehow.

* * *

><p>(Monday-July 5, 2010)<p>

Phantom didn't know where he was. He did know that he was sitting in a simple chair. All around him was darkness. It was so cold….How was it cold? It was the beginning of July.

The halfa blinked and looked around. He could see nothing. There were no sounds. He was completely alone.

"No you're not." A voice called out to him.

A figure appeared out of the darkness. Phantom recognized the figure immediately. It was himself.

"What?" Phantom questioned. "Why do you look like me?"

"Is that what you see?" The fake Phantom questioned. "How unusual. Your mind must be fighting to make sense of the situation."

"Make sense? Dude, nothing is making sense right now." Phantom noted.

"What do you remember?" The fake Phantom questioned.

"I remember…Project Cadmus….Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash…Superboy…." Phantom frowned. "I lost."

"Yes, I apologize for that." The fake Phantom vanished. Behind the real Phantom appeared a look alike of Spirit. "I had to interfere to stop you from winning."

"You interfered…but we were alone." Phantom reasoned.

"Yes, but I used my telepathy to lock a few of your base powers and stop you from using that devastating attack of yours." The fake Spirit explained.

"So that's why I couldn't fly or turn intangible…" Phantom frowned at the figure behind him.

"Yes, in my experience, telepaths cannot normally interfere with a ghost's mind. There is too much turmoil and emotions. But your mind is different. It is calm….numb even." The figure walked around Phantom. The fake Spirit changed into Plasmius.

"I see…" Phantom sighed.

"In fact…" The darkness fades and the world around them came to light. "It is like a frozen wasteland."

Phantom examined his surroundings. It appeared to be Amity Park, except everything was frozen. In addition, the buildings seemed to be damaged and hurt, but they were still standing. Above them floated a green sky with shifting energy, which could be compared to the Ghost Zone.

"Where are we?" Phantom questioned.

"Your mind." Fake Plasmius answered. "Unusual, isn't it?"

"I never thought it would be so…" Phantom struggled to find the right word.

"Isolated? Silent? Calm?" Plasmius shifted into a fake Ember.

"Yeah…" Phantom stood from his chair. "But it makes sense if you think about it."

"Yes it does, I have read some of your more recent memories. Nothing personal, just on why you mind is this way. I apologize for the intrusion of privacy." Fake Ember apologized.

Phantom frowned. "I don't like it, but at least you had manners about it."

"Hmm…You are not angry." Fake Ember shifted into an image of Wulf. "And there was no change in your mindscape…"

"I haven't gotten angry for a while." Phantom admitted.

"Yes…" Fake Wulf looked around the frozen and destroyed city. "It looks as if a great ice storm of emotions has passed through here. You must have felt constant emotion, turmoil, anger, and pain. Now, though, you have forced the storm to completely disappear. Now, nothing remains."

Phantom nodded. "I used anger for power. With that gone…I don't have much left."

"Is this because of the war?" Fake Wulf's form shifted one final time. He now appeared to have blue skin, muscular build, white hair, red eyes, and a forked toungue.

The ice around them cracked a little.

"I refuse to talk about that." Phantom said evenly as he stared into the face of his greatest fear.

Dark Dan raised an eyebrow. "Yet that is all that I'm concerned about. You see, you give us hope."

"Who?" Phantom questioned.

"The Genomorphs." Dark Dan's image shifted again. Now, the person's true form appeared in front of the halfa. It was one of the grey creatures. He was tall, lanky, and wearing white clothing. "We have watched you, Danny Phantom. We have watched as you faced adversity, prejudice, anger and overcame them all. We too wish to overcome these things."

"So the Genomorphs aren't just weapons." Phantom didn't seemed surprised. "Then why don't you just run away?"

"To where?" The Genomorph questioned. "No person on the outside would trust or tolerate such monsters. Even the Ghost Zone would be against us because we are living."

"I see…" Phantom eyed the creature. "Then I'm guessing you want my help."

"Yes, how did you know?" The Genomorph questioned.

"It seems like everyone wants my help. But I have to say, I have enough trouble keeping the peace between the humans and ghosts. I don't think I can handle a third race."

"That is not my request." The Genomorph explained. "Ever since you ended the GIW war, we have been secretly feeding your actions into Superboy's brain. It was a message of mercy, forgiveness, and heroism. Because of this, Superboy has an instinctual trust of you. He will see you as the symbol that he doesn't have to be the weapon to stop Superman."

"I…see." Phantom sighed.

"Take care of him. Watch him. Instruct him, for he is our brother, and at least he should be allowed to live free. And, I hope that one day we can join our brother in the sun." The Genomorph stated.

"…I can try." Phantom stated. "But I give no promises."

"That is acceptable." The Genomorph extended a hand towards Phantom. "My name is Dubbilex."

Phantom took the hand. "Danny Phantom, and for the record, never mess with my mind again, or I'll knock your face in."

Dubbilex chuckled. "Fair enough. I will restore your full powers…or what is left anyway. Now you should wake up, they are trying to clone you after all."

"What?!" Phantom's eyes widened.

"Stay safe, Danny Phantom."

* * *

><p>Phantom woke with a terrible pain in his chest. Metal claws were latched to his chest. He felt electricy running through his veins. "AAHH!"<p>

The halfa quickly activated his ice powers. The metal claws was covered in ice. Frost formed in to pod he was in. Because the pod was weakened, Phantom easily rammed his way through the glass of the pod. He could ignore the small cuts caused by the class. They were nothing serious.

"What!?" A man in a lab coat exclaimed as Phantom landed in front of his group.

Guardian instantly charged at Phantom, but the halfa was prepared for this. Phantom turned intangible and caused the armored hero to pass through the ghost. This combined with the ice on the ground caused Guardian to slip and lose his balance. Phantom took advantage of this by grabbing the hero and tossing him into the group in front of him.

"About time you woke up!" Kid Flash exclaimed as the electricity died down. "You could have done that earlier."

"You're welcome." Phantom snorted. His attention was then drawn to the door as it was pulled off its hinges. Superboy tossed the door away with ease. Phantom had to admit, Superboy had far more physical strength than he had. It was a rather frightening thought. "And you're here now…"

Superboy began to approach them.

"Are you here for round two?" Phantom questioned.

"No…" Superboy stated. "I…don't want to be a weapon."

Phantom nodded slowly. "Fair enough. Will you help us?"

"Yes."

"Okay then." Phantom turned just in time to see Robin free himself.

"Gah! Finally! Lucky Batman isn't here. He'd have my head for taking so long." Robin grumbled as he rubbed his wrist.

"Seriously? That's what you're worried about?" Kid Flash glared. "The whole League will have our heads after tonight!"

"Actually, Kid Mouth, I was planning on putting all the blame on you." Phantom answered as he freed Aqualad from his pod.

"Same here."

"Indeed."

"I just met you guys, and even I know that's a good idea."

"Wow…" Kid Flash grumbled. "Feeling the love here."

After Robin freed Kid Flash, the group of teenagers began to run out of the room. Phantom looked at Superboy and asked. "Please tell me you know you're way around this place."

"Nope."

"Greeeeaaat…" Phantom mumbled.

"You'll never get out of here!" The scientist called out. "I'll have you back in pods before morning!"

"That guy is not whelmed. Not whelmed at all." Robin noted as he destroyed the cloning pods by throwing four exploding shuriken.

"What is it with you and this whelmed thing?" Kid Flash questioned.

* * *

><p>Their escape from Project Cadmus did not go as smoothly as Phantom wanted. Because of a combination of the others' lack of listening, the attacking Genomorphs, and Phantom's inability to focus enough energy to fly them all out of there, they had to escape the normal way.<p>

The journey to the surface was actually a rather short adventure. After dragging Superboy away from fighting, they managed to navigate their way through Cadmus. They used elevators, vents, and stairs to eventually get right below the surface…only to be knocked out by the Genomorphs telepathy.

Phantom really needed to find a way to block that type of attack…

When Phantom came too again, he heard Superboy say to the Genomorphs. "I…choose freedom."

It appeared that this answered the Genomorphs, because Guardian seemed to be released from their control. He shook his head in confusion. "Guh…Feels like the fog lifted."

"Gah!" Dubbilex grunted in pain as Phantom punched him in the face.

Everyone looked at Phantom. "What? I warned him that would happen if he ever messed with my mind again."

"Fair enough." Superboy nodded.

"Guardian." Aqualad noted as he turned his attention to the older hero.

Guardian appeared angry, but not at them. "Go. I'll handle Desmond."

"I think not!" The scientist known as Desmond called out. The crowd of Genomorphs parted to show the angry scientist.

"Project Blockbuster will give the power to restore order to Cadmus." Desmond held up a vile of light blue liquid. He then chugged the liquid.

The heroes stood in shock as Desmond began to change. His muscles grew, and his clothes ripped. The scientist's eyes flashed red as his skin pealed to reveal a grey interior. Desmond was not a huge grey monster with massive muscles. "ROAR!"

"…Well, crap." Phantom mumbled. What else could go wrong?

He shouldn't have thought that. Nope. Phantom learned that he couldn't even think about what else could go wrong. It led only to bad things.

A short exchange between Superboy and Desmond sent the being flying through to the first floor. Phantom and the others quickly followed, only to be met by Superboy being tossed at them. Poor Aqualad was once again floored by Superboy.

The following fight did not go well for the young heroes. At first they managed to stop Desmond for about a moment before the rampaging scientist got the better of them. The hulking monster threw Aqualad, Superboy, and Phantom through pillars.

"Raw!" The monster roared as he punched Aqualad through the pillar.

Both Phantom and Robin took notice. Phantom then yelled. "Everyone, regroup!"

The young heroes managed to get back together as Kid Flash distracted Desmond. Robin showed them were to hit. "Here here, and here!"

"After that, everyone get behind me!" Phantom instructed. "I'll use my Ghostly Wail to take him down under this building."

"Ghostly Wail?" Superboy questioned.

"You'll find out in a minute." Phantom noted as they got to work.

They quickly managed to weaken the building enough by destroying pillars. After a moment, enough pillars were destroyed, Desmond was stunned by electricity, and they regrouped. The four other young heroes stood behind Phantom as he glared at the raging monster. "Cover your ears!"

"Why?"

"Just do it!" They complied. Phantom took in a deep breath and let it roar.

Desmond didn't stand a chance. Phantom's Ghostly Wail may be weakened, but it was more than enough to hurt Desmond and bring the crumbling building down. Seconds after the building finished falling, Superboy shoved the debree off the exhausted heroes.

"Ghostly Wail, huh?" Kid Flash gasped.

"Yep."

"The name suits it." Robin huffed.

"Yep."

"It's destructive." Aqualad wiped the sweat off his brow.

"Yep."

"I like it." Superboy smirked.

"Thanks."

* * *

><p>Phantom gaped as the entire Justice League surrounded them. It was a terrifying feeling. To have such powerful people around you at all sides…Phantom felt claustrophobic. But that wasn't the worst part.<p>

No, the worst part was Superman's rejection of Superboy.

Phantom couldn't imagine it. Superboy walked right up to the Man of Steel and stated who he was. The halfa could still see the look of horror on Superman's face. Phantom could relate to Superman. It was a shock to learn that you were cloned, but…Superman's raw dislike of the clone was unacceptable to Phantom. Dani was his clone, and he loved her like a sister.

Phantom couldn't accept this outrage. A clone was a person too. He had feelings and dreams of his own. The halfa placed a hand on the clone's shoulder as the League took Desmond away and discussed what to do. No words were spoken between the teens. Phantom just stood by his new friend in silence.

He could tell that Superboy appreciated it, even as Superman flew away.

Batman approached them with the Flash and Aquaman by his sides. "Cadmus will be investigated. All 52 levels. But let's make one thing clear-"

"You should have called!" The Flash interjected.

"End results aside, we're not happy." Batman glared. "You hacked Justice League systems, disobeyed direct orders, and endangered lives. You will not be doing this again."

The young heroes shared a look.

"I am sorry." Aqualad stated. "But we will."

"Aqualad, stand down." Aquaman ordered.

"Apologies, my king, but no." Aqualad respectfully said.

This shocked Aquaman.

"We did good work here tonight." Aqualad noted. "The work you trained us to do. Together, on our own, we forged something powerful. Important."

"This is about your treatment at the hall?" Flash questioned. "The four of you-"

"Five." Phantom glanced at Superboy. "There are five of us."

"And that is not what this is about." Kid Flash nodded.

"Batman, we're ready to use what you taught us." Robin interjected. "Or why teach us at all?"

"Why let them tell us what to do?!" Superboy looked up. "It's simple, get on board, or get out of the way."

All five of the young heroes stared forward at the Justice League. There was silence as they waited for the answer. Phantom wasn't sure what he was going to do. He had his own problems at home, but he couldn't just abandon his new friends. No, they needed him to stand by them right now.

Finally, in a moment, Batman spoke. "Give me three days."

* * *

><p>"What the hell happened?" Vlad questioned as Danny crashed onto the couch. "You were supposed to be home hours ago."<p>

"Hell broke loose." Danny mumbled. "You don't have to say it. I know that you told me so. I shouldn't have asked what could happen."

"Do I get any details? After all, hell breaking loose can be interpreted in many ways." Vlad questioned as he sat on a nearby chair.

"I'll tell you tomorrow, but Batman told me about what happened here." Danny sighed. "How's Dani?"

"Mad." Dani walked into the room. "I can't believe you weren't here for the fight!"

"It's complicated, Dani." Danny mumbled. "And a long story at that. One that can wait, but what happened here…Who is this…Solomon Grundy?"

"We have no idea." Vlad answered. "He appeared out of nowhere. He's not a ghost though."

"Then what is he?" Danny questioned.

"A zombie." Dani stated. "Like in the Walking Dead comics."

"It's different than that…and you shouldn't be reading those, Danielle!" Vlad shouted.

Dani shrugged.

"Solomon seems to be a combination of magic and ectoplasm." Vlad explained.

"What? That…doesn't usually work." Danny noted.

"Exactly. The only other being like him is Nyx." Vlad stated. "But Nyx is unable to use both energies yet. That's what terrifying, though. Solomon Grundy naturally uses both magic and ectoplasm to make himself almost immortal. If there are other like him…"

"Yet another thing to look into…" Danny sighed. "But it will have to be later…How were the fireworks, by the way?"

"Loud. Explosive. Fun." Dani pouted. "And you missed it."

"Sorry, but I do have a good excuse…" Danny remembered Superboy. The halfa wanted to help the clone, but no one besides Batman knew his secret identity. Thus, Kid Flash took the clone to his home.

"Whatever." Dani shrugged. "I'm going to bed. See you tomorrow."

"Goodnight…" Danny watched her go. "Well, crap…"

"What?" Vlad raised an eyebrow.

"I just remembered about Ember…She is going to be so pissed at me. I didn't get anything for her." Danny placed his face in his hands. "She is so going to punish me…"

"Whipped!" Dani exclaimed from the stairs.

"…I thought she was out of ear shot…"

* * *

><p>(Thursday-July 8, 2010)<p>

"This cave was the original secret sanctuary of the Justice League." Batman explained as they stood inside the Mount Justice. "We're calling it into service again. Since you five seem determined to stay together and fight the good fight…You'll do it on League terms. Red Tornado volunteered to live here and be your supervisor. Black Canary is in charge of training. I will deploy you on missions."

"Real missions?" Robin asked.

"Yes, but covert." Batman answered.

"The League will still handle the obvious stuff. There's a reason we have these big targets on our chests." Flash interjected.

Phantom ignored the fact that he had his own original symbol on his chest.

"And Cadmus proves that the bad guys are getting smarter. Batman needs a team that can operate on the sly." Aquaman noted.

"The six of you will be that team." Batman finished.

"Cool!...Wait, six?" Robin asked.

Batman pointed behind them. The new team turned and saw Martian Manhunter escorting a green skinned girl with red hair. Phantom had to admit, that girl was very good looking. Something that Kid Flash quickly took notice to.

"This is the Martian Manhunter's niece, Miss Martian." Batman stated.

"Hi…" Miss Martian waved weakly.

"I'm liking this gig more every minute." Kid Flash muttered to Robin. He then announced, "Welcome aboard! I'm Kid Flash. That's Robin, Aqualad, Phantom, and Superboy, but you can forget them."

"I'm honored to be included." Miss Martian humbly stated.

As he approached the girl, Phantom had to appreciate the female hero. It really helped the ratio. Hopefully, she would even out all the masculine stupidity in the group.

"Hey, Superboy, come meet Miss M!" Robin called back to Superboy.

As Superboy approached her, Miss Martian's white blouse turned black. "I like your tee-shirt…"

Superboy smiled as Robin elbowed him playfuly and Kid Flash put his arm around the clone.

Aqualad smiled at them. "Today is the day."

Phantom eyed his team. He wasn't completely sure about this. This team could go either way. It could be great or end disastrously. Joining might just be the end of him if they couldn't work together. Not to mention the time it would take away from being in Amity Park. There was a good chance this would end in disaster.

But…part of Phantom felt that he needed to be a part of this team, even if he didn't want to be. It was illogical considering all that was already on his plate, but Phantom felt that this could something that helped him….

For now, he would try and be part of this "team." He could always quit later if things went south, after all.

But right now…Today is indeed the day.

* * *

><p><strong>And there we go...first <span>real<span> chapter done. And wow that was a lot of stuff I had to include. I had to watch the first two episodes of Young Justice several times to get this right. This is one of the few chapters that I won't mix up the main story, though. I kept the team origin similar, but other things will end differently.  
><strong>

**Some of you might be surprised by Dani's story being included. Obsession was mostly about Danny, but I'm hoping to make the chapters as even as possible for them. Dani's part will be just as important as Danny's part. Although they will each get their own chapters dedicated specifically to them.  
><strong>

**I also decided to change some things about how I format the chapters compared to Obsession. Each chapter will now have a title to help organization and the quote will come before the line break because I think it looks more structured.**

**A note to anyone wondering about my schedule for updating. I don't have one. My policy will be the same as Obsession. At least one chapter per month, but besides that, the updates can happen whenever I have time (Although reviews do help motivate me... hint hint). I have classes again, and I already had to procrastinate to finish this. So, next update will be in February.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	3. Teamwork

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"When you start out in a team, you have to get the teamwork going and then you get something back."

Michael Schumacher

* * *

><p>Chapter 3: "Teamwork"<p>

(Sunday-July 18, 2010)

Danny woke up feeling warm. This wouldn't be considered unusual for a normal person. It was the ideal situation to wake up warm and comfortable. For the halfa, though, it did not happen every day. His core as a ghost was naturally cold, and it influenced him even in his human form. In a sense, Danny could ignore any temperature that wasn't lethal.

Waking up with Ember by his side, however, changed that.

Danny didn't move as he woke from unconsciousness. He didn't want to wake the girl. She was never in a good mood if she was woken up by someone else.

"Good morning…." Ember noted as she continued to let her head rest in the crook of his neck.

…If she woke up by herself on the other hand…

"Morning…" Danny mumbled as he used the arm that Ember wasn't currently clutching to rub his eyes. "Were you awake long?"

"Long enough…" Ember still hadn't moved.

"Meaning you hadn't moved since you snuck in here five hours ago." Danny chuckled.

"You knew I came into your room?" Ember questioned.

"Ghost sense, remember? Hard to ignore." Danny noted as he looked at the girl lying next to him. Her long blue hair was let down for her sleep. "Not that I mind, of course, but you do realize that you have a guest room set up for you, right?"

"What would be the fun in that?" Ember chuckled as she smiled at her boyfriend. "Besides, your bed is more comfortable."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, you make the best pillow…" Ember laid her head on his shoulder.

"I must be, because this is the fifth time you snuck in here for the last week and a half." Danny frowned. "Is there a reason for this?"

"I don't need a reason to sleep next to my boyfriend." Ember insisted.

"Really? Because I think it has to do with your upcoming tour." Danny insisted.

Like he had promised months ago, Danny managed to use his (really Vlad's) influences to get Ember back into the music business. Through the power of I-tunes, Ember's talent, and great publicity, Ember became a hit once again. People were loving her music, and Ember was elated. Soon, she would begin her fall tour, and after she left…Danny didn't know what would happen.

"Okay, I get it, but let's not talk about that right now." Ember insisted. "Instead, let's talk about your continued punishment."

"Still?" Danny felt like crying. "It's been like two weeks since I missed the fireworks."

"Not just that." Ember sat up. She was wearing loose sleeping wear. "You've been busy with work and that weird team of yours."

"I've made time for you." Danny sat up as well. "Two hours a day, at least, right?"

"That's true, but that's not the point." Ember grabbed his hands. "We're teenagers, Danny, and yet you have all this…responsibility."

Danny sighed. "I know, but I can't just quit now. I had to work hard to get to this point…as both Fenton and Phantom."

"Okay, I get the inventing thing. I really do, and soon Axion will be taking over most of it, but a team of young superheroes? What's with that?"

"I don't really know myself." Danny admitted. "It seems like a really bad idea if you think about it. This will just take me away from an Obsession that I have only recently reclaimed, but…I have a feeling that I have to do this. I feel like I need to be a part of this team or…"

"Or what?"

Or his guilt and numbness would surely get the better of him. Danny knew that this team could go south very quickly. Part of him felt like this could be a chance for some redemption. Danny felt that keeping those young heroes alive would make up for all the lives that he messed up for his decision…if only a little.

"Well, I feel responsible, that's all." Danny smiled.

"Gah! Responsible! It gets so annoying." Ember sighed dramatically. "I'd be mad if I didn't like that about you."

"Good to know…" Danny smiled.

"I bet it is. But we still need to be teenagers and be spontaneous, so…" Ember kissed Danny.

"Ah…" Danny noted after a moment.

"Yep, you still do have an hour till you have to get ready, so…Woah!" Ember laughed as Danny pulled her down. "Now we're talking!"

* * *

><p>"So bored…" Dani mumbled as she sat by the community pool. She was wearing a simple black one-piece swimsuit. "And nothing to break…"<p>

"What's with your fascination with breaking things?" Dani's friend Rachel Roth noted as her dark eyes looked up from the book she was reading. Despite the heat, she was wearing a purple hoody and jeans. Apparently, she had no intention of swimming.

"The better question is…" Nyx's head popped out of the water as she splashed the violet haired girl. "Why are you so against it?!"

Nyx was the daughter of Pandora. Her normally purple hair and blue skin were hidden by a specialized piece of Fenton equipment called a Disguise Ring. She now appeared to have blond hair and darkly tanned skin.

"…" The now soaked Rachel glared at Nyx. "I will kill you."

"You can try!" Nyx laughed.

"Yes!" Dani smiled. "That's exactly what I was talking about! A fight! I haven't had a good fight since Solomon Grundy."

"Can't believe I missed that by like five minutes…" Nyx pouted.

"Too bad for you…" Raven sighed as she dried herself off.

"I heard that guy was huge!" The three girls heard a boy's voice approach them.

"Yeah, and…What are you wearing?" Dani raised an eyebrow at her unlikely friend.

Like Nyx, Youngblood was allowed to come into the human world while in disguise. He now appeared as a normal blond haired boy…who just so happened to be wearing scuba gear. This included flippers, goggles, and an oxygen tank.

Rachel placed her palm to her face.

"I'm a deep sea scuba diver!" Youngblood exclaimed. "Ahoy!"

"That's a sailor, not a scuba diver." A small voice came off the skeleton necklace around Youngblood's neck.

"Can't I be both?" Youngblood questioned.

"You can be neither." Rachel shook her head in embarrassment. "Go. Change. Now."

"But whhhhyyyyyy?" Youngblood whined.

Rachel glared.

"Fine, fine, I'll take the tank off at least." Youngblood drooped in depression.

"So you were talking about that Grundy guy?" Nyx questioned.

Dani nodded. Even before this conversation, Dani had thought a lot about Solomon Grundy. She thought about why he stopped his attack on her. He had the chance to kill her, yet he muttered her real name. Not only that, his eyes…He had same eyes as Spirit had….as Phantom had…

She didn't tell anyone this, though. No one else saw the connection, so maybe she was being paranoid? It's just that…She recognized those eyes. They were the eyes of a phantom…

"Dani?" Nyx splashed the halfa. "Earth to Dani! Wake up!"

"Huh?" Dani shook her head. "What is it?"

"Grundy? Was he strong?" Nyx questioned.

"Yeah, but he was super slow. There was no way he could catch me normally." Dani frowned as she remembered how she froze. "But it was amazing at the punishment he could take. Even after Fright Knight and Dad took him down, he was still struggling."

"Speaking of your bodyguard…" Rachel glared upwards. "How long is he just going to float there invisibly?"

"Well…Dad and Danny asked him to keep an eye on me, so…" Dani shrugged. She really didn't mind. It wasn't like Fright Knight ever did anything anyway.

"Forget about the Tin Can!" Nyx climbed out of the pool. Her love for nicknames didn't even make her friends flinch. "I'm in a fighting mood after all this talk about the Zombie, I think a spar's a good idea."

"That would definitely stop the boredom." Dani agreed.

"Sounds good!" Youngblood nodded enthusiastically.

"Do we have too?" Rachel questioned.

"Yes, yes we do." Nyx nodded.

"Yes, we have to make the most of summer…like Phineas and Ferb!" Dani smiled.

Both Nyx and Youngblood grinned at that.

"Okay!" Rachel interjected. "We can spar, as long as you don't sing the theme song."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"No deal."

Rachel groaned as they began to sing. "Sometimes, I hate my life."

* * *

><p><strong>Recognized: Danny Phantom B04 <strong>

Phantom walked into the cave via Zeta Tube. He had to admit, it was an efficient way to travel. Teleportaion was definitely that way to get across the country. The halfa was just glad that the League had one installed in Amity Park.

"Hey, people!" Phantom walked up to Aqualad, Superboy, and Miss Martian who were all wearing civilian clothes. "I got your message. We finally getting a mission?"

"We are hopeful." Aqualad smiled at his friend.

"So…no, then." Phantom frowned.

"We're hopeful." Miss Martian was ever the optimist. "We're going to ask Red Tornado about it."

"I thought Batman was responsible for missions?" Phantom questioned.

"He is, but if I don't get out of this cave soon, I'll go nuts." Superboy crossed his arms and scowled.

"Alright, worth a shot." Phantom shrugged. "So we waiting for Robin and the Speeding Banana?"

Superboy snorted at that joke. Miss Martian and Aqualad were more polite, but were still amused.

"Yes, they should be arriving shortly." Aqualad explained.

**Recognized: Robin B01, Kid Flash B03**

"Speak of the devil…" Phantom noted as his other teammates approached them.

"Did you ask him!?" Robin questioned.

"What did he say!?" Kid Flash asked.

"He's arriving now." Aqualad stated.

"Then what are we waiting for!?" Kid Flash began to run to the entrance to the Mountain.

Phantom rubbed his eyes as they went. He muttered, "This isn't going to work, I bet…"

"I thought you said it was worth a shot?" Superboy questioned.

"Meh, my hopefulness dies very quickly." Phantom admitted.

"Okay then." Superboy shrugged. "I can understand that."

The six young heroes walked out of the ramp entrance to the Mountain. Red Tornado began to descend in front of them. Phantom marveled at the red wind he was generating. He could understand why Torch had such a hard time with the android.

"Red Tornado!" Kid Flash greeted with a wave.

"Greetings." Red Tornado's mechanical voice sounded. "Is there a reason you intercept me outside the cave?"

"We hoped you had a mission for us." Aqualad admitted.

"Deploying missions is Batman's responsibility." Red Tornado answered.

"But it's-" Robin was interrupted when Phantom put a hand on his shoulder.

"Got it, we're just getting restless." Phantom explained. "Some sort of test or mission would help, you know?"

"Understood. You shall be tested soon enough." Red nodded. "For the time being, simply enjoy each other's company."

"This team is not a social club." Aqualad stated, and Phantom had to agree with him.

"No, but I am told social interaction is an important team building exercise." Red Tornado noted as he began to enter the cave. "Perhaps you can keep busy by familiarizing yourselves with the Cave."

"Keep busy?" Phantom questioned. "I'm busy enough. I don't need to work to make it worse."

"Oh, really?" Miss Martian questioned. She seemed eager to hear about it. "Like what?"

Phantom gave her a side glance. "Personal stuff…"

"Oh…" Miss Martian deflated.

"Does he think we're falling for this!?" Robin exclaimed in outrage.

"Oh, I'll find out!" Miss Martian exclaimed. She appeared to be concentrating at Red Tornado.

"Um, Miss Martian?" Phantom stopped her. "I don't know how things work on Mars, but on Earth, doing that would be considered pretty rude."

"Oh…" Miss Martian looked sheepish.

"It's fine, not like it would work on Red anyway." Phantom shrugged. "He's non-organic. No 'mind' to read."

"You can read my mind, though." Kid Flash leaned in at the pretty green skinned girl. "Can you tell what I'm thinking, right now?"

"We all know what you're thinking now." Robin elbowed the speedster.

"And now we tour the clubhouse…" Aqualad frowned.

"As long as you don't call it a lair. If this was a lair, I'd be out of here. I'm not into the ghost stereotypes." Phantom joked.

"Well…Superboy and I live here. Maybe we can be tour guides." Miss Martian suggested.

"Don't look at me." Superboy grunted.

"We won't!" Kid stared at Miss Martian. "A private tour sounds much more fun."

"She never said private!" Robin interjected.

"Team building." Aqualad stated. "We all go."

"So lead on, oh powerful tour guides." Phantom stated as he followed the others inside.

Truthfully, he was rather upset by this turn of events. He had a lot of better things to do than a stupid tour of the 'clubhouse.' He wanted to use this free time to train, and he was sure that it would do the others good as well, but it wasn't his place to bring that up. He wasn't the leader, so he wasn't going to go bossing them around.

But it would surely be better than a public tour. He already knew enough about Mt. Justice based on his own exploration. Now, he would just be bored as Miss Martian went over every nook and cranny of the Cave.

Oh, joy.

* * *

><p>Lake Eerie was one of the most forgotten parts of Amity Park, Minnesota. It was a dark depressing lake that fit in just fine with Amity Park's reputation of being the most haunted city in the world. Not many people came here, especially after the Fentons died. Danny, however, remembered his father's secret fishing spot, and tried to take Dani fishing once.<p>

She hated it, but it did allow her to find a secret training spot. And after what happened the last time she fought in the mansion…well, Dani was sure that her dad didn't want anything else broken.

"Well…I think this place is creepier than the Ghost Zone." Nyx noted. She had removed her disguise and was now wearing her regular golden armor and black skirt.

"It looks like a place from a horror movie." Youngblood noted. His green hair was now showing, and he was wearing his normal pirate clothing.

"I like it…" Rachel smiled. She was now wearing a purple cloak that covered her entire body. A hood was up that hid her entire face.

"You would." Spirit smiled. "Apparently the fishing here's pretty good, but I kind of broke our boat before I could find out."

"Of course you did…" Rachel rolled her eyes.

"So, how we do this, tournament style?" Nyx questioned.

"Oh! Sounds good, me livers!" Youngblood nodded. "I'll go first."

"Rack! It's me hearties." Youngblood's parrot stated. "You got it right before…"

"Right, I forgot…" Youngblood shrugged.

"Okay, then. I think-" Spirit gasped as blue mist escaped from her mouth.

"Your Ghost Sense." Rachel noted.

"It's probably just the Tin Can." Nyx shrugged. "He's guarding you, and who else would come here, anyway?"

"…Right." Spirit nodded slowly. If a ghost was attacking, they already would have attacked.

"But I don't see him." Youngblood stated. "Why would he be invisible now?"

"…Good point…" Rachel nodded. She sometimes forget that Youngblood was rather intelligent, if naïve and forgetful. "Why is he hiding?"

"I…" Spirit looked around. "I don't know, but my Premonition isn't going off, so…"

"Then we're good!" Nyx cheered. "Come on. Captain Kid and I'll go first!"

As their friends flew over the lake, Rachel turned to Spirit. "Are you sure nothing's wrong?"

Spirit turned to her friend. After finding out that Danny and her Dad knew about Rachel's magical abilities, the younger halfa had them both sit down with talk with Rachel. Neither of the older halfa's had a problem with the magic user, but Rachel always seemed on edge…always. "Right now, no. Soon, though? Maybe."

"Oh, joy." Rachel rolled her eyes. "Tell me when something goes wrong, then."

"You'll be the first to know…" Spirit looked behind her for a second. There was nothing there.

As she turned back, she missed as several miniature green creatures began to dance around.

* * *

><p>The tour had been boring as predicted. A lot of the knowledge about the Cave was in the database that was available to the team. Phantom was concerned that people, villains specifically, knew about the Cave. The security and idea of hiding in plain sight helped ease Phantom's worries, but they did not fade completely.<p>

…Maybe that was just Phantom's paranoia, though…

Superboy sniffed the air. "I smell smoke."

"Ah! My cookies!" Miss Martian cried as she flew into the kitchen.

The males in the group followed the girl as she telekinetically lifted the tray of burnt cookies out of the oven. Miss Martian seemed very upset. She mentioned something about a cooking show, but Phantom didn't know too much about cooking shows, so it meant little to him.

"I bet they would have tasted great." Robin encouraged. "Besides, they seem to like them."

Both Kid Flash and Phantom looked up as they swallowed the burnt desserts. Kid Flash noted. "I have a serious metabolism."

"I have an iron stomach." Phantom noted. "As long as the food doesn't bite back, I'm fine."

"Okay…" Miss Martian seemed surprised.

"You've had food that bit back?" Superboy seemed amused.

"Yep. Long story." Phantom shrugged.

"I'm still sorry that I burnt them. I'll make more, okay?" Miss Martian smiled.

"It was sweet of you to make any." Aqualad acknowledged.

"Thanks Aqualad." Miss Martian stated.

"We're off duty. Call me Kaldur'ahm." Aqualad noted. "Actually, my friends call me Kaldur."

"I'm Wally." Kid Flash tried to flirt and failed. "See, I already trust you with my secret id. Unlike Mr. Dark Glasses over here. Batman's forbidden Boy Wonder from telling anyone his real name."

"At least you guys have secret identities." Phantom noted. "Danny Phantom is actually my name. Calling me either Danny or Phantom works. Don't really have a preference."

"Mine's not really a secret either. It's M'gann M'orzz." Miss Martian state proudly. "But you can call me Megan…It's an Earth name, and I'm on Earth now."

Phantom had to bite back his sarcastic remark. He really wanted to say, "Really? This isn't Mercury? I've been lied to all my life," but Phantom knew that she would take it the wrong way. It would hurt her feelings, then he would have to pretend to be remorseful. It was too much of a hassle for a quick comment.

"Get out of my head!" Superboy shouted angrily.

Phantom turned to him in confusion. "What are-"

'What's wrong? I don't understand.' M'gann's mental intrusion caused Phantom to flinch. 'Everyone on Mars communicates telepathically.'

"M'gann, stop!" Kaldur stated.

"This isn't Mars. It's like I said with Red Tornado, it's rude to invade someone's mind." Phantom noted as he shook off his mental shock. "Our minds are one of the few things Earthlings have that is completely private."

"Besides, Cadmus's creepy little psychic Genomorphs left a bad taste in his brain." Kid Flash cupped the side of his mouth like he was telling a secret.

"I-I didn't mean to-" Miss Martian stuttered.

"Just stay out!" Superboy growled as he stormed away.

Thus a terribly awkward silence overcame them. No one spoke. The tension felt like it could be cut by a butter knife. There was only one thing to say in this situation…

"Awkward." Phantom noted.

"Dude!" Kid Flash…Wally…exclaimed.

"Sorry, someone had to be the comic relief. Usually it's Spirit that does it, but she's not here so…" Phantom shrugged.

"Spirit is your partner in Amity Park, correct?" Kaldur noted.

"Yeah. She's also my cousin." Phantom remember the lie they made about their relationship.

"I've heard people call her…your sidekick." Robin frowned.

Phantom snorted. "That would imply that she actually listens to me."

"I have met her. It was when Daniel Fenton was kidnapped. She is quite formidable in a fight." Kaldur complimented.

"Then why isn't she on the team?" Wally questioned.

"Trust me, she is not ready to be on a team that needs to be discrete." Phantom noted.

"Yeah, I met her during the Nocturne Crisis a few months ago." Robin chuckled. "I would have to agree with you on that."

"That was when that sleep ghost tried to take over Earth, right?" M'gann questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. "But I don't want to talk about that."

"Okay…Wait… Hello, Megan!" M'gann exclaimed. "I know what we can do."

With a few shrugs, Kaldur, Wally, Phantom, and Robin began to follow M'gann. Before he left the room, Phantom stopped and looked at Superboy. As if he sensed the eyes on him, Superboy looked up.

"C'mon, SB." Phantom nudged his head in the direction of the door. He said nothing more as he walked out the door.

He didn't need to say anything else, though. Superboy had already gotten up and followed after Phantom. Inside, Superboy was just glad to be called something other than Supes, the Superboy, or Project Kr.

And that was enough for him.

* * *

><p>"How are you such a good fighter?" Nyx grumbled angrily at Youngblood.<p>

"It is all about experience, wench!" Youngblood exclaimed.

"Excuse me?" Nyx questioned dangerously.

"Um…fair maiden?" Youngblood tried to fix the problem.

"Bleh! I think that's even worse!" Nyx spat.

Spirit was not surprised that Nyx was angry. It was sometimes unusual how powerful some ghosts in the Ghost Zone actually are. Even weak appearing ghosts like Youngblood could be powerful. Looks in the Ghost Zone truly were deceiving.

The only reason Youngblood lost to Phantom and Spirit so easily several months ago was that the halfa's natural teamwork was great. In a one-on-one fight, Youngblood's tricks and surprising power could actually trip Phantom up from time to time. At least, that's what Spirit heard. Youngblood tended to stay away from the halfas until after the GIW war.

"It's our turn then!" Spirit cheered.

Rachel sighed. "Do I have to?"

"Yes! Don't you want to get stronger?" Spirit questioned.

"Yeah, but if my mom finds out I'm using my powers…" Rachel grumbled.

"She won't!" Spirit exclaimed.

"Mom's always find out…" Nyx frowned.

"Very true…" Rachel agreed.

"Yep…" Youngblood deflated. "I remember my mommy…you know, before I…"

Spirit looked away. She didn't have a mother. Well, she technically had a genetic mother, but Spirit was a clone. No birth, and no being raised by the genetic mother. Especially considering that Sam Manson was dead…

"Eck! Enough sadness!" Nyx frowned. "Girl Scout, you need to go ahead and fight Raven."

"Raven?" Rachel questioned.

"Yeah." Nyx shrugged. "I think it suits you."

"Actually…I like it." Rachel looked away thoughtfully. "Raven…"

"Okay then, Raven." Spirit smiled. "Shall we fight?"

"Whatever." Rachel rolled her eyes. "Let's get this over with."

"Why get it over with if it's so much fun?" A voice rang out. "In fact, we should prolong it!"

('A wave of green crashes down on them. They are covered on all sides.') Spirit's Premonition told her, but it was too late.

A swarm of small green beasts and skulls began to attack the four children. Each one was caught by surprise. They were quickly separated and sent into the water. As quickly as the attack started, it stopped. The swarm quickly flew away to a ghost gloating above them.

This female ghost had black spikes coming out of her head. She had red eyes, green skin, and a nose ring. A black cape and leather clothing barely covered her. The beasts and skulls quickly attached to her skin like tattoos.

"Thank you, Lydia." The voice from before came from the lake's edge. "And now…Behold the Gem of Life!"

The water around the four ghosts glowed red for a moment. Then, the water began to constrict around them. It began to strangle and crush them. Behind them, a large head made of water popped up and glared at them.

"Gah…" Spirit groaned as she looked at the man at the edge of the lake. "I-urk…know you…Freakshow…"

A man dressed in a grey trench coat and bowler hat grinned at him. His long nose turned up at them as his red eyes danced in delight. "In the flesh!"

* * *

><p>Phantom could only watch in awe as the Martian Bioship flew through Happy Harbor. This technology was amazing…and it was alive! It was actual organicsynthetic life. In fact, the seat belts automatically locked across him when he sat down. Possibilities ran through Phantom's mind. Could it be possible to use this technology as a human?

Perhaps he could determine that later…

"He'll come around…" Robin whispered at M'gann. Superboy still seemed upset about what happened, and M'gann was obviously regretting her accidental insult to him.

"He doesn't seem to like me very much…" M'gann mumbled.

"You guys remember that he has super hearing, right?" Kid Flash mentioned.

"You don't need super hearing to hear you guys!" Phantom fake whispered to them as he looked at them from his spot in the front. "Awkward."

"What's your deal with that, anyway?" Wally questioned.

"Meh, I calls it as I sees it." Phantom shrugged.

"Hey," Robin smiled. "How about a little Martian shape shifting?"

M'gann happily complied. She first turned into a female version or Robin. Then, there was a female Flash. Finally, M'gann shifted into Phantom as a girl.

Before Phantom could mentally question whether Dani would look like that later, he noticed Wally staring at M'gann. "Hey! Don't look at me like that!"

"What?!" Wally sputtered.

"I saw that look." Phantom glared as he pointed at M'gann's face. "My eyes are up there."

Robin just laughed as he stated. "Impressive, but you know you're not exactly going to fool anyone with those."

"Mimicking boys is a lot harder." M'gann admitted.

"Physically? Maybe. Emotionally? It's pretty easy." Phantom commented. "Just act like all you think about is girls, sports, and food and you're done."

Kaldur smiled at that. "Very true….but what about your clothes?"

"They're organic like the ship. They respond to my mental commands." M'gann explained.

"As long as they're the only ones…" Superboy muttered.

Phantom was about to say something as Aqualad mumbled. "I believe that joke is getting old."

Phantom shrugged.

"Can you do that ghosting through walls thing Manhunter does?" Wally inquired.

"Density shifting?" M'gann looked embarrassed. "No, it's a very advanced technique."

"Flash can vibrate his molecues right through walls. Hehehe! When he tries it…blood nose!" Robin chuckled.

"Dude!" Wally exclaimed.

"You can pass through walls, though, right?" Kaldur questioned Phantom.

"Yeah. Intangibility." Phantom nodded. "It's actually a lot harder than it looks though. When I was first trying to figure out my powers, I had a lot of…accidents involving pants."

Everyone laughed at that.

M'gann then questioned. "You have a lot of powers, though, right?"

"Well…yeah." Phantom admitted. "I've got a lot of different powers, but I'm sure you can find people with stronger individual strengths. But I have intangibility, flight, invisibility, ectoplasmic ghost blasts, cryokinesis, turning into smoke for a second, rapid regeneration, duplication, and my Ghostly Wail…oh, and overshadowing."

"Overshadowing?" Superboy glared at the ghost.

"Yeah, you know, taking over someone else's body." Phantom shrugged.

"Ghosts can do that?" M'gann questioned.

"To weak willed people, yeah." Phantom nodded. "But I haven't use that power since…wow. I haven't' used is since I was training it last October."

"Why would you train it?" Superboy growled.

"I got tired of accidentally falling into people's bodies." Phantom shrugged.

"In theory, you sound like a terrible person to make an enemy out of." Kaldur stated.

"Yeah, but each of my powers have terrible weakness. Especially my more advanced powers. I could easily tire myself out in moments if not careful. Like in Cadmus. If my Ghostly Wail failed, I would have been defenseless against Blockbuster."

"Like with my metabolism." Wally stated.

"Well, eating does replenish my strength, but a lot of my powers depend on emotions." Phantom explained. "Mental exhaustion is just as likely as physical exhaustion."

It was very true, but he didn't have that problem before. His emotions were wild and powerful before. Phantom mostly had to worry about his stamina before, but now? There was a likely chance that his powers wouldn't respond if overused.

"Wow…" Robin noted. "I'm whelmed."

"Would you stop that?" Wally rolled his eyes. "That isn't going to become a thing."

"Yes it will. Don't crush my dreams."

"Wait, you said invisibility? I have something similar." M'gann stated as the ship blended into the background. "Camouflage mode."

"Red Tornado to Miss Martian." The android's voice sounded in the ship. "An emergency alert has been triggered at the Happy Harbor Power Plant. I suggest you investigate…covertly. I am sending you the coordinates."

"Received. Adjusting course." Miss Martian replied.

"Tsh! Tornado's keeping us busy again." Robin frowned.

"…Um… I don't think that's true." Phantom stated.

"What makes you say that?" Wally questioned.

"The giant ass twister heading straight for us."

"Oh…"

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

><p>Spirit and her friends struggled against the water as it seemed to grab them. Turning intangible proved to be impossible. The red glow of the water seemed to stop that power.<p>

"What do you want?" Spirit shouted.

"Well, I want a lot of things, riches, fame, revenge." Freakshow smiled. "But that's not for today. No, today I want Pandora's precious daughter."

"Me?!" Nyx seemed disgusted. "What do you want from me, Pinocchio?"

"Pinocchio!?" Freakshow seethed. "How dare you! Gem of Form!"

The water suddenly changed. It was now green slime. Nyx was silenced as the slime quickly consumed her. A large bubble of green slime quickly raised from the rest of the slime and floated towards Feakshow. "This concentrated Ectoplasm will stop all your powers. Even the ones that no ghost should possess. And if you try to resist, the ectoplasm will turn your attacks against you."

"Azaroth Metrion Zinthos!" Rachel cried, but then screamed in pain as black and white magical energy blasted against her.

"Oh a magic user!" Freakshow laughed. "Didn't you just listen to me? Both ghost and magical powers are useless.

"Wait…Nyx can use magic then?" Youngblood realized what Freakshow meant.

"Ah, a smart child. Of course she can use magic!" Freakshow yelled. "You don't even know the girls origins?!"

"And neither should you…" A dark voice appeared behind Freakshow. The Fright Knight raised his sword to cut him down.

"NO!" Lydia actually shouted as she pulled Freakshow out of the way.

Fright Knight eyed the female ghost. "I know of this man. He has no respect for ghosts. Why save him?"

Lydia just glared at the ancient ghost.

"Fine…Unholy slime, release the children or suffer the might of Soul Shredder!" Fright Knight flung his sword. It first traveled to Nyx's bubble and freed her. Then, it went to the other children and freed them. Each child quickly made some distance from the slime. Soul Shredder then returned to its master.

"Dramatic much?" Spirit questioned.

"What is life without a little drama!?" Fright Knight shouted.

"Very true, Fright Knight." Freakshow smiled as he was released by Lydia. "But I must say, your dramatics almost ended badly for me. So, in return, I will make my dramatics become your end! Gem of Fantasy!"

The area around them morphed into a demented circus tent. The slime lake completely disappeared. That was the only good news though. In the place of the living slime was a heard of demonic clowns, giant strongmen, and other various freaks.

"Like it?" Freakshow questioned. "This is the power of the Reality Gauntlet!"

"Reality Gauntlet…" Fright Knight stared at the gauntlet on Freakshow's arm. "That cursed item is not meant to be used, mortal. You have no idea the ruin it brings."

"Oh, but I do know its history." Freakshow pointed to the gauntlet. "I know how each gem was created and the original purpose of the gauntlet. And I know how many lives its ruined. But that's because no one knew the access code. If I get that, I will become master of all reality."

"Fool!" Fright Knight glared. "It is that weapon that brought about Nekron the Reaper to this planet in the first place!"

"There is no proof of that. Besides, even the physical incarnation of death pales in comparison to this."

"You have no idea how wrong you are…" Fright Knight frowned.

"Silence!" Freakshow frowned. "You won't be saying that when I discover the access code."

"And you think Pandora knows?" Fright Knight glared.

"No, but she would know how to obtain the code." Freakshow stated.

"That's why you want Nyx?" Spirit questioned as she looked around at the various enemies. "For leverage?"

"Of course…" Freakshow smiled.

"You're nuts…" Rachel stated as she prepared herself for battle.

"Says the demon girl who surrounds herself with ghosts." Freakshow laughed.

"ARG!" Younblood drew his sword. "Your nonsense is shivering me timbers!"

Youngblood's parrot look at his master. "I won't even tell you why that's wrong."

"Then I suppose that we should get on with-" Freakshow was interrupted.

"Wait!" Nyx stared at Freakshow. "What did you mean? Can I really use magic?"

"You don't even know?! Ha hehhehehe Ha!" Freakshow laughed. "Then I won't spoil the surprise."

"What surprise!?" Nyx questioned. "What do you know?"

"Little girl, I know everything about ghosts. Attack!"

And they were all swarmed by the storming swarms of circus freaks.

Weirdest. Fight. Ever.

* * *

><p>As soon as Phantom had exited the Bioship, he noticed the people screaming and running. They were fleeing the Power Plant. He didn't blame them with the huge twisters flying all over the place. Several cars were flipped over, and Phantom could see the destruction the twisters had caused to the terrain.<p>

"We need to…" Phantom then noticed that his teammates were heading towards the power plant. "Idiots! We need to help the injured."

Phantom flew to the nearest destroyed car. A woman was in the driver seat with two children in the back. "Dammit, I'll have to check all these cars. I forgot what's it's like without Spirit, Red Huntress, or the others to help."

The halfa quickly made three duplicates. They began to search the other cars. Phantom then fazed the woman and children out of the car. He then gently laid them down on the street.

"Guh…" The woman's eyes opened a little. "My…children…"

"I got them first." Phantom stated. "They're alright for now, but I'll call an ambulance."

"T-hank…y-you…" The woman lost consciousness.

"…You're welcome…" Phantom and his duplicates then quickly searched all the cars and directed the civilians away from the plant. He heard most of them calling 911, so he knew that dozens of cops and ambulances would be by to help the people soon.

Good, now he could deal with the problem…Crap! He forgot about the team!

Phantom instantly flew into the plant. It was a strange sight to see. His team (Note to self: come up with possible team names. Saying "the team" and "his team" would quickly get annoying) was sprawled all over the place. On the opposite end of the plant was a red android that was generating wind to fly…he must be the one that did this.

The android looked similar to Red Tornado with the color scheme. His demeanor, scarf, and actions proved the difference, though. This robot was going done.

Phantom flew at the android at top speed. Granted, it wasn't as fast as he normally could go, but it was enough to pack a punch. Despite the android's actions, Phantom decided to him a heads up. "Hey, ugly!"

The android turned…just in time to be punched in the head.

…What? He never said anything about the amount of time he would give the machine…

Red Tornado #2 was pushed back a pit to the point where he was several yards outside. He looked at the halfa and stated. "Ah, so the children did have a babysitter. Danny Phantom…What are you doing so far from home?"

"Oh, just sightseeing. Imagine my surprise when I see a Red Tornado on steroids hurting innocent civilians and fighting my new friends." Phantom frowned. "Not a very good sight. I think I should change it by getting rid of you."

"Ah, a real challenge then. Very well, I am Mr. Twister and-" Mr. Twister was interrupted when Kid Flash began running up and tried to tackle the android. The android managed to dodge the tackle.

"What did you do to the rest of my team!?" Kid Flash questioned.

"Embarrassed them largely." Mr. Twister extended his arms.

"Kid, move!" Phantom warned, but it was too late. The wind caught Kid Flash and sent him flying at Phantom. The halfa caught the speedster and tossed him back on his feet. "You need to be more careful. Just standing at that close of range is dangerous."

"What do you suggest then?" Kid Flash snapped.

"Move in and out as fast as you can. Never be predictable. Keep moving, and don't focus on heavy blows. Take him down with mosquito bites." Phantom explained. "That's how you fight a wind user."

"…fine…" Kid Flash grunted. He obviously was just going to fight normally.

Phantom scowled.

"Kid! Phantom!" Robin shouted as the rest of the team approached them.

"Where were you?" Superboy glared.

"Helping the civilians. They were hurt and in a panic." Phantom didn't turn his gaze from Mr. Twister.

"An unfortunate casualty." Mr. Twister noted.

"What do you want!?" Aqualad shouted at the android.

"That doesn't matter." Phantom drew the attention of everyone in the area. His eyes turned blue as a broad sword made of ice formed in his hands. "He hurt those people. To me, he's asking for an ass kicking."

"Hmm…Quite amusing…" Mr. Twister noted.

"Read his mind, Miss Martian. Try to find a weakness." Aqualad ordered.

"But I thought that I'm not supposed to read minds." Miss Martians remembered.

"It's okay with the bad guys!" Robin shouted.

"It wouldn't matter anyway. He's an android." Phantom stated. He knew when he was fighting a machine.

"Hello, Megan!" Miss Martian exclaimed. "Mr. Twister is Red Tornado in disguise! He's inorganic! An android! How many androids do you know that can generate tornadoes?"

"At least two!" Phantom stated as he flew up at Mr. Twister.

"Phantom, wait!" Kaldur shouted.

Phantom didn't wait, though. He followed through with his attack. He swung his ice sword at the android. Mr. Twister merely dodged. He then sent a large gust of wind at Phantom. The halfa followed his own advice though, and moved away from the android as quickly as possible.

Using his own experiences from fighting his old foe Vortex, Phantom managed to dodge all the tornadoes and blasts of wind sent at him. Unfortunately, his blasts of ice and sword strikes could not get past the wall of wind protecting Mr. Twister. He couldn't get in close enough to hit the machine.

'Crap! I can't fight him like this!' Phantom mentally growled. If only he could spread out his ice energy more…

"Phantom! Stop! It's Red Tornado!" Kid Flash yelled up at the halfa.

"No, it's not!" Phantom roared as he lunged back to avoid a tornado. He sent a blast of ice energy at Mr. Twister to break his concentration.

"Red, we know this is a test!" Kaldur shouted. "We will not indulge you!"

"You can stop with the act!" Superboy glared.

"You think I'm Red Tornado? Ironic." Mr. Twister noted as he blasted Phantom back with a large gust of wind. "Tell me, can Red Tornado do this?"

Mr. Twister raised his arms. Twin tornadoes flew into the sky. Dark clouds formed. The wind increased. Lightining blasted all around.

"An impressive show, but we will not engage!" Aqualad shouted.

"Idiots! Move!" Phantom yelled down to them, but it was too late. Lightning came crashing down...

…Only to completely miss the team of young heroes and hit the nearby trees…

"What?" Superboy looked up in shock. Phantom had struck Twister right before he sent down the attack. This had diverted the attack enough to miss the team. Not only that…three Phantoms were fighting Mr. Twister.

"Ah!" All the young heroes cried as non-painful blasts of ectoplasm sent them back. Kid Flash was the first to react. "Dude, what are you doing?!"

"Getting you out of the way." Phantom stated. "Standing there like that was going to get you all killed. My duplicates will stall Twister and we're at a safe enough distance now."

"Safe enough for what?" Robin questioned.

"For you to get a wake up call." Phantom stated. "So…What the hell are you guys are you guys doing?"

"…What?" Aqualad stared.

"You ignored the civilians. You obviously tried to fight Twister without a plan. And you're letting your stupid feelings and insecurities about this team get in the way of a fight." Phantom stated.

"We might have helped you if she-" Superboy's angry blame was stopped by Phantom.

"Now is not the time for the blame game! We have an enemy that we have to fight, and my duplicates won't last much longer. If we want to win against this guy…as a team…we need to cooperate." Phantom stated.

Everyone was silent.

"No one person here is at fault, but I can tell you this, you guys can either help me come up with a plan, or you can go to the Bioship. Because I refuse to be embarrassed in front of the super villain! That's my top rule!" Phantom stated.

"Yes. You are right." Aqualad conceded.

"We need a plan, then." Robin noted.

"We can use your strategy from before. Move in and out quickly. Beat him with small wounds." Wally suggested.

"Would that work?" Superboy questioned.

"That plan was for a one-on-one fight, or with a few people." Phantom stated. "We can modify it, though."

"How?" M'gann questioned.

"Robin and Kid Flash are the most agile and quick. They can move in and out and be a distraction. Superboy, Aqualad, and I are the heavy hitters. We look for openings and strike when the time is right. M'gann, you can use your powers to try and stop the wind and give us support. If one of us gets in too much trouble, pull our asses out of there." Phantom stated.

"Sounds plausible." Aqualad stated.

"Good, because my duplicates just got destroyed." Phantom turned to see Mr. Twister directing his attention at them.

"Let's do this…" Superboy growled.

* * *

><p>Spirit had to say. This had to be one of the weirdest fights she had ever been in. Yep, it had to be at least in the top 5.<p>

…Well, the clowns might have made go up to the top three actually…Okay, it was probably number one.

"Well, this is fun!" Spirit yelled as she punched a demonic clown in the face.

"For once, I agree." Rachel used her magic to send the various circus freaks sparwling.

"I should have dressed as a ring master!" Youngblood noted. His sword cut through the fake beings and made them disappear into smoke.

"How are you doing, Nyx?"

"…"

"Nyx?!"

"…"

"Stay focused, child!" Fright Knight cut through the clowns that were about to strike Spirit's unprotected back. "They may be weak, but they outnumber us!"

"Yeah, but Nyx isn't answering!" Spirit yelled.

"I know where she is! She is fine! Keep fighting!" Fright Knight's flaming hair spread out and began to consume the area.

Suddenly, however, the flames began to change. The once burning purple fire was now fragile cracked rocks. Freakshow smiled as he lowered his gauntlet covered arm. "So sorry, but I'm getting bored with the show. Now let's move on to the next act!"

Freakshow raised his gauntlet into the air. It began to glow…when Nyx suddenly latched onto the deranged man. "What!? Get off me, stupid child!"

"No! Not until you tell me what you meant!" Nyx screamed. "You're not lying! I know it! What did you mean exactly!?"

"Lydia!" Freakshow ordered.

The green skinned ghost instantly obeyed. She grabbed the shadow ghost and pulled her off Freakshow. Nyx obviously didn't like this. "Let go of me, Pin Head!"

"Let go of her!" Spirit broke away from her group. She flew at full speed at Lydia. Her fists glowed green as she prepared to strike the circus ghost.

"No no no…" Freakshow waved his gauntlet covered hand. Spirit was instantly frozen in mid-air. "Can't have that now. After all, I just got my bargaining chip."

The circus ringmaster smiled as he circled the girl. "You're related to that blasted Phantom, no? Then he would be quite upset by your demise…Excellent! But he will be even more upset if you suffer…"

Spirit screamed out as pain surged through her. It felt like the air itself was trying to crush her. Every part of her body seemed be constricted. Yet there was nothing she could do. She couldn't will herself to move. The hafla was helpless.

"Oh, you look like you're going to cry? What is it, little girl? Are you sad? Afraid? In despair?" Freakshow mocked.

Spirit tried not to give him the satisfaction of flinching. She really **really** did. In the end, though, she couldn't stop it. The pain was stopping her mental resistance.

"Oh you are? You hate to feel powerless. How-" Freakshow was interrupted by a sword being slashed at his head. He instantly raised his gauntlet to protect himself. Soul Shredder hit the gauntlet with a clank.

"Unhand her!" Fright Knight growled angrily. "She is under my protection, and I won't hesitate to kill you to keep her from harm!"

Freakshow struggled against the sword. Luckily, the Reality Gauntlet greatly boosted his strength. Unfortunately, with his focus being on the Fright Knight's attack, Freakshow couldn't concentrate enough to use the gauntlet. It was one of the greatest weaknesses of the gauntlet without the code…

"Lydia! I need assistance!" Freakshow desperately yelled.

He got it alright. Lydia basically tackled him. She didn't stop there, though. The green skinned ghost began to pull him away as quickly as possible.

"What in blazes are you doing!?" Freakshow shouted. "What about the prisoner?!"

Lydia pointed back at where she was previously.

A tall, blue shinned female ghost was how where Lydia once stood. In the two of the ghost's four arms was Nyx. Like Nyx, the ghost holding the child was wearing Greek armor and a long skirt. On her head was a helm that still allowed everyone to see her scowling red eyes and purple hair.

Pandora had arrived.

"HOW DARE YOU!?" Pandora roared. "YOU TRY TO HARM MY CHILD?! I SHALL DESTROY YOU!"

"Oh…" Freakshow deflated. "I apologize. You judgment was correct.

The odds were already bad against them. The Fright Knight would have pushed them to the limits even with the Reality Gauntlet. Add in another S-rank ghost? They didn't stand a chance, especially without the gauntlet's full power.

"Perhaps we should retreat…" Freakshow flicked his wrist at the ghosts. The wind flew up dust all around them. They were now hidden from view. "But dramatically!"

Lydia's tattoos came to life. They swarmed all around them. In an instant, the duo was gone.

After the dust died down, the circus tent they were in began to change. The sky returned. The ground was now covered in grass. Lake Eerie had returned.

"Pandora…" Fright Knight stated as sheathed his sword. "You are here…"

"Of course. You think I don't have this place watched as well." Pandora frowned as she placed her child on the ground and approached the knight. "I was surprised that one the Ghost Zones most wanted people attacked my child and her friends…He will pay."

"That we can agree on…" Fright Knight growled. "Forgive me for being unable to protect her properly."

Pandora yelled. "You were up against the Reality Gauntlet. No one man can hope to overcome it, besides you bought time for me to come here."

"We must take measures to make sure this does not happen again." Fright Knight stated.

"Agreed." Pandora nodded.

Back with the children, Rachel and Youngblood approached their friends. The magic user questioned. "Are you two alright?"

"Arg! That was quit the rumble." Youngblood noted.

"Whatever…I'm fine." Nyx huffed. She glared at her mom. The shadow user would get answers.

"What about you, Dani?"

"I…" Spirit remembered the feelings of helplessness. "I don't know…"

* * *

><p>(Play: You're Gonna Go Far Kid by the Offspring)<p>

After coming up with a workable plan, the team quickly turned the tides against the wind user. Mr. Twister needed to focus in order to create tornadoes and electricity. They made sure never to give him that time to concentrate.

Kid Flash quickly bumped into the android before he could react. The blow caused the android to be put off balance. He stumbled back and tried to right himself.

"Hehehehe…" Robin's laugh filled the air. His shuriken hit the machine straight in the back. The machine didn't have time to remove them. The wind generating machine was blown forward by the explosions.

Before Mr. Twister could right himself, Superboy was there to meet him. The Kryptonian clone hammer striked the android into the hard ground below. Superboy didn't stop there, though. He followed though and sent a barrage of punches into Mr. Twister.

Tired of this barrage, Mr. Twister then used a tornado to send Superboy flying. The Kryptonian cloe didn't go far though. Miss Martian caught Superboy mentally and then sent the clone back to the android. With the combined power of Superboy's strength and Miss Martian's telekinetic force, Mr. Twister was sent flying away.

Aqualad was there to meet him. The Atlantian used his Water Bearers to form a large hammaer. He then swung the concentrated water as he yelled a battle cry. "Hah!"

After a moment, Twister was once against pushed into the ground. A green blast of energy stopped a lot of his energy and caused the android to slide to a halt. Phantom floated away from the android just in time to avoid being caught up in a powerful blast of wind.

"I will admit, you have skill." Mr. Twister pushed himself to his feet. He was covered in dents and cracks. "But this farce must end."

"I agree!" M'gann's eyes glowed as she mentally threw a bolder at the android.

A tornado destroyed the bolder. "Please, as if that would-"

"Yah!" Kid Flash ran up and drop kicked the android.

"Futile!" Twister was about to blast Wally, but Phantom intervened. The halfa used a ball of ectoplasmic energy to stop the android.

Superboy used this distraction to grab the android. He sent several powerful punches at the machine's midsection. The last blow sent the android flying.

Miss Martian then used her telekinesis to force the machine into the ground. The android struggled to stand under the pressure. He then tried to form a tornado to attack the heroine.

Luckily, Robin stopped him. He landed a flying side kick to the android's head. In a flurry of movement, the Boy Wonder dropped smoke pellets and jumped away.

"Pointless." Twister used his wind to dismiss the smoke. He then found out the point of the move. It wasn't to completely stop his vision. No, the smoke was to give the team a few precious seconds.

Phantom ran up to the android from the front. An ice broadsword was in his hands. Aqualad ran from behind the android. His Water Bearers were in the form of a sword. The intent of the two young heroes was clean.

Phantom gritted his teeth as he forced as much energy into his sword as he could. The fight had drained him significantly…far more than he would like to admit. This would be the last big attack he could do. If this failed, he didn't know what he would do…

Luckily, it didn't fail. Phantom's sword cut through Twister's right arm. Aqualad's water sword sliced off the left arm. The now useless hunks of metal fell to the ground.

Phantom had to fight not to do an 'you just lost your arms joke.'

"Looks like you've just been disarmed!"

…He failed…

"Fools, I don't need-" Twister was cut off when Superboy landed on him.

The Kryptonian clone grabbed onto of the android's legs. Kid Flash hurried over to the android and worked on the other leg in a blur of motion. In a moment, Superboy ripped off one leg while Wally managed to disconnect the other.

"He's unlegged, too!...Dang it, you took the good one, Phantom." Wally grumbled.

"I don't apologize for my comments during a fight." Phantom stated. He and the entire team began to approach the downed android.

"Foul!" Mr. Twister's chest opened. A man was sitting in a control area of the android. "I call foul!"

"You don't get to call anything." Phantom grabbed the man by the throat. "…M'gann, can you read his mind."

"…No…"

"I see." Phantom's hands fazed into the 'man's' chest. "You're an android..."

"What are you doing?" Wally questioned.

"Checking for an explosive or inner weapon." Then, a moment later, Phantom stated. "Nothing."

"Please, let me go!" The fake man pleaded.

"Okay, then. Superboy, can I borrow your foot?"

"Gah!" The fake man cried as Superboy's boot stepped on his metallic head and pushed it into the ground.

"Don't act like you can feel pain." Phantom knelt down. "Why is a robot piloting an android? Isn't that redundant?"

"…Then you don't see the big picture…" The men said. He just stared at Phantom. Then, a moment later, the man went slack. If he was human, he would have appeared to be unconscious, but because he was inorganic…

"He deactivated." Wally noted as he examined the machine.

"We need to examine this at the cave." Aqualad stated.

"I'll check to make sure there's no foreign software or tracking device…" Robin pulled out his wrist computer and began to scan the machine.

Crack! The team looked to see the robot's head crushed by Superboy's foot.

"What?"

"…I guess that works too…" Robin sighed.

"Cool!" Wally knelt down and picked up the robot's eyeball. "Souvenir!"

* * *

><p>"This thing was clearly meant to find you. It's too similar to you to be a coincidence." Phantom stated to Red Tornado. They had returned to the Cave with the broken androids. "The questioned is…why?"<p>

"It must have been a seek and destroy mission." Aqualad noted.

"Either that, or capture." Wally suggested.

"Agreed." Red Tornado nodded.

"Either way, you should be on guard." Phantom examined the machines on the table. "You never know when something like this could happen again."

"Noted." Red Tornado acknowledged. "I shall be on the lookout for similar threats."

"Good." Phantom looked over at the android. "Thanks for not interfering, by the way. I prefer to solve my own problems…or in this case, the team's problems."

"Why didn't you come to help?" M'gann questioned with the tilt of her head.

"This was your battle. As Phantom stated, you shouldn't rely on me to solve your problems, and I shouldn't rely on you to solve mine." Red Tornado explained.

"But if you're in danger…" M'gann stated.

"This matter is closed." Red Tornado began to walk away.

Wally and Robin walked up to Phantom. The speedster stated. "Batman, Aqualad, and Flash…They'd have jumped right in to fix things."

"Yeah." Robin agreed. "Guess if we're going to have a babysitter, a heartless machine is exactly what we need."

"Dude! Harsh…"

"And inaccurate. I have a heart. Carbon steel alloy." Red Tornado stopped and turned around. "I also have excellent hearing."

Phantom chuckled. "Awkward."

"Would you please stop with that?" Wally rolled his eyes.

"The moment you guys stop saying stupid and disrespectful things like that, I will." Phantom stated.

"Fine…"

As the others walked off, Phantom continued to examine the remains of Mr. Twister and the android piloting it. It wasn't the first time he fought a wind user, but it seemed a lot different than fighting Vortex. The team made it so the fight was much easier. Nevertheless, they needed to get on the same page if they wanted to avoid losing badly.

Spirit and he had a lot of time bonding and spending time with each other before they partnered up. Then, they constantly trained to improve their teamwork. That was why they worked so well with each other. They had experience and trust. This team…did not have that.

Phantom looked at the group. To make this work, he would need to invest time and energy. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to fight with them. But the question was…Was he willing to invest in this team?

They were rather unusual people. Phantom could tell that they each has some sort of baggage, but it wasn't like he could talk. He had his own problems like the rest of them, but would those problems impact the group? It most likely would.

The smart thing to do would be to quit the team before the first mission, but…Phantom remembered fighting Mr. Twister with them. It had been exhilarating. Not to mention, that when he was with them, he felt like a teenager for once. He felt normal.

Phantom hadn't realized how much he missed that feeling of normality.

So, he made his choice. "Hey!"

The team turned.

"I don't want to bell all bossy, but maybe it would be a good idea to do team training and drills? You know, to make sure we don't get killed?"

The team shared a look. Phantom already knew their answer.

"Let's start tomorrow, okay?"

* * *

><p>Spirit frowned as she looked up at her brother. "You're late."<p>

"Sorry, I ran into a Red Tornado wannabe." Phantom explained as he approached Lake Eerie. "So, Freakshow showed up?"

"Yes. He was after Pandora's daughter." Fright Knight explained. "He appeared to want the access code to the Reality Gauntlet."

"Yeah, I heard about that." Phantom looked over to Plasmius who was standing by his adoptive daughter. "Why would he think that Pandora would know it?"

"Perhaps he didn't." Plasmius suggested. "The King's Advisers might just know how to gain access to the code, though."

"You were a part of that group." Phantom noted. "Is that true?"

"We know a few possible ways…maybe." Fright Knight shrugged. "Rumors, legends, things like that. We are quite old."

"He wanted to use Nyx as leverage." Spirit frowned.

"That was because Pandora is the only one of the Pariah Dark's old advisers that has such a…vulnerability like a child." Fright Knight stated. "For the rest of us, he would have to attack us directly."

"And that's not smart." Plasmius noted. "But this couldn't have been his first option. Getting on Pandora's bad side is a bad idea."

"Yes, she…borrowed Wulf and Cujo to try and find him." Spirit snorted. "I don't think it will work, though."

"He must be going down the list from best options to worst options." Phantom sighed. "Eventually, he might find the code…I should tell the League about the real nature of the Reality Gauntlet, and the danger that Freakshow could cause." Phantom suggested.

"No. If that information would to get out into the public, everyone would be after that blasted thing." Fright Knight snarled. "But they don't understand the consequences of altering reality. The only one that truly knows the consequences would be the Ghost Writer or that genie ghost that passed on. But I do know that it could leave to worldwide destruction."

"Fine." Phantom sighed. "Then it will be up to Vision to find him."

"No, the gauntlet will hide him from everyone unless he wants to be found." Fright Knight stated. "We will have to wait for him to act first."

"Oh, joy."

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Robin<strong>

"Okay…how about unruly? It means unorganized, so ruly should mean organized, but no one uses it." Phantom suggested as he and Robin waited for the others in the Cave.

"That works, but I think it's in the dictionary." Robin stated.

"So is whelmed." Phantom noted.

"Alright, then. Disintegrate." Robin shrugged.

"I've heard people say integrate."

"Then you do one."

"Infatuate?"

"Fatuated…Ha! That's hilarious. How about uncanny?"

"Nice! Disaster?"

"Invested."

"Fricassee!"

"What?" Robin raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't work like the other words."

"I know." Phantom admitted. "But it's a fun word to say."

"Hehehehehe…" Robin chuckled. "I guess it is. It doesn't sound all that great either. I bet it'll be considered profane in like forty years."

"We can only hope."

A few minutes later, the rest of the team arrived. You can imagine their surprise when they saw Phantom and Robin laughing while rolling on the ground. Despite their teammate's prying, though, the duo refused to tell them what was so funny.

It was an inside joke.

* * *

><p><strong>Unlike the last chapter, most chapters won't have the same name of the episode its based off of. Why did I change it? I don't know. I wanted to.<strong>

**A lot of information was hinted at in the Freakshow part of the chapter. The secrets of the Reality Gauntlet are not that well known. Oh, and before you ask. To those that picked it up. Yes, it is who you are thinking of. I love the "In Blackest Night" story line.**

**Amity Park's actual location is unconfirmed. However, on Danny Phantom Wiki, the voice actor for Danny said something about it being in Minnesota, so I'm going with that.**

***Okay, I have held off on this for a while, but I need to rant about this...***

**Jesse Eisenberg is Lex Luthor in Man of Steel 2...really?...Really!?...REALLY!? I'm not saying that he's a bad actor, but I don't see it. I know the Heath Ledger argument, but I...I was just hoping for Bryan Cranston. I really really was. And I don't care about the Walter White/Heisenberg ****comparisons and jokes. Cranston would have killed it as Luthor. Add that to the Wonder Woman casting and Flash rumors...I am not pleased. They should have their own movies! And Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman...God have mercy on us all. ON US ALL!**

***Rant over.***

**Side note, I recently watched Justice League: War. It was pretty good, but I did have problems with it. Man of Steel seems to have ruined Superman's image as a moral symbol for goodness. I like Shazam (Captain Marvel) as a boy scout compared to an arrogant pre-teen. Also, not a fan of Superman/Wonder Woman paring. I don't have anything against it, but...meh, I don't like it.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	4. Leadership

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory and when nice things occur. You take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership."  
>Nelson Mandela<p>

* * *

><p>Chapter 4: "Leadership"<p>

_It wasn't until that day that I consciously realized something. It was something so obvious that I didn't even think about it. In fact, I didn't want to think about it, because it hurt so much. I couldn't deny it, though. The fact was…_

_I was always depending on other people._

_There was not one moment up to that point where I won a true battle completely on my own strength. There was always a weapon, ally, or even catastrophe that got in the way. Something always saved me._

_Of course, there were times when my own strength was shown. I managed to fight Nyx on even ground once, and I was a key factor in stopping Vortex's rampage. No one could deny that; but it didn't change the fact that if Pandora didn't interfere with my fight with Nyx, and Danny wasn't there to fight Vortex with me, I would not have won those fights._

_I wouldn't have lost necessarily. Nyx and I were even, and Vortex couldn't hit me when I was using my Premonition full force. Nevertheless, I would never have beaten them._

_Every big fight, I had help or interference._

_It was only when I was truly alone did I realize this. When I didn't have someone to lean against, I fell. And what a shameful fall it was._

_I always thought that I was so strong. I believed that because I was a halfa, I was invincible. Boy, was I wrong. I was a big fish in a little pond. There was a whole ocean ahead of me, and I didn't even acknowledge it until that day._

_Because when you're all alone and defenseless, there's nothing to protect you but your own memories._

_And that was my wake-up call._

…_I just wish that I was the only one who heard the call of the memories…_

_-From the personal memoirs of Danielle Masters_

* * *

><p>(Thursday-July 22, 2010)<p>

There were times that Phantom truly hated silence. Despite his complaints about his busy schedule, Phantom was glad to keep his mind busy. A busy mind kept the silence away, and silence let his thoughts wander to unpleasant memories.

As such, Phantom was currently despising his current situation. He currently was stuck in the Bioship. The team…he really needed to pitch some names soon…had been assigned its first mission. They were heading to Santa Prisca.

The halfa was uncertain about this little adventure. He had thought that their first mission would be somewhat on the easy side. This, however, was really dangerous. This was Bane's island, as in the Bane. This guy was one of Batman's most famous rogues. His combination of intelligence and brute strength were terrifying.

Not only that, the team was doing this without any clear leadership. Batman had told them to decide among themselves, but Phantom knew that wouldn't go well. While Miss Martian and Superboy appeared to have no desire to be in charge, Kid Flash and Robin clearly did. From his own experiences in the matter, the halfa was certain they would argue about it.

Personally, Phantom thought that Aqualad should lead. He was the most level headed out of everyone. Yet, he also didn't appear to want the spot. Perhaps he knew about the stress of being in charge. His mentor was a king after all. Kaldur had to observe Aquaman making some tough decisions.

…And, of course, Phantom didn't even think about the possibility of him leading…

Why? Because Phantom couldn't live with the responsibility. He would be completely responsible for the team's lives. He was okay with backing everyone up, but leading them? No. Not again. He would trip up again. He would fail again. He would make the wrong decision at one point…Just like…

The Nasty Burger Incident…

The Nocturne Crisis…

Vortex's Rampage…

The Riot of Amity Park…

The Guys in White War…

Dear God, a lot of people suffered because of his choices. A lot of people were hurt and maimed because of him. So many people were **dead** because what he decided to do.

It all happened because of Danny Phantom.

Hundreds of ghosts and GIW agents died in that war because Phantom thought that would be best. If Phantom did something different, those souls might still exist in this plane of existence. Their deaths were on his hands.

His entire city suffered and were suppressed because of him. When Phantom was about to be arrested, everyone in Amity Park, including the A-listers like Dash and Paulina, stood up for him. This caused the entire city to be occupied by the GIW.

Vortex died, because Phantom didn't capture him soon enough. Even with Superman on his side, Phantom couldn't stop Vortex in time to save him. The weather ghost was shot through the back by the GIW because Phantom couldn't defeat him before the GIW arrived.

Nocturne almost conquered the world because Phantom's assault on the Brain's lab through Torch's domain. To stop the Brain from creating a working portal, Phantom tried to attack the lab through the portal he was drilling. Unfortunately, Torch and his minions got in the way. The fight that followed caused both S-rank ghosts to lose consciousness and to be captured by Nocturne, allowing the sleep ghost to use them as power sources.

Then there was the…

_All of their eyes, however, showed understanding. They understood that he did everything possible to save them. His family and friends understood that he could physically do nothing more to save them. All of them understood that he would never, _**_never _**_become that sick monster._

_And mostly, they understood that they were going to die._

_At that moment hot tears rolled down Danny's eyes. He had failed._

_The only thing he could do was cry, "_**_NO!_**_"_

Yeah…that…

Phantom sighed as he tiredly placed his face in his hands. In his mind, it all started at one incident. One single decision that caused everything. If he never did it, then none of this would have happened.

"I never should have stepped into that portal…" Phantom mumbled into his hands.

"Huh?" Miss Martian looked over at him from her spot piloting the Bioship. "Did you say something, Danny?"

"No, it's nothing…"

* * *

><p>"Are you sure, Val?" Spirit questioned into her new Fenton Phones. The small circular disk fit comfortably into her ear, yet did not slip out from hard blows to the head and fast movements. "I…could use some help, maybe."<p>

"_I'm sorry, Dani."_ Valerie Grey answered. _"But no. I can't help you."_

"Really?" Spirit frowned in disappointment as she flew over Amity Park. "I could go get your equipment right now…"

"_I'm sure."_

Valerie Grey, also known as the Red Huntress, was a gorgeous African American teenager about Danny's age. Unlike the rest of the Phantom family, she lacked any powers. Instead, she fought with ectoplasmic equipment and her incredible hand-to-hand combat skills. When they first met, Spirit and Red Huntress didn't get along all that well, however, after fighting together, they eventually grew close. In fact, Dani considered Valerie to be her role model.

Unfortunately, the Red Huntress was currently retired.

This leave of absence from the hero business all began right before the GIW war. Danny had approached Valerie and gave her the choice of joining the war or giving up the equipment, because if she kept the equipment and remained neutral, the Guys in White would find her and arrest her. In the end, Valerie made her choice and gave up her equipment to Danny.

After the war had ended, however, Valerie refused to take up the mantle of the Red Huntress again. She thought that she didn't deserve to be a hero, because she quit when things became difficult. Both Danny and Dani tried to convince her otherwise, but Val was known for her stubbornness.

No, the Red Huntress would remain retired for now.

"Okay…" Spirit sighed in disappointment. "I'll talk to you later then."

"_Alright, Dani. Bye._"

"Bye…" Spirit stopped and looked down at the city below her.

It was a beautiful summer night. Yet no one was here to enjoy it with her. Rachel was in trouble with her mom. Nyx was in the Ghost Zone, as was Youngblood. Wulf had the habit of wandering, and Cujo was spending most of his time sleeping.

Not to mention that Danny was gone again. He was spending so much time with that "team." It seemed like he was never at home anymore. He never…spent time with her anymore.

No, that wasn't true. She wasn't being fair. He did spend time with her, but not nearly as much. Back before the war, they would usually spend whole days together. Now, they only had a few hours together at the absolute best. Ember did make a point a few weeks ago about both their schedules changing, but Spirit didn't really care right now. She wanted her brother back so they could patrol together.

And so that she wouldn't be followed around by the Fright Knight anymore.

"Would you just go away!?" Spirit turned. She appeared to be yelling at nothing, but suddenly the Fright Knight turned visible. He had been following her since she first started patrolling.

"I cannot do that." Fright Knight stated simply.

"And why's that?" Spirit glared.

"Because I promised my liege that I would protect you." Fright Knight noted as if it were obvious.

"I thought he didn't like you calling him that…" Spirit mumbled as she crossed her arms.

"He doesn't, but out of respect I refer to him as such anyway." Fright Knight explained simply.

"Well woopty doo for you…" Spirit frowned. "Why don't you bother him then? I don't need protection."

"Maybe not, but I will not question his judgment on the matter." Fright Knight mentioned.

"And why's that?" Spirit rolled her eyes.

"Because his concern for your safety is greater than for his own." Fright Knight explained.

"Then he should be here himself." Spirit mumbled.

"A king has a lot of responsibilities." The Fright Knight noted. "That's why he assigns his most trusted servants to protect the most important ones."

"He's not a king…"

"Really? Because he has no crown? Because he has no thrown?" Fright Knight seemed amused. "A king is so much more than those things."

"Whatever…" Spirit was tired of this conversation. "Just go back to…where exactly are you staying?"

"My liege has allowed me to live at the newly reconstructed Fenton Works." Fright Knight stated. "That way I have a place to rest, and the secret base is protected from threats."

Spirit rolled her eyes again. "Secret base…It's just the place Danny keeps his pet invention projects…and apparently, it's a guest house."

"Yes…pet inventions…" Fright Knight nodded. "That's a good word for it…"

Spirit remembered when Fenton Works was first destroyed by the League of Shadows. Danny was incredibly upset about how all the technology there was stolen. Danny had learned his lesson from that. New Fenton Works' security would always be working. Only people who were keyed into the security could enter the building. It would prevent any unwanted guests from sneaking in again.

"Why don't you go there, then?" Spirit huffed. "Go guard the guest home."

"Not while you are in danger." Fright Knight stated.

"I am not in danger!" Spirit glared. "No ghosts have attacked in two months. Freakshow is on the run. Grundy is still locked up. Who else would attack in the middle of the night?"

"Perhaps one of the super villains." Fright Knight suggested.

"What like Ragdoll did?" Spirit chuckled. "He was only a thief. One that regretted coming here after we recaptured him. There's not exactly a lot here worth stealing in Amity Park."

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!

Spirit recognized that noise. It was the sound of an alarm going off.

"You were saying?"

"Oh, shut up!"

* * *

><p>For Phantom, the stealth gear was pretty useless. His clothes were mostly black to begin with. The halfa, however, could see the advantage of having clothes change to something less conspicuous. Once again, Phantom was amazed by Martian tech.<p>

Phantom did not, however, enjoy all the stupid flirting going around. Kid Flash always looked at Miss Martian like a hungry dog looked at a bone. His attention was always fully on the green girl. Phantom didn't care about this while off missions, but they had to be serious. Without a girl around, Kid Flash was a dangerous speedster and science prodigy. Add in the hormones, though, and you got a drooling idiot.

Then there was Miss Martian's reactions to Superboy. Even someone as clueless as Danny could see that she was attracted to him. From a girl's perspective, it was probably hard not to be, but that didn't matter. M'gann would completely lose her focus around the clone.

'I suppose that's something that both sexes have.' Phantom mentally noted. 'An inability to focus while around someone their attracted to.'

That was wonderful insight. Yet it came from one of the most clueless people in the world…at least in his own life. Perhaps Phantom had a better understanding of attraction and love for other people's lives, but not his own.

Or maybe Miss Martian and Kid Flash were just that blandly obvious…Yeah, it was probably that.

Taking a glance at Superboy, Phantom noted that he wasn't going to bungee down out of the Bioship. "You know, in my experience, falling from this height makes a lot of noise."

"What's your point?" Superboy questioned.

"Causing a miniature earthquake is not covert." Phantom explained. "So, either you hook up, or I catch you and float you down. Now which do you think will be more embarrassing?"

For Superboy, the choice was easy. He immediately hooked himself onto a line.

As the nonflying heroes were lowered to the ground, Phantom and Miss Martian floated down. They were now in a thick jungle. It would certainly help them remain hidden, but they could easily get separated. Miss Martian and Superboy would stay with the group, but Kid Flash or Robin might run off. Phantom would make sure to stop them.

After contacting Aqualad and agreeing to meet at the factory in the middle of the island, the group immediately took off into the jungle. For Phantom, the journey was simple. Flying made getting through the brush a simple task.

Suddenly, Superboy stopped them. "Did you hear that?"

Phantom quickly grabbed Robin by his cape as he saw the younger boy begin to hide. Good thing he was paying attention. If he took his attention off the Boy Wonder for half a second, Robin would surely have gotten away.

"What are you doing!?" Robin hissed.

"Stopping you from running off." Phantom answered. "We need to stay together, and you going all ninja will not help us. Superboy, what did you hear?"

"A twig snapped." Superboy answered.

"It could be an animal, but we should stop and make sure we're not being tracked." Phantom noted.

"_Agreed."_ Aqualad answered over the radio._ "Kid Flash, Superboy, switch to infrared."_

The two heroes quickly spotted two different squads of guards a bit away from them. They would pass each other long before they could get to the team, so that was a good thing. When their backs were turned, the team could quickly and silently pass by-

The sound of gunshots filled the air.

"What are they doing?!" Phantom questioned.

"They're attacking each other." Robin narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"_Swing wide! Stear clear!"_ Aqualad shouted through the radio.

"Roger that." Robin nodded. "Let's go…Phantom?"

Phantom was frozen and staring in the direction of the gunfire.

"Dude, now's not the time to watch a fight." Kid Flash hissed. "We have to get going."

"…They'll kill eachother…" Phantom frowned.

"So?" Superboy questioned.

"We have to stop them." Phantom growled.

"But Batman said-" Miss Marian did not get to finish that sentence.

Phantom was already off. He couldn't let the men kill each other. Not while he had the power to save them. He would not let people die again because he chose not to interfere.

He would not have anymore blood on his hands!

"_Phantom! Stop!_" Aqualad shouted through the radio, but Phantom did not listen.

Using both invisibility and intangibility, Phantom flew in between the two fighting groups. Luckily, they were using normal guns. Nothing they could do would hurt him.

Phantom hit and blasted as many people as he could. Many thugs from both groups were knocked out by his sneak attack. The rest stopped and looked around fearfully. An attack had come from nowhere in their perspective.

The halfa used this surprise to finish off most of the other goons. One, however, still stood. The large man was wearing a mask. In fact, this guy was more muscles than man. That did not mean he was stupid, however. In fact, Phantom knew how intelligent that man really was. Because that man could rival the Bat.

He was Bane, and he was staring at the now revealed Phantom.

"El Fantasma?" Bane lowered his gun. He knew it wouldn't help him against a ghost. "Why are you here?"

"Vacation." Phantom shrugged.

"And you decide to attack me, my men, and my enemies." Bane smirked. "Unusual vacation."

"And it's about to get stranger." Phantom stated.

"What-ugh!" Bane groaned in pain as Superboy slammed into the distracted man.

"What was that?!" Robin glared as the others joined the halfa and clone. "What happened to covert?"

"Meh." Phantom shrugged it off. "That never was my style."

"Then why are you in a covert team?" Kid Flash questioned as he began tying up the unconscious men.

"I was just thinking that myself…"

* * *

><p>The alarm at the Amity Park Museum blared through the air. The sound was deafening. Anyone that was within a mile of the museum could hear it. As it turned out, the police actually beat the ghosts to the museum. Unfortunately, that did not seem to be a good thing.<p>

"What happened…" Spirit knelt down next to look at the unconscious policemen.

"They were knocked out." Fright Knight stepped over the bodies and walked to the entrance of the museum. "The person who did this obviously planned ahead for them."

"Luckily they're still alive." Spirit frowned as she noted that some of them had shards of glass sticking out of them. "Barely, though."

"They'll keep until the human medics arrive." Fright Knight stated. "The man who did this is in the museum."

"If he was ready for the cops, then he'll be ready for us." Spirit noted as she followed after the knight. "Well, for me and Phantom, at least."

"Then he'll be surprised by me." Fright Knight chuckled darkly. "Good thing I was around."

"Yeah right." Spirit frowned. "I don't need your help."

"I think you do child." Fright Knight stopped and stared down at the young halfa. "I have seen you fight twice now. Both times, you were defeated. Obviously, you lack strength."

"Shut up!" Spirit glared. "I'm plenty strong."

"Then show me. If you show me that you are strong enough, I will leave you be. Until then…be silent." Fright Knight continued his way through the museum.

"…Whatever…" Spirit looked away in anger.

Shortly after this, the duo found the person who broke into the museum. The man in front of them was wearing a combination of green and yellow. Most of the man's clothes were glowing yellow, but his mask, belt, and boots were green.

Spirit recognized him from the news. It was Mirror Master, the long-time enemy of the Flash.

"What is Mirror Master doing here?" Spirit whispered to Fright Knight. "He usually is based out in Central City."

"We will have to find out." Fright Knight reached for his sword.

"Wait." Spirit stopped him and looked around the cornered. "His back is turned to us. I can catch him before he can turn around."

"…Fine…" Fright Knight conceded.

"Good." Spirit then began to silently float up the Mirror Master. He didn't react when Spirit was right behind him. She went to grab him. "Got cha!"

Spirit passed right through the man.

"What-AAHH!" Light flooded the room. Spirit felt pain in her stomach as a laser blasted in to her stomach.

"No!" Fright Knight tried to run into the room, but was blinded by the light. He couldn't even see Spirit who was a few meters away.

"Well, well, well…" A voice bounced around the room. "Spirit and…someone I don't know."

"Raw!" Fright Knight unsheathed his sword. "Come out, coward!"

"Very tempting, but no." The voice chuckled. "And here I thought that Phantom would show up. Instead, I get his sidekick and a knight. How unusual."

"What do you want?" Spirit tried to look around, but the light blinded her.

"Well, I came here to get a very special item, but while I was here, I thought that I could test out something before I tried it on the Flash…" Mirror Master's voice came from all directions.

"If you won't come out, I will just destroy this room and the lights!" Fright Knight exclaimed.

"We can't have you do that…"

"What-Urg!"

"Fright Knight?!" Spirit exclaimed. "…Talk to me!"

"I don't think he can here you."

Suddenly, the lights dimmed. Spirit blinked to get used to the darkness. "When…When did those mirrors get there?"

"They were always there." Mirror Master's voice answered behind the girl. "I just tricked you into not seeing them."

Spirit whirled around to face the villain. During the spin, the halfa caught a glimpse of the rest of the room. It was covered in more mirrors.

"How…" Spirit mumbled.

"The mind tends to ignore things." The villain answered. "I just learned how to make it do that."

It was then that Spirit composed herself to remember her comrade. "Where's the Fright Knight?"

"In there." Mirror Master pointed to the side.

Spirit looked and saw what he was pointing at. The Fright Knight was…trapped in a mirror. He was slicing at the mirror from the inside, but didn't seem to be getting anywhere.

"Oh, he shouldn't do that." Mirror Master noted. "He just might-"

Crash! Shatter!

The mirror holding the Fright Knight fell to pieces.

"Well, seven years bad luck it is, then." Mirror Master smirked.

"No…" Spirit's eyes widened.

"Don't worry, he's not dead." Mirror Master shrugged. "He merely trapped himself in a mirror. He's not even trapped forever, but it will take time for him to find a way out."

Spirit growled and glared at the man.

"It always amazes me about how easy it is to catch people sometimes." Mirror Master stated as he walked around the room. "Overconfidence really is a sin."

"That's funny coming from you." Spirit clenched her fists. "You think you can beat me one-on-one?"

"In a fist fight? No." Mirror Master stopped at a display. It wasn't anything special. All that was there as a dirty round mirror that could fit in a person's hand. "But that's why I have a plan."

"And it involves that thing?" Spirit's hands began to glow.

Mirror Master laughed and turned. "No, I would need a large power source to use this. Instead, I plan to do this."

All the mirrors around the room began to turn to Spirit. Alarmed, Spirit looked around. She could see herself in all the mirrors. Nothing happened at first, but then all the mirrors began to glow. They seemed to be…scanning her.

In a split second, they turned away from her and pointed to the center of the room. Light shined out of the mirrors and converged in the center of the room. Spirit was shocked by what she saw.

"Is that…me?" Spirit whispered.

"Yes." Mirror Master noted as the light faded, yet the image did not fade. "I made this little device to help me defeat the Flash. It's rather complicated, but the main idea of what I've done is make a reflection of you. It's nowhere near as powerful as you, but it knows your fighting style and abilities. With its help, I can easily beat you."

"If it's so great, why haven't' you used it on Flash!" Spirit snapped.

"It's called a test run, brat." Mirror Master sighed. "Besides, this gives me the opportunity to steal this mirror."

"What is that thing anyway?" Spirit frowned. She was stalling to come up with a plan.

"I figured you would know." Mirror Master chuckled. "It's ghost related after all. I did a lot of research on it. That's how I came up this the idea for the reflection."

"Ghost…related…" Spirit remembered hearing about something like that before, but…where exactly?

"And if that's all the questions you have, I think we should begin this little battle." Mirror Master smiled viciously. "If you can call a massacre a battle, I mean."

* * *

><p>"Why did you blow our cover?" Aqualad questioned after his arrival.<p>

Phantom looked up from his spot of tying up their enemies. "They were going to kill each other."

"Ah! You care." One of the goons mocked. "Why don't you-Ack!"

Phantom punched the goon in the face and broke his nose. "You don't get to talk."

"Isn't that a little harsh…" M'gann flinched at Phantom's brutality.

"Just because I save their asses doesn't mean they can give me lip." Phantom noted.

"So you saved the bad guys from the bad guys?" Kid Flash questioned. "Seems a little weird."

"Do you know how quickly a stray bullet can kill?" Phantom frowned. "It's pretty fast."

"I don't really get why you guys are surprised by this." Superboy shrugged. "From what I remember, this perfectly fit Phantom's character."

"Yeah, the intentions can't be condemned." Kid Flash conceded.

"What's done is done, anyway." Robin shrugged. "Besides, I think we just found our answer to what's happening on this island."

"The cult of Kobra." Phantom knelt down by the unconscious cult members. "I've heard of these guys. Their pretty…extreme. They worship their leader like a god."

"Batman didn't mention anything about that…" M'gann whispered.

"He obviously didn't know." Robin noted.

"And these guys were going to kill each other." Superboy stated. "They obviously aren't friends."

"Then that explains why supply was cut off." Kid Flash nodded. "Okay then, mystery solved. We should call Batman."

"Not that simple…" Phantom eyed his team. "What does the cult gain from this? I mean, none of these members are on Venom. Maybe we should investigate further."

"Of course, we should!" Robin exclaimed.

"He was putting it to a vote, Rob." Kid Flash glared at his friend.

Phantom ignored the team as they argued about the leader. He really didn't care right now. This thing with Kobra was bugging him. Using Venom was extremely addictive, if he remembered correctly. Kobra was the type of guy who thought about long term. Having drug addict followers wouldn't help him…

But there was someone here that might be able to clear that up.

Phantom walked over to Bane. This caused the team to watch the ghost as he walked. Aqualad questioned. "Phantom?"

Phantom knelt down by Bane. Unlike the others, the leader was covered in ice to prevent any possible escape. Phantom didn't know how good Bane was at escaping, but he didn't want to take any chances. "(What does Kobra want with the Venom?)"

"(Wouldn't you like to know…)" Bane growled.

"You can speak Spanish?" Kid Flash questioned.

"One of my friend's main language was Esperanto. Spanish is pretty similar to it. Learning it after Esperanto wasn't that hard." Phantom explained.

"Well, we don't speak Spanish, so English please." Superboy rolled his eyes. Phantom caught a twitch though in the clone's face, though. That was a lie. Superboy did understand Spanish…

"Alright…" Phantom looked at Bane. "You know something about all this. Tell us."

"Why would I do that for nothing in return?" Bane questioned.

"You don't have a choice really." Aqualad stated.

Miss Martian looked over at Bane and focused. "I see…a secret entrance, but I can't tell where."

"That's not what I meant." Phantom stated. "He must know about Kobra's operation."

"I'll try and get more…" M'gann focused again.

"Uh uh uh, Chica." Bane smiled. "Bane isn't that easy."

"Urg…" Miss Martian groaned. "He's mentally reciting futbol scores in Espanol. This could take a while."

"We don't have that much time…" Phantom noted.

"Then we should help each other." Bane smiled. "After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Phantom glared down at the villain. "No, the enemy of my enemy is my friend…while it's convenient."

"You don't trust me?" Bane glared.

"Why would I trust you when I barely trust myself?" Phantom stated. He instantly regretted saying that. He could feel the eyes in the back of his head.

"Um…what does that mean?" Kid Flash questioned.

Phantom quickly thought up a lie. "I could easily faze into the factory, but I'm not sure what tech they have. If they have head recognition or any type of energy detector, then barging in would be suicidal."

"Then shouldn't we team up with Bane?" Superboy questioned.

"No, like I said, he'll betray us when we run out of use for him." Phantom looked around at his team. "Never trust any enemy when there's no respect between you and them."

"Respect between enemies?" Aqualad questioned. "Is that possible."

"It is…" Phantom remembered his long time enemy Skulker. The Ghost Zone's greatest hunter…before the war at least. Now…he was gone. "But it's a rare thing."

"We don't have a lot of options." Robin noted.

"Phantom's right, though." Kid Flash nodded. "Trusting the bad guy? Not smart?"

"Then what do we do?" M'gann questioned.

"We combine our powers." Phantom stated to Miss Martian. "Alone, I won't be able to overshadow him, and you can't read his mind. If we work together, though. We can get our answers."

"Grr…" Bane glared at the halfa.

"Distract his mind with one of you and take him down with the other." Aqualad nodded. "Sound strategy."

"But…I've never done something like this before." M'gann fidgeted. "What if I accidentally read into your mind and memories, too?"

Phantom froze for a moment. What if she did? She could easily get into his memories, and find his secrets. His family could be put into danger, but if he backed out now…The team might just fall apart. "I'll just have to trust you."

M'gann's eyes widened. "Are…you sure?"

"Yeah, let's do it." Phantom readied himself to jump into Bane. "Be ready…now!"

Overshadowing people was always strange. The instant change in being in another body was always weird. This was different, though. Bane's mind fought him off. He was being pushed away. Phantom fought, though. He had to give Miss Martian some time.

Then came the weirdest part. Phantom could only describe it as fingers poking at his brain. It wasn't painful, or even forceful. It felt like the fingers were merely brushing him. It only lasted a second, though. The fingers then went to Bane.

The Venom user instantly tried to divide his attention between the two mental invaders. This didn't help him, though. His mind was strong enough to fight off one of them, but their combined force almost instantly overpowered him.

Phantom blinked as he opened his eyes. He was looking up at his team. "Did you get it, M'gann?"

"Yeah…" Miss Martian nodded. "I got everything he knows about Kobra."

"Good." Phantom in Bane's body nodded. "Then we can come up with a plan."

"Alright…but can you get out of Bane's body." Kid Flash frowned. "It's really weird."

"Can do."

* * *

><p>"Gah!" Spirit cried in pain as she felt Mirror Master's laser gun blast her in the back.<p>

The fight had not been going well. Trying to divide her attention between the reflection and Mirror Master didn't work. In fact, defeating Mirror Master while fighting off herself was quickly proving to be impossible on her own.

Defeating one of the opponents wouldn't be too difficult. Spirit's reflection was a far weaker version of herself. Mirror Master could move through the mirrors, but Spirit's Premonition could easily predict his intentions.

Yes, individually the two would be pushovers. Together, however, they were a force that Spirit couldn't overcome on her own.

"Stop that!" Spirit twirled around in anger. She was about to blast the mirror into pieces, but was stopped by the reflection. The reflection's foot landed on the back of her head. "Gah!"

Dang it! Her Premonition was telling her the intentions, but she couldn't keep up. She was too confused and angry. The only option was to regroup and-

"AH!" Spirit crumbled to the ground and held her leg. Mirror Master's laser gun had caused her leg to collapse.

This, however, allowed Spirit's reflection the chance to attack the halfa, while she was down. The reflection repeatedly punched the real ghost in the face. In pain and desperation, Spirit brought her good leg up and kicked the reflection away from her.

Forcing herself up, Spirit groaned. This was not going well…

"It seems that my little rip-off of the real mirror seems to be effective with a little help…" Mirror Master walked out of the mirror that was furthest away from her. His laser gun was pointed at her.

Spirit eyed the weapon. That had to be ectoplasmic tech. How did he get that? There was no way he could unless… "Ectoplasmic weapons are available on the black market…"

"How insightful." Mirror Master stated. "Yes, but they are quite expensive. This cost me an arm and a leg."

Spirit frowned. It made sense. In fact, every ghost suspect this would happen after Fenton Works was robbed and destroyed.

Even then, the gun wouldn't be enough on its own to hurt her. Mirror Master just came up with a good plan. For a moment, Spirit wondered what Phantom would do in this situation. Maybe he would make duplicates, or use his ice powers…

Or even the Ghostly Wail.

She did not have those options, though. Such powers were far too advanced for her. Spirit would have to work with what she had.

'I have to destroy those mirrors…' Spirit realized. If Mirror Master couldn't move as quickly, she might be able to win.

If only Fright Knight hadn't been trapped. The mirror he had been pulled into must have been special because if Fright Knight was in the mirror world, he would have cut Mirror Master down when the villain entered the mirror. Or maybe the mirror world was just incredibly complicated. Fright Knight might just be lost…

Either way, it was obvious that Fright Knight wouldn't be able to help her. In fact, no one would be coming to help her. Spirit was on her own.

"Ack!" Spirit cried out as her reflection kicked her into the air.

The halfa slid to a halt after a second. She wasn't given the chance to get up, though. Mirror Master shot her in the shoulder before she could react.

Spirit gasped and held her shoulder in pain. She couldn't move that arm anymore. Now she was handicapped for this fight…

"Well, this plan obviously works on you." Mirror Master sighed. "But I was hoping to test it on Phantom. It needs a real challenge."

"I am a-GAh!" Spirit was hit by her reflection's blast of a ectoplasm.

"No, you're not." Mirror Master noted.

The reflection kicked Spirit in the chin.

"You're merely a weaker version of Phantom." Mirror Master mocked.

Spirit felt her stomach burn as her reflection's glowing green fist implanted in her stomach.

"You are worthless and weak."

The reflection grabbed Spirit and flung her away. Spirit flew through the air and crashed into the display with the mirror that Mirror Master wanted. The glass shattered and the mirror fell to the floor with Spirit.

"No…I'm not…" Spirit mumbled through the pain. No! She was strong! She was powerful! She was…She was…

Completely defeated.

"Gah…" Spirit moaned as she tried to rise, but collapsed in a heap. She had taken too much damage.

How did this happen? Was it because there were two opponents? No, if it were Danny, he would find a way to win. He could do it without help.

Not her, though. She needed help. The halfa girl was now the damsel in distress. How pathetic was that? But really, how often had this happened? In her past two fight before this one, she had to have her life saved by others. Without them, she would have been killed.

It was then that Spirit realized how weak she really was. She always acted so tough, but when was the last time she backed it up without help? Spirit couldn't even remember right now.

She felt like crying. All the stress of the past few months finally caught up with her. She was trembling in despair. Nevertheless, she fought off the tears. She refused to give Mirror Master the satisfaction.

"It's over, little girl." Mirror Master pointed his laser gun at Spirit.

('Gun fires. Laser hits head. Death.') Spirit's Premonition warned.

"No!" In one motion, Spirit ignored the pain and pushed herself to one knee. Her other hand quickly reached out and grabbed the nearby ancient mirror. She quickly used the mirror to block the laser and return the blast to Mirror Master.

"Gah!" Mirror Master yelped in pain. He was sent tumbling back.

"I may be weak now, but I refuse to die!" Spirit exclaimed. "I will get stronger! Then I won't have to be so reliant! I will and strive to become better! One day, people will recognize the name of Spirit as something more than Danny Phantom's partner! I will be recognized as one of the strongest!"

"Good for you, little brat." Mirror Master growled. He looked at the nearby reflection. "Kill her."

Spirit struggled to gain the rest of her strength. She focused as much energy as she could through her body. The halfa began to gain a green glow.

'Think of way to push yourself.' Spirit instructed herself. 'Think of those who push you to be better…'

Danny

Dad

Valerie

Wulf

And don't forget the friend that had passed. Don't forget Kle-

"AH!" Spirit shouted in pain as she felt her energy be drained from her. What was happening? Where was her power going? Why…Why was she…

The mirror in Spirit's hands began to glow. It appeared to be draining power from her. The glass of the mirror seemed to be swirling with energy and images. Then, green energy blasted out of the mirror.

Spirit collapsed to the ground unconscious.

"What?" Mirror Master glared through the smoke. He saw an image stand in front of him and the reflection. It wasn't the girl, though. No, this person was a lot taller.

"Who are you?" Mirror Master questioned.

No answer.

"Don't tell me…the girl used the Mirror of Memories?" Mirror Master questioned. "No…there is no way she could possess that much energy."

There was still silence.

"I am the winner here! Reflection, attack!" Mirror Master ordered.

The reflection immediately obeyed. The Spirit copy instantly lunged at the person standing over the original Spirit. It didn't get far, though. It was stopped in an instant.

"What!?...Wait! What are you…No!" Mirror Master cried.

The room was covered in blue light.

* * *

><p>The team left Bane and the other men hidden in the forest. They would be dealt with later. Now, though, they had to get into the factory.<p>

After finding the secret entrance under a bolder, the team quickly made their way through the secret tunnel. It was fortunate that Miss Martian had gotten so much information from Bane. She now knew these tunnels like the back of her hand.

"Make sure to stay together right now." Phantom looked over at Robin and Kid Flash. "We cannot afford to be separated."

Aqualad, Superboy, and Miss Martian all nodded. Kid Flash and Robin looked somewhat frustrated, but agreed nonetheless. Phantom wondered what those looks meant for a moment, but quickly brushed it off. Now was not the time to let his mind wander.

After getting into the factory and successfully hiding, Phantom looked at the others. "There's a computer system up there. Robin, you're the best hacker."

"On it!" Robin was about to go, but was stopped by Phantom. "What?"

"Something's not right…" Phantom placed his free hand over his ear. The radio wasn't working. "Our communication is jammed.

Everyone checked their ears. Aqualad frowned. "That's not good."

"We really can't get separated then." Kid Flash noted.

"I can hear anything you whisper in this room." Superboy noted.

"That won't help the rest of us with normal hearing…" Robin sighed.

"We need to communicate…" Phantom looked over at Miss Martian. "Can you help with that?"

"Yeah, I can set up a mental link, but…" M'gann's eyes wondered to Superboy. "I don't…"

Superboy looked away.

"SB," Phantom stated. "We don't have much of an option. I trusted Miss Martian, now it's your turn."

Superboy slowly nodded. "Fine."

"Okay." Phantom nodded at Miss Martian. "Do it."

If Phantom could describe how having the mental link set up, he would say that it felt like a speaker phone had been turned on in his head. It wasn't painful, but it was…weird.

'Can everyone hear me?' M'gann questioned mentally.

'Wow, that's weird.' Kid Flash mentally groaned.

'But it worked.' Aqualad nodded at M'gann.

'It did…' Superboy noted.

'Now, what?' Miss Martian questioned.

'Because of the mental link, we can instantly communicate.' Phantom explained. 'Now we can regroup immediately if needed, but for now, we should spread out through the factory. Find out as much as you can and stay in contact.'

'What about that thing that defeated Bane in his memories?' Miss Martian questioned.

'Right now, we should avoid combat, but just in case, we'll stay in groups of two. Robin and Kid Flash can access the computers. Miss Martian and Aqualad can stay low and try to get an idea of what's going on. I'll fly Superboy up to the catwalk invisibly. This will allow him to get the best view and scope of what's happening. Is that okay with everyone?' Phantom finished.

Everyone nodded.

'Okay, let's spread out.'

The groups then dispersed. Phantom quickly grabbed Superboy under his armpits and turned invisible. The halfa flew them over factory and began to observe what was happening.

'They look like their only taking out new shipments.' Superboy stated.

'Does Venom expire?' Phantom questioned.

'It takes a long time.' Robin noted. 'Years actually.'

'Guys, I read the minds of the Kobra Cultists. They keep thinking about some new type of Venom.' Miss Martian explained.

'That is not good.' Aqualad noted. 'It could be the substance that made the monster that beat Bane while he was using Venom.'

'…Um, yeah, I think that's exactly what it is.' Kid Flash informed them. 'From what Rob hacked, the Venom was mixed with Blockbuster formula from Cadmus.'

'It changes the user into a powerful monster…permanently.' Robin explained.

'Great…' Phantom groaned mentally. 'Just what we need.'

'…I hear a helicopter.' Superboy noted.

'That could be the buyer.' Aqualad stated.

'Miss M, bring Aqualad to the catwalk above at the top of the factory.' Phantom ordered. 'We'll meet him up here. Then, you can go take a look at the buyer. Find out who it is.'

'Understood.' Miss Martian confirmed.

Phantom and Superboy quickly met up with Aqualad on the catwalk. Phantom noted. 'We might need to destroy the supply of Kobra Venom.'

'Venom can be rather explosive.' Robin noted. 'It wouldn't take much to send this place sky high.'

'Isn't that a little extreme for a covert operation?' Kid Flash questioned.

'Maybe, it depends…' Phantom looked over the factory.

'Depends on what?' Superboy questioned.

'Who the buyers are. When they're going to do the trading. If we have a few days until the trade, then we'll be safe to leave and turn this over to the Justice League. But if it happens now...well, we might have to act.' Phantom explained.

Aqualad nodded at the halfa. 'That makes sense, but I would prefer to avoid any more fighting.'

'Agreed.' Phantom acknowledged. 'I think we can avoid an all out brawl.'

'Phantom, I found the buyers. Sending a mental image to the entire team now.' Miss Martian informed.

'…Or maybe not…' Phantom's fists clenched. 'Crap…'

'Sportsmaster!' Aqualad mentally shouted in alarm. 'We are official over our heads.'

'We've been over our heads since we found out about Kobra!' Kid Flash exclaimed.

'We can take him!' Superboy stated.

'It's not him I'm worried about…' Phantom felt sweet run down his neck. 'It's the other two that are the wild cards…'

'Who are they?' Miss Martian questioned as she followed the group of villains into the factory.

The group consisted of several people. Kobra was a pale man wearing a red robe with a snake hood. The giant being with tough grey skin and red hair was the mammoth that beat Bane. Sportsmaster was the blond man in the goalie mask and sports equipment. In addition, there was a man as pale as death wearing a white suit and black hat.

There were also two girls in the group. One girl had red hair and tattoos. The other, however, was different. She had pink hair set into two horns. Her black and purple leotard top went into a short skirt. Her pants had black and purple stripes.

'The really pale guy in the suit is a ghost named Walker. The girl…her name is Jinx.' Phantom informed.

'Never heard of her…' Everyone could practically hear Kid Flash drooling.

'Trust me, she's dangerous.' Phantom warned. 'They both are.'

'Then what do we do?' Miss Matian questioned as she landed by the boys on the catwalk.

Phantom watched as the group walked through the factory. 'This is an emergency situation. This place needs to go down now.'

'But how do we do that?' Aqualad questioned.

'Robin, Miss Martian, and I can set up explosives. I have plenty with me that we can use. We need to be careful, though.' Phantom warned. 'Kobra, Sportsmaster, Walker, Jinx, and even that…Mammoth might be able to spot us.'

'What about the rest of us?' Superboy questioned.

'SB, stay up here, you're the look out. Also listen in on the group. M'gann, can you send what he hears through the link?' Phantom inquired.

'Yes.'

'Alright, we'll need to know the full details. Aqualad, Kid Flash, sneak outside. Set up explosives on the outside. Like at the helicopter and nearby jungle. That way, we can draw everyone out of here with a distraction.' Phantom informed.

'No one will get hurt by the explosions.' Robin realized.

'Yes. Any arguments?' Phantom questioned.

There were none.

'Then let's do this.'

* * *

><p>"Ch…ke up….irit!...wake…up!" Fright Knight nudged Spirit awake.<p>

"Ugh…" Spirit groaned as her eyes opened. "What…what happened?

"I was hoping you could tell me." Fright Knight sighed.

"What do you mean?" Spirit sat up and was instantly surprised. She was lying in a soft pile of…snow. It wasn't cold, though. In fact, it was almost like a bed.

"That…" Fright Knight gestured at the snow, then the rest of the room. "And that."

Spirit looked around and was shocked. Everything was completely frozen. The only thing that was even partially free of ice was Mirror Master. His torso was frozen to a nearby wall. The rest of him was okay, but he appeared to be unconscious.

"What the…" Spirit's eyes widened.

"My thoughts exactly…" Fright Knight helped the girl to her feet. "Did you do this?"

"No…or, at least, I don't think I did…" Spirit shrugged.

"Then who…" Fright Knight's gaze went to Spirit's hands. "What are you holding?"

"Oh, this?" Spirit held up the ancient mirror. "This was what Mirror Master was after."

Fright Knight snagged it from Spirit.

"Hey! Rude much?!" Spirit glared.

"This is…" Fright Knight gripped the mirror painfully. "Bad. I thought this was gone..."

"What is it?" Spirit questioned.

"Something that is very dangerous…" Fright Knight eyed the mirror. "Did…you use this?"

"I…" Spirit remembered the fight. She remembered her last stand. She remembered the sudden drain in her energy. She remembered…

Her weakness.

Spirit's shoulders instantly slumped.

Fright Knight noticed this. "Did you remember anyone that…has passed?"

"Huh?" Spirit mumbled and looked up sadly. She looked like a kicked puppy. "I don't…I guess. I did think about Klemper for a moment."

"The ice ghost friend of yours and my lord." Fright Knight noted. "And this place is frozen."

"Um…yes?" Spirit questioned. "Does that matter?"

"Yes, but…I can't take this right now. If a ghost goes and steals a priceless artefact… Tensions will skyrocket." Fright Knight sighed. "I will leave it hear and inform Vision of what happened...or perhaps she probably knows. This happened while I was in the mirror, so I didn't sense it, but many others might have sensed it happen."

"And what did happen?" Spirit eyed the frozen room in distaste.

"Your victory." Fright Knight noted. "You defeated Mirror Master on your own."

"But the mirror…"

"Is merely a tool." Fright Knight stated. "Using tools and weapons are a part of battle."

"…I guess…"

"Spirit, this is your victory."

"Maybe…"

But it sure didn't feel like it…

* * *

><p>After giving the team their share of the bombs, Phantom went to work in order to uphold his part of the plan. Despite being invisible, people could still hear him and see what he did to the environment. He would need to be careful.<p>

While this was happening, Phantom heard what the group of villains were saying through M'gann's mental link.

"Did you run into any problems, Lord Kobra?" Sportsmaster questioned.

"There was a problem with Bane and his men, but that will soon be dealt with." Kobra noted.

"Hmm…" Jinx raised an eyebrow. "Should I deal with him?"

"No, my men can handle it." Kobra noted.

"Doubtful." Walker glared at the humans. "They aren't alert enough for my tastes."

"Here we go…" Jinx rolled her eyes. "I have to hear this all the time since I was made your babysitter. It's always, 'my prison this,' and 'my prison that.' It's annoying as hell."

"My prison was the greatest until Danny Phantom messed it up." Walker growled. "And I never asked to have you as my stalker."

"Someone has to keep an eye on the new guy." Jinx smirked. "Besides, this is my vacation from my last mission."

"Be quite you two." Sportsmaster snapped. "Lord Kobra doesn't want to hear you squabble."

"Quite the contrary. These mortals' little spat amuses me." Kobra stated. "Especially the part about Danny Phantom."

"Interested in the spook?" Sportsmaster questioned.

"Who isn't these days?" Kobra chuckled. "He's quite the interesting topic. In fact, I've heard that you had a run in with him when Daniel Fenton was kidnapped."

"Don't remind me." Sportsmaster growled. "That's the last time I'll go easy on the little snot."

"You just chose the wrong approach." Jinx shrugged. "He won't go down easily in an open fight. You need to sneak up on him and take him out before he can react. Trust me, he's not the type for stealth. It would be easy to get the jump on him."

"If you're human. He can sense ghosts…" Walker mumbled.

"You seem to know quite a lot about Phantom." Kobra mentioned.

"I observed him." Jinx gained a wide grin. "That's all I need to do to know everything about him."

"Oh? How so?"

"Trade secret."

'Are your ears burning, Phantom?' Kid Flash joked through the mind link.

'Not funny.' Phantom placed the last bomb.

'Just be careful not to sneeze.' Robin chuckled mentally.

'Oh, shut up.' Phantom growled. 'I'm done by the way.'

'Ditto!' M'gann cheered.

'That makes three of us.' Robin responded.

'That's all the bombs.' Aqualad noted.

'What do we do next?' Superboy questioned.

'I'm going to get you out of here.' Phantom informed. 'Miss Martian and Robin can get out on their own. Once everyone is ready, blow the bombs on the outside, Kid.'

'My absolute pleasure.' You could almost feel the grin on Kid Flash's face.

'Once that is done, everyone will come out running.' Phantom explained. 'Once that happens, and they are far enough away from the factory, jump them. Kid Flash and Aqualad, distract the goons. If you finish quickly, help who looks like they need the most help. Miss Martian, brain blast Mammoth. He doesn't look like he can take it. SB, try and take down Sportsmaster. He's human, but tough as nails.

'Robin, take out the red haired chick and distract Kobra. After M'gann is done, she'll help you take down the snake, then you two can help SB takedown Sportsmaster.' Phantom finished.

'What about you?' Miss Martian asked.

'I'm going to take down Walker and Jinx.' Phantom answered. 'I'm the only one familiar with their powers and fighting styles. I'll hold out until you guys can back me up. But Kid, make sure to blow up the factory before you get too into the fight. And most importantly, remember the drills that we've been working at the Cave. Any questions?'

There were none.

'Alright, go!'

The following events occurred just as Phantom predicted. The reactions of the villains were predictable. They were soon gaping at the burning remains of the helicopter and jungle trees. In a side note, Phantom had to thank Vlad for all the strategy training…

That was when the team attacked. Everyone went to their assigned targets. Phantom didn't pay attention to that, though. He didn't even pay attention as the factory was destroyed in explosions. He had his own targets to attack.

"What is going on!?" Jinx shouted.

"How should I-Ah!" Walker shouted in surprise as something grabbed him and threw him into Jinx. The two villains went tumbling until they came to a halt several feet away.

"So I'm not very stealthy, huh?" Phantom turned visible and faced the duo. "Well, I just managed to trick all of you without you knowing it."

"Punk!" Walker barked as he got to his feet. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Tracking you down, Walker. You're a wanted man." Phantom answered.

"And you brought along the sidekick brigade apparently…" Jinx eyed the other members of the team of young heroes.

"Don't think I forgot about you, Jinx." Phantom glared at the girl. "I remember what you did in my town…"

That's right…he remembered. He remembered everything about Jenifer…or Jinx…or whatever he should call her. She was the girl that he once called a friend, but she really wasn't. She was secretly working with the Shadows in order to trick Danny and rob Fenton Works.

Despite these circumstances, Fenton and Jenifer separated on generally good terms after a heartfelt goodbye. Phantom and Jinx, however, were still enemies.

"Do you really think you can beat to two of us?" Jinx smirked.

'No, not at this time…' "Of course." Phantom took a self-defense stance.

"Then get ready, punk!" Walker flew at Phantom at full speed.

Using his agility, Phantom dodged the charge but was forced to change course. Jinx's pink hex blasts barely missed Phantom. Phantom then used this opportunity to charge at Jinx. All the while, Jinx continued to fire hex blasts at Phantom. Each blast was skillfully dodged.

Phantom was about to attack Jinx, but was stopped. Walker grabbed the halfa's leg and slammed Phantom into the ground. Unable to roll away, Phantom was forced to faze through the ground in order to dodge Jinx's hex blasts.

A moment later, Phantom fazed through the ground and tried to hit Walker in the jaw. The ex-warden quickly blocked this blow, however, "Is that all? You've gotten slower, punk!"

Another Phantom came out of the ground and hit Walker in the face. "It's called duplicates!"

Before Phantom could react, a large hex bolt hit him and his duplicate. The duplicate quickly faded. Then, Walker kicked Phantom in the back. Phantom went tumbling forward and was unable to dodge another hex bolt.

"You're moves have gotten smother, but they lack the speed, power, and ferocity you had before…" Jinx noted. "Off day?"

"More like long night…" Phantom picked up his bruised body. He might be able to regenerate, but he no longer had the luxary of being able to use it on anything other than fatal wounds. If he did, he would exhaust himself to the point of collapsing.

"Good for us!" Walker nailed a hook punch on Phantom's head. Phantom, however, used this momentum to spin around and hit Walker with a spinning back fist.

Dodging to the left, Phantom allowed Jinx's hex bolt to hit Walker. The ex-warden was sent flying back. In her surprise, Jinx let her guard down and allowed Phantom to hit her with an ectoplasmic blast.

'That's it…' Phantom realized. 'They have no teamwork. I can use that.'

Phantom quickly position himself next to Jinx. The pink eyed girl reacted immediately and sent several kicks at Phantom. Phantom dodged each kick. Then, the halfa suddenly swerved. The side kick nailed Walker in the stomach.

"Gah! Watch it!" Walker glared.

"Don't get in my way!" Jinx shouted.

Phantom stayed in between Jinx and Walker. Usually, this would be a bad thing in a fight, but because the duo lacked teamwork, they kept accidentally hitting each other.

Eventually, Phantom saw the perfect opening.

One of Walker's punches hit Jinx in the midsection. This caused her to hunch over. Phantom quickly acted. He grabbed Jinx's head and used it to hit Walker straight in the jaw. This greatly hurt both parties.

Phantom then gathered green energy into his fist. He blasted the duo away from him in a devastating blow. The energy in it was probably too much considering Phantom's lower energy, but he didn't have a choice. He had an opening, and he took it.

Both villains were sent crashing into the trees. Phantom quickly followed after them. He needed to end this, so he pulled out a Fenton Thermos. He could capture Walker and knock Jinx out.

By the time Phantom got to their location, Jinx and Walker were both on their feet. They looked agitated and bruised. It was clear that they couldn't work together at this moment.

"Heads up!" Phantom aimed his thermos at Walker.

He wasn't captured, though. Jinx stepped in the way and stopped the thermos' power. But…the odd thing was that some of Jinx's energy was being sucked up by the thermos.

Phantom quickly stopped and examined the thermos. "What?"

Did it have an effect on meta-humans?

"I think it would be best to implement the rule of retreating." Walker suggested.

Jinx looked past Phantom at the team. She frowned at the sight. "I agree. Until next time, cutie."

Before Phantom could stop them, both Jinx and Walker disappeared in a swirl of pink energy. Sighing, Phantom groaned. "Damn, almost had them…"

"It was a good shot, though." Kid Flash zipped up to Phantom. "You took them both on at once."

"Yeah…" Phantom looked at the others as they approached him. "Did it work?"

"Of course!" M'gann smiled.

"They didn't stand a chance." Robin smirked. "After Miss M knocked out Mammoth, she did the same to Kobra."

"Unfortunately, Sportsmaster ran away when the goings got tough." Superboy rolled his eyes.

"Too bad…" Phantom remembered how Sportsmaster interacted him (as Fenton) in the past. He threatened Dani's life, sucker punched Fenton, and tried to kill Fenton during his escape from the Shadows. Needless to say, Phantom wanted Sportsmaster behind bars.

"Can't get them all." Kid Flash shrugged.

"But we did good work here." Aqualad smiled. "We discovered the disturbance, destroyed the supply of a dangerous new chemical drug, and captured several dangerous criminals. It was a good night's work."

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "Pretty good for not having a leader, huh?"

The team stared at him. Forget everything discussed before. Danny Phantom is completely clueless.

"What?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you get it, spooky?" Kid Flash flung his arm around Phantom's shoulder. "You're the leader."

"What?"

"Hello, Megan!" M'gann smiled. "It's completely obvious."

"Not that hard to figure out." Superboy smirked.

"But…I …" Phantom didn't know what to say.

"You were the one to lead us when things became difficult." Kaldur explained. "You were the one that not only kept us all safe, but also united us to come out the victors of this battle. These are the things a true leader does."

"…Are you guys sure?" Phantom questioned. "I…don't have a perfect record for making the perfect choices."

"We all make mistakes, man." Robin shrugged. "But you are the only one here with leadership experience. I, kind of wanted to be leader myself-"

Kid Flash snorted. "Kind of?"

Robing ignored him. "But you are clearly the best choice. Anyone can see that."

"…Okay then. I'll try, but I don't make any promises…" Phantom conceded. He wasn't completely sure about this, though. The concept of leading...frightened him, but...the looks they were giving made him fell like he didn't have a choice.

"Don't worry about it, bro." Kid Flash playfully punched him in the shoulder. "You've totally proved yourself."

Kaldur smiled. "We trust you."

'But should you really…' Phantom wondered to himself.

"Exactly, and we especially trust you to explain everything to Batman." Robin smiled.

Phantom looked around at all the destruction. "Please, Batman had to expect this if he put me on this team."

No one could argue with that.

* * *

><p>(Friday-July 23, 2010)<p>

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Batman got right in Phantom's face.

"Well, we managed to discover what was happening to the Venom, destroy the new drug, and capture Bane, Kobra, Mammoth, and a ton of cultists." Phantom explained. "Oh, and Kid Flash got one of the cultist's mask as a souvenir."

"Bro, leave me out of this…" Kid Flash mumbled.

"It was a simple recon mission. Observe and report." Batman glared.

"And if we did that, the world might now be threatened by Kobra Venom." Phantom noted. "You can reprimand me all you want, but everything that was done was the right call. In the end, Young Justice returned safely, and the world was made a little safer."

The other members of the team perked up at 'Young Justice.'

Batman was silent for a moment. Then, he said. "You each will receive a written report of every little detail that you did wrong, but in the end…good job."

Everyone perked up at that.

"I agree. The right calls were made at the most important moments, and the team…Young Justice completed the mission and returned safely." Batman acknowledged as he began to walk away. "No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. How you adjust to the unforeseen is what determines success."

Phantom smiled at that.

"And how you determine who leads, determines character." Batman added in, then sighed. "Besides, I expected this the moment Phantom was placed on this team."

Phantom gave Robin a look that said, 'I told you so!'

After Batman left, Superboy looked at Phantom. "Young Justice?"

"I don't know." Phantom shrugged. "I just can't stand being called 'the team.' It annoys me."

"Where'd you come up with that?" M'gann questioned.

"I came up with a list." Phantom held up said list. "My final two were the Teen Titans and Young Justice."

"Why go with the latter?" Aqualad questioned.

"It…felt right." Phantom nodded.

"Well, I like it!" Wally interjected. "I think it suits us."

"It does seem…fitting." Aqualad nodded.

"Perfect!" M'gann smiled.

"It's alright with me." Superboy shrugged.

"Young Justice…it notes that we are affiliated with the League, but we're our own group." Robin smiled. "Awesome."

"Glad you like it…" Phantom began walking away to the Zeta Tube. "It would have sucked if I had a mutiny on my hands over the name."

"What would you have done if we hated the name?" Robin questioned.

"Cried in the corner for a while." Phantom said with all seriousness.

There was a moment of pause, then, the entire Cave was filled with laughter.

* * *

><p>"Are you paying attention, Phantom?" A woman covered in purple robes, purple headdress, and purple veil questioned.<p>

"What?" Danny, in human form, looked up from his Tucker Phone.

"Give me that." Vision, the Ghost Zone's Undefeated Strategist and most dangerous ghost, grabbed the phone. "The Mirror of Memories is more important than the Goddess of the Hunt needing arrows."

"Umm…" Danny frowned. "It's not actually…"

"Daniel," Vlad sighed as he looked at his apprentice across the living room of the Masters Mansion. "This is serious."

"I know, but I've got a lot to deal with right now…" Danny sighed.

"Yeah, we know." Dani mumbled from the couch. She was holding Cujo closely to her. "But in case you didn't notice, we have a crisis on our hands."

"When did you become so serious?" Danny questioned. "Besides, there's always a crisis about to happen. Remember, Grundy? Freakshow? We still need to solve those problems first. How do we contain the zombie and how do we catch the freak?"

"This is different. There is nothing we can do the interfere in those situations right now. But with this, we can." Vision noted. "We are talking about the Mirror of Memories and the immediate danger it represents."

"Yeah, I know." Danny gestured to Fright Knight who was standing in the corner. "He told me about it. Wide Smile Jester of the Ancient Six originally made the mirror. No one knew what happened to it, and now it's both found and activated."

"And that is why we need to get the mirror before anyone else does." Vision explained. "The destruction it could cause would be terrifying, but we cannot just take it. Ghosts are now being watched closely by the world's governments. You and Spirit might be an exception because of your good deeds and get way with running all over the place, but everyone else…"

"What mirror do?" Wulf questioned as he looked at Vision.

"It can make…a reflection of a memory." Vision noted. "Jester wanted to use it to give people closure to those lost, but people aren't remembered exactly how they existed, but how they were perceived. The memory is distorted. Sometimes better, sometimes worse."

"I'm not seeing the impact yet." Danny noted.

"That is the impact. The Mirror of Memories can essentially bring the memory of a person to life. It takes a memory, gives it form, and, in many cases, sends it to battle." Vision stated. "It takes a lot of power to do so, though."

"But Dani used it on her own…" Danny noted. "How much power does it need?"

"A lot." Vision explained. "Using it exhausted Spirit, but it did work. I believed it created a reflection of your friend Klemper."

"…" Danny frowned. "I…see…"

"If it gets into the wrong hands, the mirror could possibly make an army of reflections. Soldiers that feel no pain and do not tire." Fright Knight joined the conversation.

"But it would require an enormous amount of power." Vlad mentioned. "Powering that kind of army would be difficult."

"It is possible, though." Vision acknowledged. "The universe is full of power sources that could fuel the mirror."

"Okay, this thing's dangerous." Danny nodded. "What do we do?"

"Like I said, we cannot just take it. It would lead to a lot of trouble." Vision explained. "I will need to make a formal request to move the mirror to a safe location. Until then, I will place my servants on guard for the mirror. They will be instructed to especially look out for Freakshow and the 6 most wanted ghosts."

"Not just them, though." Fright Knight noted. "By now, anyone with the ability to sense the mirror's power knows of the mirror's location."

"So basically, we're going to have a ton of dangerous groups of people scrambling to attack my city and steal the Mirror of Memories?" Danny wanted to clarify.

"Exactly."

"Like I didn't have enough problems to deal with."

* * *

><p>The Ghoul Project…<p>

Joel didn't know what to think when he first arrived at the facility. They were underground, so Joel instantly knew escaping alone would be difficult. Then there was the massive steel wall, armed guards, and glass tubes with monsters floating in them.

At that point, Joel knew escaping alone was impossible.

As he sat in his steel cage, Joel watched as the scientists moved back and forth. He had watched. He learned. He saw what they were doing to the others that were being held here.

Every single one of them were dying slowly and painfully.

Well, that wasn't true. One of the 'experiments' lived through the process. That big pale guy with more muscles than brains. Apparently, his unusual relation with the Lazarus Pit caused the body to become incredibly durable.

"What was his name…" Joel wondered out loud. He was always terrible with names. "Sasquatch Groopy?...No…Hmm…I forget…"

Despite the deadly situation, Joel remained calm. That's how it always was. No matter what life threw at him, he just shrugged it off.

Grew up in an orphanage for six years?

He shrugged it off.

Adopted by an organization of assassins?

He shrugged it off.

Thrown out of the organization and put in a hellish lab experiment where he would surely die?

He shrugged it off.

Joel's seemingly indifference normally turned people off. It made him appear cold and unfeeling, but that was far from the truth. Joel just didn't let the small things get to him. When he was motivated, though, Joel was unbreakable. Like the League of Shadows quickly found out when Joel refused to kill.

Joel then noticed that his daily food and water had been slid into his cage. The ten year old made his way to the necessary substances. For now, he needed them to live.

But for how long exactly?

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Aqualad<strong>

Aqualad flipped Phantom onto the floor of the Cave's training area. He held his fist right in front of Phantom's face. "You are distracted."

Phantom groaned. "What gave it away?"

"Normally, it takes longer to hit you." Kaldur helped Phantom to his feet. "What happened?"

"A lot of confusing crap at home. Don't worry." Phantom shrugged. "I've got family and friends to help me deal with it."

"It must be nice to have such people you can trust." Aqualad noted.

"You act like you don't have any." Phantom stated. "You were the one that said you trusted me."

"That I did." Kaldur nodded. "I suppose I forgot."

"Forgot! Some friend you are…" Phantom smirked. "The second-in-command shouldn't forget what he says to the leader."

"You…" Kaldur's eyes widened. "I…am second-in-command?"

"Yeah, honestly I thought you were going to lead in the first place, but since everyone seems to think that I'm the leader just because I was ordering people around…" Phantom snorted. "Then you'll just have to settle for being lieutenant."

"I am honored." Kaldur nodded.

"Awesome, now could you help me with my hand-to-hand combat, lieutenant?" Phantom questioned. "I really need to work on it."

"Obviously." Kaldur smirked. "You never take the opportunity to counter attack. I don't understand really. You did fine in your fight with Walker and Jinx."

"I'm trying not to use my powers…It's messing me up." Phantom noted. "If I used them, I could totally beat you."

"Perhaps, but you were the one who set the rules." Kaldur smirked. "You must live with them."

"Technaclly, I'm dead." Phantom noted.

"That explains why your reaction time is so slow."

"Oh! Low blow! Alright, then fish boy. Bring it!"

"Consider it brought."

* * *

><p><strong>Danny's instincts kick in, and he takes the lead without even realizing it.<strong>

**No one has asked yet, but...Yes, I do know about the comics that are linked to the show. No, I won't use them. Most of them weren't all that great. Besides Artemis' origin, of course. I liked that one. Plus, since Kobra was captured, the events involving him in the comics never happened.**

**Oh, happy Valentine's Day by the way. It's such a weird holiday. For single people (guys at least), it doesn't really matter. For couples, it's supposed to be one of the most romantic days of the year. No pressure.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	5. Foresight

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Expect the best, plan for the worst, and prepare to be surprised." Denis Waitley

* * *

><p>Chapter 5: "Foresight"<p>

(Tuesday-August 3, 2010)

"Danielle?" Vlad walked into the training room of the mansion. It was filled with punching bags, weights, and other specialized equipment. "Are you alright?"

Spirit looked up from her spot in the middle of the floor. She had been working on improving her speed by flying back and forth through the room. "Yeah…"

"Really…" Vlad approached the girl. "Because you've been training all morning."

"Danny was in here too." Spirit argued as she landed on the ground.

"Yes, but that was two hours ago." Vlad mentioned. "Yet here you are still training…"

"What's wrong with training?" Spirit mumbled defensively.

"Nothing as long as you give yourself time to rest." Vlad frowned.

"I took some breaks…" Spirit mentioned.

"Not enough." Vlad stated. "Come downstairs and get something to eat."

"I don't feel like it." Spirit turned away. "I'm going to keep training."

"You make it sound like you have a choice." Vlad raised an eyebrow.

Spirit whipped her head and glared at her father. "And I don't?"

"No, your father is giving you an order." Vlad explained.

"So you're ordering me to stop training, but you let Danny train all night at times." Spirit huffed. "That's a double standard."

"Yes, perhaps it is…" Vlad nodded slowly. "But his case is different."

"And why is that!?" Spirit snapped. "Because I'm young? Because I'm a girl? Because I'm weak?"

"No, Danielle." Vlad knelt down. "It's not because of any of those things, and it's most definitely not because you are weak, because you're not."

"Then what?! Why am I always held back by you?!" Spirit yelled. "Why do you always let Danny do more than me?!"

"He is my responsibility, but Daniel has never been one to listen to me. He has already found his own path. I don't know where it leads, but I respect the fact that he has chosen that path, because despite the fact that he is under my protection, he is not my child." Vlad stared Spirit in the eye. "You are, though."

"No I'm not…" Spirit mumbled. "I'm a clone of Danny, an imperfect one at that…"

"You may not be my child in blood, but that doesn't matter." Vlad noted. "You are my daughter, and nothing will change that."

"…" Spirit looked away. "I know that, but I'm tired of this. Each time there is a challenge, I'm held back. I either have help, lose, or am kept from the fight altogether. I'm tired of it!"

"Danielle…"

"Dad, I'm weak!" Spirit clenched her fists. "I have always been weak, but was too suborn to admit it."

"You are not weak, Danielle." Vlad tried to comfort the girl.

"Yes I am." Spirit took a step back. "And I'm sick of it. I want to be able to fight on my own. I want to win with my own power."

"Your own power? You are able to throw grown men around like rag dolls. You can defeat ghosts that many of the meta-humans on the planet would have trouble with. You can predict a person's intentions and avoid attacks that would hit either Daniel or I." Vlad noted. "How can you undermine that power?"

"It's never enough, though!" Spirit cried. "Every time a crisis occurs, I can never help like I want to! With Mirror Master, Freakshow, and Grundy, I couldn't do anything. I couldn't stop Klemper's death, and I definitely couldn't save Danny when he was about to be killed!"

"…I see…" Vlad nodded.

"No, you don't!" Spirit yelled.

"Danielle, it wasn't your fault-"

"No! No more excuses!" Spirit stepped away. "I'm done with this!"

In an instant, Spirit had turned intangible and flew out of the room. Vlad did nothing to stop her. She needed to cool off some. It reminded Vlad a lot of how Danny was before the war.

Yes, she definitely got those emotions from her genetic father.

* * *

><p>Phantom could honestly say that he was completely exhausted. The past few weeks had been non-stop work for the halfa. He had to juggle his time between Young Justice, Axion Labs, protecting the Mirror of Memories, keeping the search going for the missing ghosts, and trying to keep the peace between the humans and the ghosts.<p>

Actually, that last one basically summed up everything Phantom went through for the past few weeks. Trying to keep the peace between humans and ghosts was easier said than done, and just saying it was hard enough.

After the discovery of the Mirror of Memories, the relations of the ghosts and the humans became even rockier. Vision had tried to convince the humans to either put the mirror in hiding, or give it to the ghosts for safe keeping. In truth, this wasn't a too outrageous request. The memory of war was still fresh in the minds of everyone, though, and that complicated things.

Many humans, the US government, the UN, and the Justice League specifically, didn't want to take orders from a ghost. Thus, the first barrier appeared. The humans were unwilling to cooperate.

Phantom couldn't barely believe his ears. He knew that the UN and League had to be…insecure about ghosts, but didn't they understand the danger? Were they really letting their pride get in the way of the safety of both their worlds?

Granted, the UN's (and to a lesser extent the United States) reputation went south after the GIW went rogue and decided to attack the Ghost Zone, but they shouldn't blame the ghosts. The ghosts merely defended themselves. That may have been the problem, though. Everyone knew that the humans were in the wrong and that the UN made a mistake. It had to be a difficult fact to accept.

Then, the Justice League…

Phantom could honestly say he was disappointed in them. Were they really that bitter about the war? Yes, almost every Leaguer was either defeated or pushed to a standstill against the ghosts (or in some cases, two Leaguers were defeated by one ghost), but they should get over it. Phantom lost a lot during his time as a hero.

Of course, not all the Leaguers had such feelings about the ghosts. Some such as Superman and Captain Marvel were ready to trust the ghosts. Others seemed a lot more paranoid, though.

So…maybe it was Vision herself that might be the problem. As a master strategist, espionage expert, and genius, Vision had discretely discovered all the secret identities of the League. Phantom could understand the mistrust that was directed at a being that could not only defeat two Leaguers with ease, but also ruin the entire League's secrecy with a few choice words.

Nevertheless, Phantom had to intervene. The halfa had a lot of good will from all parties. He was the person who saved the Ghost Zone, stopped the GIW and the war, and was also a member of the ghost's Council of the Elite and Young Justice.

…Yeah, he had a lot of crap going on…

Luckily, that helped in this situation. He managed to cool everyone down and get everyone to agree to at least move the mirror. That, however, led to the current problem.

No one could agree on where the mirror should go.

The ghosts wanted it in the Ghost Zone. The UN wanted it locked away in secret, or even destroyed. Even the League was arguing to have it under their protection.

With that problem, however, Phantom didn't know what to do, and with more and more people trying to steal the mirror…He might not have the chance to fix it.

"Danny? You wanted to speak with me?" Superman flew up the halfa who was floating above Metropolis.

Despite the craziness with keeping the mirror safe, lowering tensions between ghosts and humans, and even trying to get Technus to work with the humans at Axion Labs, Phantom still took his role as leader of Young Justice seriously. He tried to go out of his way to help his team adjust to the change of having to rely on people other than their mentors. For the most part, that part was easy, but there was a single problem.

Superboy.

"Hey." Phantom waved tiredly. "Yeah, thanks for agreeing to meet with me."

"It's not a problem." Superman smiled. "It's rare that you meet with anyone in the League when it doesn't have to do with a crisis…It's not a crisis, is it? Because if its about the Mirror of Memories, then you should know that I'm on your side. Batman and I are trying to get everyone in agreement, but…"

"That's okay. This isn't about that." Phantom noted.

"Then what is this about?" Superman questioned.

"…Superboy…"

The expression on Superman's face instantly went from happy to annoyed. "I see…"

"Look, I'm not here to get on your bad side." Phantom tried to calm the Kryptonian. "But I've been hanging around SB for weeks. He's angry as hell, and I don't blame him. I know that you must feel violated, but don't take it out on him. All he's trying to do is make you proud."

"I understand what you're trying to do, Danny. I really do. You're looking out for your team, but that doesn't have anything to do with me." Superman frowned.

"Yes it does." Phantom stated without a single hint of doubt. "Like it or not, you two are connected. You are related by genetics. That means a lot to Superboy. There is not a single other person on the planet that can relate to him as a Kryptonian."

"Blood isn't the only things that makes family."

"No, it doesn't. Most of my family is not related to be, but that doesn't change anything." Phantom eyed the powerful being before him. "Family is family, and neither of us is allowed to be picky here."

Superman sighed. "What do you want?"

"Just spend some time with him." Phantom clarified. "He looks up to you as a goal and role model. Basically, he already idolizes you. Just give him a chance. Do a patrol or help train him. Anything will do. Hell, I bet a freaking pat on the shoulder and a 'good job' will make his day."

"Okay, I get it, but this is different than anything you dealt with." Superman argued. "This is my clone. You don't realize how I feel about that. Someone took my DNA and created another person without my knowledge or consent. That's wrong, and I cannot support it."

Phantom had to fight not to snap out at the Kryptonian at this point. He didn't know?! Phantom understood this better than Superman ever could. The hafla stayed quiet about this, though. If he told Superman about Dani, then the entire League would know.

"Superboy can't help how he was created." Phantom argued. "To blame him for that is wrong."

Superman was silent.

"Just give him a chance." Phantom pleaded.

"I-" Superman's head whipped to the side. He was looking off to the Metropolis Bridge. "There's trouble."

In an instant, the Man of Steel was gone.

"…Damn…"

* * *

><p>"Tensions continue to rise between the ghosts and the Justice League-"<p>

"Amity Park has been attacked several times over the past couple of weeks. Reports indicate that most of the attacks were cause by what can be considered 'magical' foes to the Justice League-"

"What is it with that city!? A year ago, no one even heard of it. Now, it's the center of all the chaos happening in the world-"

"What exactly are they hiding-"

"Now I know what you're thinking. Good old G. Gordon has actually changed his mind…and you bet I have!" G. Gordon Godfrey spoke through Dani's phone. "It's only been a few months since the GIW started a full fledge war against the ghost, and the only ones that seem to want peace anymore are the ghosts!

"It was the ghosts that initiated a treaty talk. It was the ghosts that gave all the compromises. It was the ghosts that promised to abide by our rules, yet our so called leaders and protectors refuse to even listen to a simple warning from them. Am I the only one that sees the problem with that?!

"You all know that I was never a supporter of the ghosts. They appeared to be in the wrong at first, but actions speak louder than words! Their actions, especially Danny Phantom, have shown that they want peace. And for the sake of that peace, they have asked the UN and Justice League to move a dangerous artifact away from Amity Park and to guard it.

"That doesn't seem like a difficult request, right? Wrong! Both the UN and the Justice League have been acting like children in this matter! There have already been five attacks to Amity Park, and no action has been taken. Is Amity Park a separate nation or something? Because if not, then, why is it being treated like one?!"

Dani turned off her phone. "That's a good question…"

After leaving her home in anger, Dani made her way to the safest place in Amity Park besides her home. Fenton Works was armed to the tee and was relatively comfortable. Because Vlad knew that the rebuilt Fenton Works would rarely be used compared to their home, he merely added the essential furniture to each room.

Dani was currently in what was Danny's old…rebuilt…room. It now only had a bed and a desk, but Dani didn't care. She just needed a place to cool off.

"You shouldn't listen to that man." Fright Knight noted as he stood at the doorway. "I don't trust him."

"You've been listening to Danny too much. Not all reporters are bad." Dani shrugged. "Besides, he seems to be on our side."

"But for how long…" Fright Knight sighed.

Dani couldn't really complain about the Fright Knight's presence. This was where he was currently living after all. She was the guest here. "Hopefully long enough to get the mirror out of Amity Park."

"Yes. It needs to be moved. That much is true." Fright Knight agreed. "Freakshow, Wotan, and even Klarion all attacked already."

"I think that everyone agrees that it should be moved, the only question is where." Dani noted. "I feel bad for the Justice League, though. They're getting the bad press from this."

"They should be a little more trusting if they didn't want bad publicity." Fright Knight stated.

"But you and the other S-rank ghosts don't trust them. You're just acting like you do." Dani mentioned.

"Indeed…" Fright Knight nodded. "And that is why we have the good publicity. We can act."

Dani snorted at that. "Okay…By the way, was there something you wanted?"

"Ah…yes." Fright Knight nodded. "I figured you had enough time to cool off. What happened?"

"Nothing…" Dani mumbled. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Ah…" Fright Knight rubbed the back of his helm. "I see…You do not wish to speak of it."

"Yeah…" Dani sighed.

"Then I shall leave you be." Fright Knight stated and began to leave.

"Hey…" Dani stopped the knight.

"Yes?"

"How do you become strong?"

Fright Knight paused for a moment. "That is a difficult question to answer. It is different for different people. For people like my liege, battle and hardships make them stronger. Others go through rigorous training. And sometimes, people are just born with strength."

"Which one are you?" Dani questioned.

"A combination of the three." Fright Knight stated.

"And…which one am I?" Dani asked.

"…Hm…" Fright Knight crossed his arm in thought. "Well, you are related to my liege in blood. There is a good chance that you thrive in battle. You might become stronger through challenges."

"But how will I do that if I always have help." Dani frowned. "You even stated that you'll keep following me on patrols until I'm strong."

"You didn't notice?" Fright Knight chuckled as he walked out of the room. "I haven't followed you in your patrols since the mirror was discovered."

* * *

><p>"Phantom!?" Superboy yelled when Phantom grabbed him by the shoulders, turned him invisible, and took off into the sky.<p>

"Sup?" Phantom questioned.

"I should be the one asking you that!" Superboy snapped. "Let me go!"

"If I do that, then you won't talk to me." Phantom noted.

"And if you don't, I'll break your teeth out!"

"So that's how you want it…" Phantom quickly flew them to a nearby empty warehouse. "Fine then."

After he fazed them through the warehouse, Phantom dropped Superboy. The clone landed on his feet and glared at the ghost. "What the hell was that?!"

"I wanted to talk in private." Phantom explained as he lowered himself to the ground. "Standing on the Metropolis Bridge is kind of public."

"Why are you even here?" Superboy growled.

"I came to talk to Superman." Phantom said the truth. "But he blew me off when the bridge was collapsing."

"What! Why!?" Superboy was angry that Superman would talk to Phantom and not him.

"It was about you." Phantom shocked Superboy. "I was trying to get him to give you a chance."

"I don't need you to fix my problems!" Superboy exclaimed angrily. "It didn't work anyway…"

"Yeah," Phantom nodded. "I saw. That's why I decided to talk to you."

Superboy crossed his arms and glared away. "What? Are you going to tell me to keep my chin up and get over it?"

"Nope." Phantom shook his head. "I decided that I better calm you down before we meet at the Cave later."

"And what if I don't want to calm down!?" Superboy snarled. "What if I want to be angry and crush everything in my way!?"

"You can try, but that will be hard considering that I'm your first obstacle."

"You really want to fight me?" Superboy smirked. "I'm a juggernaut, and I already beat you once…and you had the help of the others."

"You had help too. This is one-on-one." Phantom slid into a stance. "Come on, let's see if you're so tough when I don't hold back."

"Hold back? Like you can actually hurt me!" Superboy lunged at the ghost.

Phantom knew that fighting Superboy with raw power would be stupid. Even if he was at full strength, Phantom's physical strength was still lower than Superboy's…not to mention his durability. No, he would have to fight smartly here. One hit could really hurt the halfa. But Phantom had a basic idea of how Superboy fought. Dodging the clone would be simple, especially with Phantom's plan.

"Woops…" Phantom turned intangible and allowed Superboy to go flying through him. "You missed…"

"Gah!" Superboy turned and threw a wild punch.

Phantom ducked under the punch with ease. "Too obvious, man."

Superboy snarled. He put his fists together and tried to hammer strike the halfa. Phantom dodged to the side, and the blow soared by him and crushed the concrete where Phantom once stood.

Phantom quickly noticed the opening Superboy gave him. The clone was completely off balance and unguarded. Raising a glowing green fist, the halfa punched the clone in the face. He put everything he had into it, and the force caused Superboy to go flying across the warehouse.

Superboy landed and slid across the ground. In a rage, Superboy quickly jumped to his feet. Phantom could see that his blow didn't really injure the clone all that much. He probably felt it, though.

With a roar, Superboy ran at Phantom. He sent several wild strikes at the halfa. Phantom merely danced around the various attacks. None of the blows even came close to hitting the ghost.

"RAW!"

"Slow."

"ROAR!"

"Nope. Not even close."

"AH!"

"Oh! So close…"

"Stop moving!" Superboy glared as he pulled back for another punch.

"Ok."

Suddenly, Superboy slipped. In his rage, the clone didn't notice as Phantom froze the ground beneath them. The clone tumbled forward into Phantom's waiting kick. Superboy landed with a thud on his back.

Before the clone could get up, Phantom stepped on his chest. A broadsword made of ice was pressed against Superboy's throat. He could feel frost forming on his skin.

"You lose." Phantom stated simply.

"That won't hurt me." Superboy growled. He tried to get up, but his limbs were now frozen to the ground.

"Maybe not, but there are plenty of things that can." Phantom noted. "If this was a magic blade, you would be dead."

"Yeah, 'if.' But it's not." The ice cracked under Superboy's power.

"We don't have the privilege of ignoring possibilities. If you want to follow this path, you need to prepare for any situation." Phantom stated.

"My powers will crush anything in my way!" Superboy yelled. The ice shattered. Phantom flew back to avoid Superboy's punch.

"Oh, really?" Phantom questioned. "I have a lot of powers, and I can tell you from experience that they won't always save you. Sometimes, you just fight a mismatched enemy for you. And in those instances, you can't lose your cool. Letting your anger take control will get you or others killed."

"What?! So your telling me how to feel now?!" Superboy yelled.

"No." Phantom shook his head. "I can't tell you how to feel. In fact, for a long time, I had similar feelings about the world. The anger doesn't go away easily, and I know that people telling me about my anger never made it leave any faster."

"Then what do you want?!"

"I want you to use that anger." Phantom stated. "Control it, instead of letting it control you. That's the reason I wanted to fight you. I knew that you would lose control at the drop of a hat, because I used to."

Superboy was silent.

"And look at what happened." Phantom noted. "You had a huge boost in power and intensity, but you got sloppy. You left yourself open. Then, all I had to do was some tricks, and I took you down with ease. If I were someone else, I would have killed you."

Superboy looked away ashamed. He hated feeling weak.

"No emotion is inherently evil. Fear, desperation, and even anger…they aren't evil. Emotions are just information, and information is in itself powerful. Don't use them in the wrong way." Phantom explained. "If you do, you might accidentally hurt someone that's innocent, and trust me, that is not something you want to happen."

Superboy frowned. "Why?"

"Why, what?" Phantom questioned. "I think it's kind of obvious why you don't want to hurt someone innocent..."

"Why do you care?" Superboy looked up. "No one else would go this far. And don't give some, 'I'm your leader bull crap'."

"…" Phantom took a minute to think. "If I tell you the truth, will you tell anyone else?"

"…" Superboy met the ghost's gaze. "No."

Phantom didn't know whether he should be revealing this information, but he felt that Superboy had the right to know. "You know about Spirit, right? My partner from Amity Park."

"Yeah…"

"Most people think that she's my cousin, but she's more than that. She's like a sister to me, but actually, she's genetically my daughter." Phantom explained.

Superboy's eyes widened.

"She's my clone." Phantom further explained. "That's why I came here in the first place. I, above everyone else, know what this situation's like for Superman. Unlike him, though, I almost instantly accepted D…Spirit."

"And what makes her different!" Superboy was obviously upset by this knowledge.

"I was completely alone when she came along. I had no family or friends to turn to. I looked at her, and…I saw Spirit's genetic mother too. I saw part of the girl I once loved, and I couldn't hate her. I couldn't turn her away." Phantom stated. "Superman…is much more stable than I'll ever be. But more stable means less open to change, grey areas, and unusual circumstances…like clones."

Superboy nodded. "I see. You're just a weirdo."

"…Ok…" Phantom didn't know whether or not to be insulted.

"Then, what do I do about Superman?" Superboy questioned.

"Show him that he's wrong. Show him that you're good, and that he's a fool for turning you away." Phantom state. "Either that or stop caring, but you don't seem like that type of person."

Superboy nodded slowly. "Okay…and thanks."

"No problem." Phantom smiled. "Oh, and one more thing."

"What?"

"Anger might not be evil, but I can tell you this. There isn't a moment that anger will ever bring you happiness."

* * *

><p>Dani had to admit, it was nice to just relax at times. The quietness of Fenton Works was a nice change of pace compared to the loud city and chaos at home. Here, Dani had time and peace to think. It was nice…<p>

Until she got bored that is. Unfortunately, the Fright Knight refused to allow her to break anything, so she had to find another way to quell her boredom. Her normal way would be training, but Fenton Works lacked the room necessary for her destructive training.

Not to mention all the delicate equipment…

Dani looked up from her paper. The lab of Fenton works was filled with half-finished machines, weapons, and armor. There was a small open space, though. In the space sat the Fright Knight. He appeared to be meditating.

Apparently, that was how he relaxed. He had noted that everyone had different ways to relax and recharge after hard times. Mediation, reading, inventing (guess whose pastime that was) were all different forms of relaxation.

According to the Fright Knight, such things were necessary. If warriors didn't have such recreations, they would go insane. Everyone needs a break from time to time.

Dani decided that she might want to try distracting herself. She ran into some trouble, however. Mediation was too quiet. Reading was boring. And those machines…Yep, she couldn't do that.

So, Dani decided to take just doodle. It was a simple pastime to do, and drawing the people she knew in various ways was really funny.

Eventually, Dani grew bored of this, though, and began to sketch the room. There was a lot of things to sketch in the room. Dani's favorite so far was the Fright Knight. His armor was extremely detailed and sharp.

Besides this, Dani was extremely interested in one particular item in the room. The halfa girl had heard stories about this particular weapon. Danny apparently wore that battle suit a lot before the GIW War.

The Red X suit…

Dani stared at the black cylinder which contained the suit. It had a space of its own. The halfa girl had a feeling that Danny had spent quite a bit of time staring at the cylinder as well. Dani knew of his exploits in the suit, and knew how it affected him.

While in that suit, he was a mercenary. He was brutal and ruthless. If anyone got in his way, Red X would crush them. And that scared Danny. So, he kept it here. There was a good chance that he wanted to destroy it, but he knew that it might be needed later.

So, the suit stayed…

"Friend!" Wulf flew into the basement lab. He seemed to be in hysterics.

"Wulf?" Dani eyed the fur covered ghost. "What's up?"

Wulf was so agitated that he couldn't speak English correctly. He was rapidly yelling in Esperanto. Dani couldn't understand a word of it, though. Unlike Danny, Dani had never learned the native language of their friend.

"Woah! Slow down." Dani put her sketch pad down. "I don't know what you're saying."

"Smell is off!" Wulf barked out. "Enemies! Necromancers!"

"What!?" Fright Knight jumped to his feet. "You sense those infernal killing machines!?"

"Si!" Wulf nodded vigorously.

Dani remembered the Necromancers. Originally designed and later hidden by the Fentons, the Necromancers were the perfect ghost killing machines. One Necromancer had the power to defeat dozens of ghosts with ease. The halfa girl still remembered when the first Necromancer they encountered had killed Klemper. It was a dark day for the Phantom Family…

Their ectoranium armor and powerful attacks made the fight difficult or near impossible if a regular ghost got caught unprepared. Not to say that a Necromancer was unbeatable to ghosts. With the right amount of strategy or raw power, a Necromancer could be defeated, but unless the ghost was S-rank, there wasn't that good of a chance for victory.

"Where are they?" Dani asked.

"Don't know…too many smells…ghosts and humans…" Wulf tried to communicate.

"Vision's servants must be distorting his senses…" Fright Knight growled. "The extra protection has hurt us…"

"We need everyone on alert then." Dani noted. They should probably call Danny too… "Do we have enough people for this? I mean, tons of Vision's servants are here. Then there's you, Cujo, Wulf, me, Dad…"

"…" Fright Knight paused for a moment. "We should alert Lord Phantom, but tell him that the situation is still under control for now. No need to worry him without a situation that needs his intervention."

"Right! Let's do this! I'm going ghost!"

* * *

><p><strong>Recognized: Danny Phantom B04, Superboy B05<strong>

"Hey, Superboy." Miss Martian smiled at the clone. "How was Metropolis?"

"Mixed…" Superboy shrugged at the Martian.

"Hey, people!" Phantom walked into the center of the cave. "Air Hockey, huh?"

"You any good?" Kid Flash questioned.

"Nope."

"Good. I'll play you next."

Unfortunately, they never got to play. Black Canary and Martian Manhunter arrived for their training. The green alien greeted and hugged his niece. Phantom thought it was nice that they had such a good relationship, but quickly remembered Superboy and placed a hand on the clone's shoulder. Superboy nodded at the ghost in understanding. He understood the message.

"Alright, class is in session." Black Canary stepped out into the now glowing circle and began to remove her leather jacket. "I consider it an honor to be your teacher. I'll throw a lot at you. Everything I've learned from my own mentor-guh…and my own bruises."

"What happened?" Miss Martian questioned worriedly.

Phantom playfully elbowed the green girl. "Experience. Next time, she'll duck. Trust me, the bigger the bruise, the quicker you learn."

"Very true." Black Canary nodded. "Combat is about controlling the conflict. Putting the battle on your terms. You should always be acting, never reacting. I'll need a sparing partner."

"Nose goes." Phantom quickly placed his finger on his nose. Most of the other members of Young Justice quickly copied their leader, but Kid Flash didn't. He seemed to want to get in the ring with Black Canary.

Poor sap…

Five seconds later, Kid Flash was on the floor groaning. "Oh…It hurts so good…"

"Hahahahahaha!" Phantom ended his video and put his phone away. "Can't put that on Youtube, but this will bring me joy for years to come."

"Can I get a copy?" Robin questioned.

"Yep."

"You guys suck!" Kid Flash commented as Black Canary pulled him up.

"Good try, but did anyone see what he did wrong?" Black Canary questioned.

"He hit on teacher and got served?" Robing suggested.

"He got in the ring with you?" That was Phantom.

"His eyes weren't they should have been?" Even Aqualad made a comment.

"Et tu, Kaldur?" Kid Flash threw him a betrayed look.

Kaldur shrugged as if to say, 'When in Rome…'

"He allowed me to dictate the terms of the fight." Black Canary explained. "He let me attack first, and it was his downfall."

"Literally…" Superboy mumbled.

"Anyone else up for the challenge?" Black Canary questioned.

Silence.

"Meh…" Phantom shrugged off his trench coat. He did not want that to get ripped…again…for the hundredth time… "I'm going to regret this."

"Get you're phones out." Robin joked.

"Be careful, Phantom!" Miss Martian called.

"Don't die." Superboy smirked.

"I hope you get your ass kicked, you jerk." Kid Flash muttered.

"Love you too, Wally."

"Okay, then." Black Canary smirked. "Ready?"

"No."

"Too bad." Black Canary lunged forward.

On instinct, Phantom circled to the side. He tried to roundhouse kick the heroine, but merely hit air. Black Canary had jumped into the air. She tried to kick Phantom, but Phantom rolled back. At least he managed to avoid getting hit…

Phantom got to his feet, and readied himself. He was just in time to get punched in the face and kneed in the gut. Black Canary then grabbed his arm, twisted it, and put him in an armbar.

"Can you get out?" Black Canary questioned.

"Gah…not without using my powers…" Phantom tapped out.

"Okay…" Black Canary let him up. "That was pretty good, but you still retreated too much."

"It's hard not to instinctively use my powers…" Phantom admitted. He had trained for hours to get to the point where he instinctively used his powers. Now, it was hurting him…Oh, well, he needed to be ready in case he couldn't use his powers.

"And that's why we're training-"

"Batman to the Cave." Batman's face appeared on a hologram. "Five hours ago, a new menace attacked Green Arrow and Black Canary. The attacker was capable of studying, then duplicating the powers and abilities of its opponents. Arrow called in reinforcements, which nearly proved disastrous as our foe gained more and more power with each new combatant."

"Woah… One guy with the powers of the entire League." Kid Flash muttered.

Phantom frowned. He did not like the sound of this…

"In the end, it took eight Leaguers four hours to defeat and dismantle the android." Batman further explained.

"Android…" Phantom muttered. Not a lot of people could make that kind of tech. Even fewer could make one this powerful. If he remember correctly, there was only two people that could make something like that, but…

"Is it TO Morrow?" Robin interjected.

"That thing doesn't look, act, or sound like TO Morrow's work." Phantom gained everyone's attention. "No color scheme, it copies other people's powers, and it has no elemental theme. Not to mention the plating is all wrong."

"How can you tell?" Miss Martian questioned.

"…I like to know what can hurt me." That was not a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth. Danny Fenton had studied TO Morrow's work while improving the Fenton Exoskeleton and creating the Red X suit. Who knew it would come in handy later? "But if it's not TO Morrow, then it could only be Professor Ivo."

"Or it could be that Fenton Kid from your home town." Kid Flash smirked. "Have you seen the stuff he makes? It's insane."

"Besides the dumb household crap you mean…" Superboy rolled his eyes.

Phantom forced himself to stay quiet.

"Doubtful." Martian Manhunter noted. "Phantom is right. It has the insignia of Professor Ivo."

"But Ivo's dead…" Kaldur noted.

"So we all thought…or hoped." Black Canary looked back at the Atlantian.

"To make certain that this threat is permanently neutralized. We're sending two trucks carrying the androids parts to two separate Star Labs in Boston and New York for immediate evaluation. Every precaution is being taken." Batman explained. "We'll have four additional decoy trucks to create confusion in case Ivo or anyone tries to recover the remains. You will split into undercover teams to safeguard to two real trucks."

"Yes!" Kid Flash cheered. "Road trip."

"Hmm…" Phantom frowned. "This is bad timing. There's a possible crisis back in Amity Park. Spirit texted me a while ago about possible Necromancers."

"Those androids that were used to kill ghosts?" Kaldur frowned. "Is this related?"

"Possibly…" Phantom admitted. "But if it is Ivo, I don't see how. A scientist isn't the type to try and steal a well-protected mythical item."

"Either way, both sides need to be protected." Batman admitted. "Is your presence immediately required in Amity Park?"

"As of right now, no…" Phantom noted.

"Then I will put the choice in your hands." Batman stated. "Decide which situation needs you more."

Phantom nodded. "The coordinates have been received…I'll deal with this first. Then, I can head over to Amity Park. Okay, let's move."

As Young Justice moved out, Phantom hoped that he made the right choice. He had a feeling that if he didn't go with the team, it would end badly, but Amity…

Well, it had a small army there. Not to mention the other S-rank ghosts were on call. Even if there were Necromancers, the situation would be handled quickly…

Dear Lord, he hoped it would be handled quickly.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure they're here. This is pretty far away from the museum." Spirit noted. They had searched until Wulf found a trail and led them here.<p>

"Si." Wulf pointed down into Casper High School. "It here."

"Why here, though…" Fright Knight wondered. "It's not strategically positioned at all…It must be for subtlety and isolation. Some teachers and custodians will be here, but if the enemy is careful enough, then it's the perfect hiding spot."

"You should go tell Dad and Vision." Spirit commented to the Fright Knight. "They will want to know."

"You want me to leave you here?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Look, you're the fastest." Spirit stated. "You can get them here faster than we can."

Fright Knight nodded slowly. "Fine, but remain hidden."

"Roger Dogger."

When the knight ghost was gone, Spirit turned to Wulf and Cujo. "I'm going in."

"But…remain hidden…" Wulf noted.

"I won't get caught." Spirit rolled her eyes. "You two keep watch."

"No like this…" Wulf muttered. "Should call Friend Phantom."

"No." Spirit quickly said. "Er…I mean, he's busy right now. Plus, we can handle this."

Wulf muttered to himself but said no more. Cujo eyed his owner. He obviously didn't want her to in either, but he would obey his master.

"Good boy…" Spirit patted Cujo's head. "Both of you."

Wulf snorted.

"I'm off…" Spirit turned invisible and passed through the ceiling of Casper High. This place was usually a hot spot for ghosts…before the war, at least. This summer, however, it had been dead quiet. No one had thought too much of it because it was summer.

Spirit quickly made her way through the halls of Casper High. She remembered all the chases and fights that occurred here. They seemed like such a long time ago…

Suddenly, Spirit heard a noise. It was the shuffling of feet. Someone was in the gymnasium. Of course, that's where they had to be…

The halfa girl silently made her way into the gym. She was shocked by the sight. The room was occupied with several…ninja. Not any tupe of ninja, though. Spirit recognized these guys.

They belonged to the League of Shadows…

Spirit let out a silent gasp as her ghost sense went off. 'Oh no…'

"Shiva!" Walker stormed into the room. He was addressing a beautiful woman with long black hair. Even with her large trench coat, Shiva's hourglass figure could be seen. Not only this, Spirit could practically feel the danger rolling off the woman. This woman was not to be messed with…

'Shiva…Where have I heard that name?' Spirit thought to herself. She had never seen this woman before, but that name struck a chord. Did Danny mention here before?

"Walker…" Shiva glared at the ex-warden. "What do you want?"

"Why are we using those infernal machines?!" Walker pointed to three large crates. "I may hate the Phantom family, but I refuse to use this filth. Hundreds of rule abiding ghosts were killed by those Necromancers."

'Wulf was right…' Spirit realized.

"They are useful weapons." Shiva noted. "And I refuse to underestimate anyone from this city again. Both Fenton and Phantom have made a fool of me before, and I refuse to let it happen again."

"Fenton won't fight." Walker stated. Spirit then realized that Walker had not informed anyone of Danny's secret. It made sense. There was an unspoken rule about revealing a ghost's secrets to the humans. "And I can handle Phantom."

"Doubtful." Shiva noted. "You had Jinx's help, and you couldn't defeat Phantom."

"That was because Jinx kept getting in my way." Walker snarled. "But I can defeat Phantom now…"

"You will have your chance." Shiva stated. "We will begin our assault soon enough. Soon the mirror will be ours."

"What mirror?"

"The Mirror of Memories! Haven't you been…Cassandra! What are you doing here!?" Shiva yelled at the girl standing next to you.

"I wanted to see Amity Park." Cassandra answered. She was a girl about Dani's age. She had short dark hair and appeared to be of some Asian descent like the woman she was talking to. "So I hid in one of the crates."

"…I taught you too well…" Shiva sighed. She then glared at the ninja. "How did you miss her?!"

All the ninja cowered in fear.

"To be fair, my size makes hiding easy." Cassandra noted.

"That does not give them an excuse!" Shiva glared.

"Forgive us, Lady Shiva…" The ninja bowed.

"So your daughter's here…Will this affect the plan?" Walker questioned.

"No. She will remain here." Shiva eyed her daughter. "While we get the mirror."

"With the Necromancers…" Walker looked displeased.

"If you have a problem with it, speak to the Master." Shiva stated.

Walker obviously didn't want to do that. "Fine, but I still don't think those things will help us."

"And I believe they will." Shiva left no room for argument. "If you didn't want to be my subordinate, you should have worked with Jinx."

"A choice between working with machines meant to kill me, or a witch that uses bad luck." Walker frowned. "Both sound so appealing…"

"You knew what you signed up for." Shiva glared.

"Mother." Cassandra looked up at the older woman. "Will you fight Danny Phantom?"

"Most likely…" Shiva glanced at the girl. "Why?"

"No reason…"

"Bazinga!"

Everyone in the room froze. Shiva looked around. "What was that?"

'Oh nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!' Spirit groaned mentally as she floated above the gym. That was her phone. She forgot to put in on silent. Curse that funny ringtone! If she wasn't in mortal danger, she would be both angry and amused.

"I don't know…" Walker observed his surroundings.

"It sounded like a phone." Cassandra noted. "More specifically a Big Bang ringtone."

'Please don't go off again. Please don't go off again. Please don't go off again.' Spirit chanted in her head as she reached for her phone to turn it off.

"Bazinga!"

'DANG IT!' Spirit mentally cried.

"Yes, that was definitely a phone." Shiva eyed the other ninja. "Was that you?"

They all shook their heads.

'Don't look up! Don't look up! Don't look up!' Spirit mentally chanted after she turned off her phone.

They all looked up.

'Come on! Nothing's going my way today!'

* * *

><p>Phantom looked down at his disguise. Like the others, he had forsaken his combat clothes and was wearing a disguise as a biker. At least his clothes fit his usual color scheme of black and white…<p>

The halfa had divided his team in half to follow the trucks. He, Superboy, and Kid Flash would follow one truck, while Aqualad, Miss Martian, and Robin would follow the other. This way, no stupid hormones would get in the way at least…for now.

"They're about to pack up." Phantom noted to his team.

"About time." Kid Flash smirked. "I'm ready for this!"

"Stay focused, Kid. We are transporting dangerous cargo." Aqualad stated.

"That's pretty cool if you think about it, though." Robin remarked. "The League is trusting us with something this dangerous."

"It's kind of scary…" Miss Martian mumbled.

"Don't worry." Phantom encouraged the only girl in Young Justice. "This will go smoothly…I hope…But some info would be nice. Hey, SB, can you hear what the League is talking about?"

Superboy paused. "The android…danger…ghosts…mirror…You mentioned that back at the Cave, right? Is that the thing the news is going on about?"

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. So the League was discussing this now…or at least some of them were. "What about it are they talking about?"

"The name…Vision…is coming up a lot." Superboy noted.

"Hmm…" Phantom nodded. "Oh, well. We should focus on the task at hand."

Yes, focus now, then worry about the mirror. Right now, he had to deal with this…Amazo. If this thing was assembled and managed to get the powers of more people…it could be unbeatable. Phantom couldn't even fathom what would happen if it a copied the powers of some of the ghosts he knew.

Phantom felt a shutter roll down his spine. He couldn't beat this thing. Even if the entire Young Justice team were to fight together…it might not be enough. No, this thing had to be stopped before it could even begin…

Yes…that's what Vlad taught him…

* * *

><p><em>Memory sequence begin<em>

"_Check." Vlad moved his knight in front of Danny's king._

"_Dang…" Danny sighed. "How does that always happen?"_

"_You are far too predictable, Daniel." Vlad chuckled. "Your method is all offence and no defense."_

"_Yeah, well it's just a game…" Danny muttered._

"_Is it?" Vlad raised an eyebrow. "Chess is often compared to real battle. Strategy is the key, and your strategy sucks."_

"_I'm better in the spur of the moment." Phantom argued. "In a real fight, I'm pretty good at getting my opponents in the right situation for me."_

"_Yes, you have a talent for quick thinking during a battle, but your prep strategy is terrible at times." Vlad noted. "For example, when you first fought Torch, you never scoped out the battle field before the fight even though you had time."_

"_I didn't know that I would get in a fight…" Phantom moved one of his pieces._

"_When escaping from the Shadows, you tried to just tried to plow your way through the base. If Klemper hadn't saved you, you would have been captured." Vlad moved his queen._

"_Hey! I managed to send out a distress signal at least. I was just trying to buy time for you guys to save me." Phantom frowned._

"_Don't even get me started about what happened in Gotham…" Vlad rolled his eyes. "You acted like a total brute. You're assault on the GIW base there worked, but now everyone wants a piece of 'Red X'."_

"_I didn't exactly have a lot of time or resources on my hands…" Phantom saw that Vlad's king was vulnerable and moved his pawn. "Check."_

"_And let's not forget your contribution to Vision's plan for the GIW War. If involved you most likely dying." Vlad moved one of his own pawns. "Checkmate."_

"_What?!" Danny's eyes widened._

"_You're problem is that you only look at the situation from one perspective." Vlad pointed at the board. "I pictured what you would do in a situation, and manipulated you to do it without any effort on my part."_

"_I do that in a fight…" Danny mentioned._

"_But that's the problem. You don't always have to fight." Vlad stated. "Sometimes, the best victories are the ones that you don't have to fight for."_

"_Cheating you mean…" Danny muttered._

"_Cheating? Is it cheating to use your advantages? Is it cheating to trick others into defeating themselves? Is it cheating to win by default?"_

"_No..." Danny admitted._

"_That's right." Vlad nodded. "So, next time, put yourself in my shoes. What would I do? How would I do it? What can you do to stop me before I even get the chance to act."_

"…_You would get me to fall into a trap. You would do that by appearing weak. And I can stop that by doing the exact same thing." Danny noted._

"_Exactly." Vlad stated. "Despite what anyone says, human behavior, for the most part, is rather predictable. All you need to do is put yourself in their perspective."_

* * *

><p>Okay…With this situation, he has the opportunity to act before the mission could begin. Batman had set up a lot defenses for the android parts, but a lot of that protection was Young Justice. If they failed to protect the android parts…It would not end well.<p>

If the inventor of Amazo really was Ivo, then the inventor would definitely come for the parts. Danny was an inventor himself. If his toys were taken, he'd be mad. He would definitely try to get the parts back.

There was almost a 100% chance that Ivo would track down the parts, because Danny would definitely put a tracker in them somehow. That means that Young Justice would definitely be attacked. The only question was by what?

He had to protect the parts, but with the team separating, it would be difficult. If they were distracted long enough, then the parts would be stolen. There was a pretty good chance that there would be a lot of attackers too…Batman must know that, but he's trusting Young Justice.

So, Phantom had to be smart about this. There was a good chance that Ivo would get the parts back…to him…Directly to him…

Phantom smirked. Oh…That's good. That's really good.

* * *

><p>"Run!" Spirit grabbed Cujo and Wulf and began to drag them away from the school. "Run! Run! Run!"<p>

"Why?" Wulf questioned as he and Cujo flew after the girl.

Suddenly, a blast of ectoplasmic energy zoomed by them. Then came a second and a third. In a few short seconds, they were dodging barrages of ectoplasmic bullets.

"That's why!" Spirit shouted.

"Said would stay hidden!" Wulf growled.

"I'm sorry! I blame Harriet! She just had to text me!" Spirit argued. She noticed the bullets stopped. They must be out of range.

"ROOF!" Cujo stopped and turned.

"Cujo, we can't stop. They may not be able to fly, but…" Spirit saw what Cujo had noticed. "Walker…"

"If it isn't the little punk." Walker glared. "And the dumb dog and old prisoner. I see you found us."

"Yeah, but I never thought that the Shadows would have the balls to attack this place again." Spirit noted.

"Yes…" Walker nodded. "I did not believe that this was a good idea at this point, but the others were persistent."

"Then you shouldn't have joined them." Spirit stated. "Now, you have the entire Ghost Zone as an enemy. That includes Vision, Frostbite, Pandora…"

"I know that." Walker glared. "But it will be worth it in the end."

"End is now!" Wulf glared at his previous warden.

"He's right." Spirit nodded. "You can't win against the three of us."

"It's not just me…" Walker frowned and pointed behind him. Three Necromancers were quickly approaching. They were large nine foot tall androids. Their heads were smooth and round. They had no nose, mouth or ears, but they had glowing red eyes. Each one was covered in thick ectoranium armor, but unlike the Guys in White versions, they were painted black and grey. "I have those things to take you out."

"Crap..." Necromancers weren't good at fighting in groups, but if Walker separated the three ghosts, then it wouldn't be much of a fight.

It was then that Spirit gasped out blue smoke.

The girl smirked. "Uh oh…"

"Don't smirk at me girl." Walker growled. "You may not be Phantom, but I will still take great joy in killing you."

"You won't get the chance, though." Spirit noted. "You will have to deal with them first."

"Who.." Walker froze.

Behind Spirit appeared a small army of ghosts. They were the servants that Vision placed here to guard the mirror. At the front of the small army was Vision, Plasmius, and the Fright Knight.

"Walker." Vision eyed the ghost. "It's a pleasure. If you give up now, I won't kill you."

"…I think you have bigger troubles…" Walker pointed down below. The ninjas of the League of Shadows were all running to the museum.

"Stop them!" Plasmius ordered Vision's servants. "Protect the mirror!"

"Who said you could order around my servants?" Vision questioned.

"I figured it was implied after our last date." Plasmius shrugged.

Spirit had to fight off a gag.

"It's fine for now, but we'll talk about that later. Now…" Purple energy flared around Vision. "There are some trash cans that need smashed.

"Agreed." Fright Knight unsheathed his sword. "It is time for battle."

"Alright!" Spirit smirked. "About time!"

* * *

><p>Phantom groaned a he pealed himself out of the dented truck. "Well that didn't go well…"<p>

Like he thought, the truck was attacked. The halfa had anticipated that. It was the robot monkeys that threw him off. They were definitely Ivo's things, but they were incredibly annoying.

Trying to protect the cargo while fighting off hordes of monkey was incredibly difficult. The robot monkeys scrambled around and confused them. Phantom managed to destroy a large portion of the monkeys with the help of Kid Flash and Superboy.

In fact, for a while, Phantom thought they would be successful in protecting the cargo. He managed to get Superboy and Kid Flash to work fairly well together. The speedster protected the tires while Superboy protected the top. Phantom was in charge of the sides. For a while it went well…

Until Phantom's powers stopped working.

Suddenly, in the middle of the fight, Phantom could no longer call on his ghost ray. He felt gravity overtake his body. In an instant, he was weak.

At that second, Phantom realized that he had exhausted himself by fighting Superboy and Black Canary consecutively after weeks of mentally draining stress…

"Damn!" He shouted.

That was when the robots struck. They surrounded the halfa and blasted him from all sides. The rest was a blur for the halfa. He remembered the monkeys overwhelming them and getting into the truck.

After freeing himself from the dented truck, Phantom watched as the monkeys flew off. If he focused enough, he might be able to follow them, but he would be in no position to fight off the monkeys…

Oh well, he had time.

"We have to go after them!" Kid Flash urged.

"I'm on it!" Superboy was about to jump after them.

"Wait." This caused Superboy to freeze instantly. Phantom was glad that he was listening to him.

"Kaldur, how's your end?" Phantom questioned into the radio.

"_Unfortunatley, we failed…"_ Aqualad noted.

"_We should have had them!"_ Robin ranted.

"_We can still stop them._" Miss Martian reasoned.

"Stop them from what?" Phantom questioned.

"Reconstructing the android, bro!" Kid Flash yelled.

"Oh, that." Phantom reached into his pocket. He pulled out a Portable Fenton Crammer, a machine that shrinks items for storage. He then opened the metal box and pulled out its contents. "I don't think that will do anything without this."

"…That's Amazo's head…" Superboy stared.

"Yep."

"_Why do you have it?"_ Miss Martian questioned.

"I took it for insurance case in case we failed." Phantom answered. "Thinking from Ivo's perspective, he would have some way to track them, so I came up with Plan B."

"_When did you take it?_" Kaldur questioned.

"While we were waiting." Phantom answered. "My Fenton Crammer jams signals, so the head didn't send off a signal."

"_Hahahahahaha!_" Robin laughed. _"That is awesome! Ivo definitely won't be feeling the aster after he finds out." _

"Not only that…" Wally smirked. "We can track Ivo because of the parts he stole."

"Yep." Phantom smirked. "He'll lead us right to him."

"Hehe…" Superboy laughed lightly. "Now that's funny."

* * *

><p>Spirit had to wonder how she got into this situation. At the beginning of the fight, she though that she would be fighting Walker or one of the Necromancers, but that was not how things went. The halfa girl had started out fighting in the air, but she was quickly grounded. Someone had dragged her down using an ectoplasmic grapple…<p>

"What do you want?" Spirit questioned after freeing herself. "Shouldn't you be going after the mirror?"

"The others can handle that." Lady Shiva noted as she put the grapple away. "I, however, need to keep the attention here."

"My attention?" Spirit raised an eyebrow. Why here when there were three incredibly powerful ghosts not far from them. "I'm not exactly the heavy hitter here."

"Perhaps not, but you and your partner have always been the wildcards." Shiva noted as she paced around the ghost girl. "Your influence has always been the deciding factor between victory and defeat."

Spirit clenched her fists. "That's not what this is about. I can sense your intentions. Your goal isn't to defeat me."

"…Perhaps not." Shiva admitted. "Perhaps I want to use this opportunity for a little bit of personal revenge too. If I fight you, and make it look like I will kill you, then Phantom will come. I have studied his patterns, his habits, and his sense of morality…If you are in trouble, he will come. He will fight me, and this time, I will win."

"Tsk!" Spirit rolled her eyes. "Humans are so arrogant. Think just because I'm young that means I can't at least hold my own against an unprepared human? Wrong! You may be some hardcore assassin, but I have faced far worse odds than this and survived."

"Yes, but that was because you had help. You are alone now, child…" Shiva lifted up her arms. They were covered in a thin gauntlet. It was then that the gauntlets and the woman's boots began to glow green. "Can you survive without help?"

"Okay, lady. You want it like that…" Spirit glared. The woman had struck a cord. She was bringing out the feelings that Spirit had been feeling for weeks. It was the feelings on inadequacies. "You got it, but you better be prepared, because I won't hold back."

* * *

><p>"Gah! Stupid brats! Unhand me!" Ivo cried as Superboy held him down. The inventor was an aging redhead man. His short and small stature made him appear nonthreatening, but Phantom knew from experience that looks were deceiving.<p>

"Um, let me think about that for a second." Kid Flash smirked. "NO!"

"Yeah, Ivo, we've got a nice comfy prison cell waiting just for you." Robin noted as he placed cuffs on the inventor. "Don't want to keep it waiting, do ya?"

"I'll pass…" Ivo grumbled. "Stupid monkeys, if only they got the head…"

"That's what you get for relying on monkeys." Superboy noted. "It came back to bite you in the butt."

Young Justice had quickly tracked Ivo down. After the inventor learned that Amazo's head was missing, he ditched the android parts and tried to run. He fled into Gotham's underbelly, and might have gotten away…

If it weren't for the trail of monkeys impaled by arrows…

"Oh! I wish we had a dog!" M'gann noted.

"…Excuse me?" Kaldur stared at the Martian.

"You know, so he could say, 'I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kids and your stupid dog'." M'gann stated.

"Now that would be awesome." Robin smirked.

"He can still say the first part." Kid Flash eyed the inventor.

"I will not degrade myself to quoting a childish cartoon." Ivo frowned as Superboy lugged him over his shoulder.

"Your loss." Superboy stated.

"Phantom?" Aqualad looked over at their leader. He was examining the arrows that came from the monkeys.

"Huh?" Phantom looked up.

"Dude, is that GA's arrow?" Kid Flash questioned.

"That's so lame! They still don't trust us!" Robin ranted.

"No…" Phantom shook his head. "I've seen GA's arrows, and these aren't GA's arrows."

"That means…"

"Speedy." Kaldur smiled.

"Alright! He's got our backs!" Kid Flash cheered. He grabbed the arrow and added. "Souvenir!"

This time, Phantom did not argue. He knew who the arrows belonged to, because he created those arrows. There was no way these belonged to Speedy, but they did belong to another person that was good with a bow…

Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

Phantom reached into his pocket and grabbed his phone. He saw the message and scowled. "Crap…"

"What is it?" Miss Martian questioned.

"An emergency." Phantom stated. "Robin, I need to get to Amity Park now."

Robin nodded in understanding. He eyed Ivo as he said, "Okay, I'll take you to the…station."

"Superboy and Aqualad, guard Ivo. Miss Martian and Kid, guard Amazo's parts until the League shows up." Phantom ordered. "Batman will be here soon. Something tells me that this isn't our mission anymore."

* * *

><p>(Play: Sick of It by Skillet)<p>

Spirit had to say…Lady Shiva was perhaps one of the most dangerous enemies she had ever faced. The woman was skilled, armed, and deadly. The halfa girl instinctively knew that fighting this woman up close would be stupid, so Spirit tried to keep her distance…

Key word is tried…

"Hiah!" Shiva sent a roundhouse kick at Spirit's head. The halfa girl quickly ducked under the kick. It soared past her head at break neck speeds.

After the kick had passed over her, Spirit tried to blast Shiva away with a blast of ectoplasm. The blast did not hit Shiva, however. Instead, the blast soared past the assassin as she skillfully dodged the devastating blast. In a motion that was elegant as dancing, Shiva spun and sent a spinning back fist at the halfa.

Spirit did not have enough time to totally react to her Premonition screaming at her. The blow hit Spirit in the head. Despite this, Spirit managed to lessen a lot of the blow by flying backwards. Nevertheless, the halfa girl felt her head rattle from the blow.

Now free from Shiva, Spirit tried to distant herself from the assassin. She tried to fly up into the sky. Thinking logically, this strategy would work. Shiva's hand-to-hand combat skills would be useless in a far ranged battle. Unfortunately, Shiva knew this, and prevented it from happening.

With speed that Spirit could barely consider human, Shiva lunged at the halfa. The assassin grabbed Spirit's coat and dragged the halfa down. Spirit tried to fight the assassin off, but the assassin threw her to the ground faster than she could react.

('Raise leg into air. Axe kick the girl. Break bones.')

Spirit heard her Premonition loud and clear. She rolled out of the way just as Shiva's glowing green heel was about to hit her. The assassin's kick hit the concrete and caused cracks to appear.

('Follow through. Lunge. Right cross. Left hook. Spinning roundhouse. Finish with knee to face.')

Focusing as quickly as possible, Spirit used every bit of grace and speed she had as she tried to dodge the blows. She danced around the assassin's devastating blows in a blur. Finally, after the final strike, Spirit tried to follow through with an attack.

She sent a kick at Shiva. Unfortunately, Shiva caught the kick. Spirit tried to turn intangible, but Shiva's ectoplasmic gauntlets held Spirit in physical form. It was then that Shiva went in for the finish. She flipped Spirit and got the halfa into an arm bar lock.

"AH!" Spirit cried as she felt her arm bending in the wrong way.

"Apologies. I take no pleasure in harming a child." Shiva stated. "But I have a mission…and a matter of pride to deal with. If only Phantom got here sooner."

"No!" Spirit struggled and fought, but could not get out of the arm bar. In desperation, she swept her arm around. She tried to focus ectoplasm into her hands, but could only manage a small amount. It wasn't near enough to send out a blast…

"Ah!" Shiva cried as Spirit reached around and brushed her fingers against her shoulder. A decent sized gash appeared on the assassin's shoulders. In surprise, the assassin released some of the tension in the lock. It was only a small difference, but that was all Spirit needed, though.

Spirit desperately pulled her aching arm away from Shiva. Rolling away, Spirit tried to take a moment to compose herself. Luckily, Shiva allowed it.

"That's what I get…" Shiva scowled. "I underestimate another ghost hero and it comes back to bite me…"

Spirit eyed Shiva's wound. It wasn't terribly deep, but there was a decent amount of blood. But…how did the wound happen? She had focused energy, but it wasn't that much…

But maybe…maybe that was the trick…

Spirit focused her energy to her hands again. It wasn't enough for a blast. It was the same as before…It was then that her hand began to glow. It was a lighter glow than before, but now it seemed sharper. Upon closer inspection, Spirit saw that the energy in her hand had extended into sharpened tips on her fingers.

Spirit smirked. Oh, she could work with this…

"This time, however, I won't hold back!" Shiva ran at Spirit with lighting speed.

Using her Premonition, Spirit dodged around Shiva's blows. It was like their previous exchanges, except now Spirit could counter attack. Spirit swung her hands at Shiva. The assassin sensed the danger this time and went out of the way to avoid her hands.

Spirit smirked. It was working! She was fighting on her own! She was going to win!

('Throw shuriken. Blades curve. This stops Spirit from moving back. Spirit is hit by Shiva.')

This Premonition hit just as Spirit. Whoever that was attacking didn't intend to kill her. They were trying to stop her dodging. If she moved back, she would be hit by the blades. If she didn't, Shiva's powerful kick would hit and most likely knock her out.

Of course, Spirit would take being knocked out compared to being stabbed. But this really stung! She was actually holding her own! Why did someone have to interfere now?!

…Wait…What was…Oh…Okay then…

Spirit continued to move back. She ignored the shuriken flying at her back. The halfa girl knew what would happen. She knew because her Premonition told her…

Rachel was here.

As Spirit moved back, the shuriken gained a light glow of white and black energy. The energy caused the shuriken's path to be altered. Instead of hitting Spirit, the blades zoomed past her and went towards Lady Shiva.

In alarm, Shiva ducked under the blades. Trying to use this opportunity, Spirit swung her arm to try and cut along Shiva's midsection. Before the attack could hit, though, Shiva caught Spirit's arm. This did not deter Spirit, though. She followed with her momentum, raised her leg, and kicked Shiva in the head.

"Yah!" Spirit cheered at finally landing a full blow on Lady Shiva.

That victory was short lived, though…

"Ack!" Spirit groaned as Shiva struck her in the face. Shiva followed through with a vicious combo. In a moment, Shiva had Spirit pinned to the ground once again.

"I am impressed child." Shiva ignored he swelling cheek and kept speaking. "You have true talent, but I have faced people far more skilled and ruthless than you."

"Does that include me?"

Spirit suddenly felt the weight fly off her. Shiva went tumbling as Phantom knocked her away from the other halfa. Spirit smiled as she saw her brother kneel down next to her. "You okay?"

"No, not really…" Spirit groaned. "But I'll live."

"That's good enough." Phantom looked to see Shiva glaring at him.

"So…you finally show." Lady Shiva stood.

"Yep, it's been a while, Shiva." Phantom got to his feet as well. "What's with you and picking fights with children? First it was Fenton and I, and now it's Spirit? Can't beat any of the grownups so you attack the young? Seems like a bully to me."

Shiva smiled lightly. "I wouldn't call you ghosts children. For all I know, you're older than I am, but appear to be young to deceive the world."

"Ah…" Phantom rolled his shoulders. "Then perhaps I can show you what I can really do and knock out every one of your teeth for attacking someone from my family."

He was bluffing. Phantom didn't have anything left in the tank. Getting here at his top speed had drained the rest of his powers. He couldn't even fly or turn intangible at this point. There was a possibility of fighting Shiva in a fist fight, but he would most likely lose…

"That was my goal." Shiva took a self-defense stance.

"Mother…" A voice behind Shiva called.

"Not now, Cassandra." Shiva ordered.

A young girl walked around the woman. Cassandra spoke again. "I believe the battle is lost."

Shiva looked up in the sky and sighed. "You are correct. The Necromancers are almost destroyed, my forces have been captured, and Walker has run away. It would be best to leave before the other ghosts arrive."

Phantom glared at the woman. He had to keep bluffing. If he stalled her, she might stay long enough to be captured "What? Running away already?"

"Count yourself lucky, ghost." Shiva glared. "You would not have won this fight."

'I know…' Phantom frowned. "That's big talk for the loser."

"It is true, mother…" Cassandra did not tear her eyes away from Phantom. She was watching him almost…expectantly. "You have failed in your mission."

"Be silent, child."

"Yes, mother."

Shiva glared at Phantom. "We will fight again. At that time, neither of us will have assistance, and I will win."

"Bring it on." Phantom answered.

It was then that a cloud of smoke appeared around them all. Phantom prepared himself for a sneak attack, but none came. It was quiet. When the smoke cleared, the assassin and girl were gone.

"…" Phantom relaxed. "You can come out."

Rachel appeared in a burst of white and black magic energy. "Hello…"

"Hey." Phantom eyed the girl. "You need to be careful interfering like that. If they had caught you…"

"I was safe." Rachel answered.

"I bet." Phantom nodded. "Anyway…thanks. You really saved my sister and bought me some time."

Rachel nodded. "You're welcome."

"You know…" Phantom smiled at the girl as he knelt down and picked up the now unconscious Spirit. "You might have a talent for this sort of thing."

"Maybe I do…"

* * *

><p>"Dad..." Dani walked up to her father. He was in his office working on his paper work.<p>

"Danielle!" Vlad smiled at his daughter. "Daniel told me about your fight."

"Dad..."

"Fighting off Lady Shiva. It's quite the impressive achievement." Vlad commented.

"Dad..."

"Of course, you are already impressive. And strong." Vlad kept talking. "I'm just saying that-"

"Dad!" Dani stopped Vlad mid-sentence. "It's okay."

"Ah...I see."

"And I'm sorry." Dani stated. "I shouldn't have gotten angry, but..."

"I know, Danielle..." Vlad sighed. "I know..."

"Can...can you start helping me train more?"

"Of course."

* * *

><p>"Sounds like you had a tough day." Ember remarked as she and her boyfriend relaxed on the couch and watched a movie.<p>

"Yeah…" Danny mumbled. "But everything worked out. Ivo was captured. The Mirror of Memories was protected. And no one was hurt."

"Yeah, and I bet after this, they'll finally move the mirror." Ember noted. "Before, it was small attempts, but this was a freaking army that tried to get the stupid mirror."

"Don't remind me…" Danny sighed. "You should have heard the crowd after everything settle down. The people of Amity Park are mad. If the mirror was moved sooner, this wouldn't have happened."

"They do seem to have an 'It's us against the world' type of mentally." Ember agreed.

"Can you blame them? After what happened when they tried to protect me…I bet it wasn't easy to be contained like that." Danny noted.

"Maybe I'll make a song about it." Ember stated. "People will freak."

"Mhm…"

"Hey what about that Gotham chick you mentioned?" Ember questioned. "Are you going to talk to her about acting out in Gatham? I mean, that's Gotham we're talking about. You can't get away with anything without the Batman knowing about it."

"Tomorrow…"

"Hehe…You'll have a busy day tomorrow too, I bet." Ember smirked. "You'll run yourself ragged at this point."

"Yeah…"

"Glad we have this time at least." Ember noted. "I'd be mad if you were all work and no play."

"Mmm…"

"Speaking of play…"

"…"

"Danny?"

"…Zzz…"

"Sigh…Goodnight, Babypop."

* * *

><p>"…Imagine what we could have done with that mirror…" One of the scientists remarked.<p>

"Yes, it's a shame they were unable to retrieve it." The other scientist noted.

"Well…perhaps there is still hope."

Joel had no idea what they were talking about. Yet that was all he heard about for weeks. Mirror this. Mirror that. It was all very strange.

"Not only that, Professor Ivo was captured by Phantom apparently."

"Oh, this day keeps getting better. He and that family of his seem to have a hand in everything that prevents our progress."

The young boy stopped in the middle of his kata form. He decided to take a moment to digest that bit of information. So, it was Phabock…No, Fanon?...No…

No, it was Phantom. Yes…Danny Phantom.

Joel knew who that was. Heck, everyone knew who that was. He was the hero ghost from Amit Park that ended that war. Joel remembered watching that.

So, Danny Phantom was an unintentional enemy of the Ghoul Project. His actions hurt this project and stopped the progress. After all, how many days had been spent of building that machine that was supposed to use the mirror? Now, all that progress was lost apparently.

Joel had to wonder how many lives that Phantom unknowingly saved. Several subjects weren't forced through the torture of the experiments because of the mirror machine. Everyone knew, though, that after the mirror arrived things would be even worse. They didn't know what the mirror was, but they knew that it was trouble for them.

Yes, many were given more time. This even included Joel.

"Danny Phantom…enemy of the Ghost Project…" Joel gave a small smile.

He like him already.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Superboy<strong>

"…What are you doing?" Phantom questioned as he approached the clone sitting on the living room couch in the Cave.

"Watching TV." Superboy answered.

"But…it's not even turned on." Phantom noted.

"Don't care." Superboy said simply.

"But aren't you bored?" Phantom questioned.

"Yes, but no one is willing to train." Superboy grumbled. "I was just getting that combo down too."

"People have limits, SB." Phantom flopped on the couch. "Sometimes, you just need to relax."

"How do you relax, then?" Superboy questioned.

Phantom paused. "I don't think you have the patience for what I do."

"Oh…" Superboy looked away.

"But I'm sure I can think of something you can try." Phantom noted. "What do you like?"

"Fighting." Superboy stated.

"Okay…what else?"

"…Training…"

"Alrighty then. Do you like anything non-violent?"

"Not that I know of."

"Okay then…" Phantom nodded. "So, basically, you're an angry guy that's way too into violence."

"Yep." Superboy agreed.

"Then I know what exactly you will like."

(Ten minutes later…)

M'gann walked into the weirdest sight when she entered the living room. Usually, Superboy didn't watch anything on TV, or at least he didn't care what he watched. Now, though, he seemed to be into it…

"Hit him with a chair!"

According to his yelling, at least.

"Oh! He's setting up a table!" Phantom pointed.

"Yeah! Power bomb!" Superboy grinned.

"Is that…professional wrestling?" M'gann questioned.

"Yep." Phantom nodded.

"What was that?! That can't be legal!" Superboy yelled at the television.

"And why are you watching it?" Miss Martian questioned.

"I thought SB would like it." Phantom shrugged.

"YEAH!"

"…and I was right…"

"Okay…" M'gann began to walk away. This really wasn't her thing, but…

"High five!"

"Up top!"

At least Superboy seemed happy…

Phantom grinned at the clone. "And just way until I show you MMA fighting."

* * *

><p><strong>I am sick of writing for school. I had to write long papers for all my classes. So when I had free time, I looked at my laptop and felt physically ill. But that has passed and this chapter is out.<strong>

**With one problem gone, another appears, though. The new year gaming drought is over, and three different games I want will come out. South Park: Stick of Truth, inFamous Second Son, and Titanfall. Not to mention the next Telltale Walking Dead episode is out...Yeah. It's going to be hard to focus.**

**Oh, also...MARCH MADNESS!...Yep...**

**Recently, I began to notice the flaws in the Young Justice show. For example, in 'Welcome to Happy Harbor' M'gann could suddenly disguise herself as Red Tornado who definitely has a masculine build. In 'Dropzone,' the dates were wrong in some place. Not to mention, in 'Schooled' why didn't the League just Zeta the Amazo parts like in Season 2? Was it because they couldn't do it at that time or was Batman throwing the team a bone? I think it's a combination of the two. Did anyone else notice these things?**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	6. Consequences

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"I believe that we are solely responsible for our choices, and we have to accept the consequences of every deed, word, and thought throughout our lifetime." Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

* * *

><p>Chapter 6: "Consequences"<p>

(Monday-August 9, 2010)

"Next."

"Your plans for the holographic software is working perfectly. In a few years, we can revolutionize entertainment and communication."

"Good. Next."

"We're having trouble with the…mentally controlled tech. We can't seem to get it to work to your specifications."

"Okay, I'll put it as one of my personal projects. Next."

"You were right. These new batteries work twice as effectively as before. If we can implement this type of tech in power plants across the country…no the world, we can-"

"One step at a time. Right now, they're just batteries, dude." Danny waved the scientist off. "Next."

Axion Labs was, at this point, a shining jewel for Amity Park. With its affiliation to Fenton Works' recourses and information, and Vlad Co.'s (Yeah, real original name) nearly unlimited funding, Axion Labs had produced a lot of revolutionary technology. They had already produced tech from household items, all the way up to satellites.

While Vlad handled the business and financial aspects, Danny supervised the tech and projects. Basically, he came up with ideas and blueprints, then the scientist of Axion Labs built them. Not all of them worked, but a lot of them proved successful.

Danny was quite pleased with the progress. Axion Labs finished projects that he could never find the time to even start. This even included weapons…

Before the war, Danny was really reluctant to produce ectoplasmic weaponry for sale. He was scared that this would produce conflict not only among the humans, but also the ghosts. After the war, Danny realized that ectoplasmic weapons were now being produced all over the world. It was now clear, that the world had adapted to ectoplasmic weaponry and even more powerful tech like Amazo.

With so much dangerous tech in the hands of the bad guys, Danny decided that it would no longer be beneficial to hold the world back. He had to even the odds for everyone else. And in the meantime, if he created something that could shut down all ectoplasmic weapons if ever necessary…

Well, that would suck for his enemies.

"Danny." Harriet Chin, an old friend of his parents and Danny's publicist, spoke up. She was thin woman of average height with silky black hair pulled into a pony tail.

"Yeah?" Danny looked up from a report he was reading. Harriet had proven to be a valuable ally over the months. She made sure that the right amount of information was revealed for both Fenton and Phantom, and that the media was on his side.

"We need to talk about you making some public appearances." Harriet answered.

Danny sighed. "That again?"

"Yes." Harriet nodded. "Like it or not, Fenton Works is now a household name. As the head inventor, you are a public figure. If you don't do something in the public, people will talk. You'll get a bad reputation."

"And I should care why?" Danny questioned. He didn't care about bad publicity. "It won't affect business if I'm an extreme introvert."

Harriet sighed. "Fine, then…"

Danny walked into the large of Axion Labs. It was filled with computers, half-way finished machines, and tools. Handing his report to a nearby scientist, he added. "Sorry, Harri, but I don't have time for that. I have enough on my plate. Being a public figure (at least my human part) would be too much."

"If you say so."

"I do. And-"

Crash!

"I told you that wouldn't work, Technus!"

"Stupid human! The machine would have worked if you had not gotten in the way!"

Danny scowled and walked up to the ruckus. This had happened several times over the past couple of months. While brilliant, Technus was not what you would call a team player. This was especially true when he worked with humans.

Sometimes, Danny wondered how Skulker and Technus worked together in the alternate future. Neither of them were any good at teamwork. It was probably the threat of his alternate self that pushed them into an alliance.

The threat of death had the tendency to cause unlikely alliances…

"Hey." Danny addressed the two scientists. "What's wrong?"

"These humans keep interfering in my work!" Technus was a technology ghost. He had long white hair, green skin, and was wearing a lab coat. "If it were just I, Technus master of all technology, then this work would have already been finished!"

"And I told you, Technus, if you activated the new power source, there was a 50% chance it would explode!" A tall African-American scientist wearing glasses spoke.

"It would have been a small explosion! No one would have gotten hurt." Technus argued. "Don't insult my intelligence!"

"Hey!" Danny stepped in between the two of them. "I'm getting sick of this fighting! You've been doing it for weeks."

"But…"

"No buts. Technus, stop doing dangerous experiments. Silas, no one was hurt. You don't need to get into an argument. Next time, talk it through." Danny glared.

Harriet had to admit. It was hilarious to see two grown men…er, man and ghost…getting scolded at like they were children. And by a teenager no less!

"Fine…" Silas Stone sighed.

"Whatever…" Technus shrugged.

"Okay, I take it you were working on the new Spector Speeder, then?" Danny questioned.

"Yes, we were working on the new design that you supplied us." Silas nodded. To most, it might be demeaning or embarrassing to take orders from a teenager, but Silas knew that age did not equal capability. He knew at first glance at Danny's many designs and inventions that the boy was brilliant. That was all Silas cared about.

"And?" Danny questioned.

"It is half-way finished." Technus noted. "We're having trouble with the power core. It becomes overheated with all the different functions working in the Spector Speeder."

"That's why I had the new batteries developed." Danny answered. "Expand them and put them into the Speeder."

"I see…" Silas nodded.

"Good idea…" Technus agreed.

"Okay." Danny turned. "I've got to get going. Harriet, what's next?"

"I'm not your personal assistant."

"Uh huh, I've seen your paychecks. You get paid enough to be my publicist, personal assistant, driver, and bodyguard." Danny snorted.

"…Fair enough." Harriet shrugged. "Now you need to go out and do something a normal teenager would do. I say go do drugs."

"Harriet!"

* * *

><p>"Hmm…" Valerie Gray eyed the punching bag that Dani just hit. The female ex-ghost hunter was a beautiful African-American girl about average height. She wore a yellow blouse, orange skirt, and orange headband in her hair.<p>

"Is hmm good?" Dani questioned.

"It depends." Valerie turned to the halfa. "If you mean, would this work in a fight, then yes."

"Awesome!"

"But you need to be careful." Valerie warned. "If your…"

"Spectral Claws." Dani beamed in pride.

"Yeah…claws." Valerie frowned. "Claws hit a normal person in the wrong way…it could be messy."

"Ah…"

Valerie pointed to the bag. It had a deep gash in it and was leaking sand. "Your ectoplasmic claws are deadly sharp. One wrong move, and you can kill a person. The human body has several weakness. If you cut a main artery, then there is a good chance that your opponent will bleed to death quickly."

"I see…But what about Danny? He usually swings around a huge broadsword. It could cut just a deeply as my claws."

"I don't think I've ever seen him cut a ghost let alone a human." Valerie stated. "From what I heard, he did it to the Torch ghost and tried to do it to Nocturne, but he mostly uses it to focus his energy."

"But my claws…are meant to cut." Dani noted.

"Yes, and they will cut deeply." Valerie nodded. "I'd use them only when absolutely necessary."

"Yeah, that's what Dad and Wulf said…I think…" Dani rubbed her head. It was sometimes hard to understand the wolf ghost.

"Wait. You already asked them for help?" Valerie frowned. "Then why did you ask me to watch your claws?"

"Oh, I don't know…" Dani whistled innocently. "Maybe to try and convince you to come back out into the field…"

"Dani…"

"Come on!" Dani gave her puppy dog eyes. "It would be so awesome to fight together again."

"I'm sorry, but Daddy won't let me." Valerie looked away.

"Don't lie." Dani crossed her arms and glared. "He works at Axion Labs remember? Danny talks to him all the time. I know that it isn't Damion that is holding you back."

"…I…" Valerie shook her head. "Fine. I don't want to okay?"

"No, it's not okay!" Dani shouted. "You can't just stay away forever."

"Maybe I can." Valerie said stubbornly. "After all, you seem to be doing well without me. You have Wolf, Cujo, Danny, and, heck, you even have the Fright Knight helping you."

"That's not the same." Dani rolled her eyes. "Wulf and Cujo aren't much for conversation. Fright Knight is a stick in the mud, and Danny's gone all the time."

"Right, with that…team." Valerie nodded. She was probably the only human in Amity Park that knew about Young Justice. Danny made sure to keep her up to date on what was happening. She didn't know if it was out of their friendship or out of hope that she would return to being a heroine.

"Yeah, that's why you should come back." Dani nodded to herself. "Besides, you don't to be outdone by the guys, right?"

Valerie chuckled. "That won't work, Dani. I've heard a lot of worse insults to my ego."

"Darn…"

"Look, Dani." Valeried knelt down to Dani's level. "I'm sorry, but now's not the best time."

"When will be a good time?"

Valerie frowned. "When…when I'm needed."

"But your needed now." Dani suggested. "You can come help guard the Mirror of Memories while it's moved. It'll be fun!"

"No." Valerie shook her head. "Part of the Justice League and the S-rank ghost will be there. My presence is unnecessary."

"Well, I don't think so…"

"And that's why you're my friend." Valerie smiled.

"Whatever." Dani shrugged and looked away. "But you know that I won't stop until you're back to being the Red Huntress again."

"Yeah, I know."

* * *

><p><strong>Recognized: Danny Phantom B04<strong>

"Hey," Phantom walked into the Cave. "You said you wanted to see me?"

The halfa noted that both Batman and Green Arrow were already in the Cave. They seemed to be talking to someone. Phantom knew that the rest of Young Justice, besides Wally, were spending the day at the beach. He was invited as well, but Phantom had too much on his plate right now to laze around on the beach.

Batman turned. "Yes, as the leader of Young Justice, you should be the first to learn about your new teammate."

"New teammate?" Phantom questioned.

"Yes." Green Arrow smiled. "This is…"

A girl stepped out from behind Ga. The girl was wearing a green costume similar to GA, but her midsection was showing. Her long blond hair was pulled back into a pony tail. Despite the green mask, Phantom could easy tell that the girl was gorgeous. Her sharp blue eyes lit up and her lips formed into a smirk at the sight of Phantom.

"Artemis." The girl spoke. "Call me Artemis."

Phantom had to fight his disbelieving look. He forced his shock down and remained neutral. His eyes, however, showed his surprise as he met Artemis' gaze.

'Why is she here?' Phantom questioned mentally. Phantom was not upset. It was the opposite, really. Phantom was glad to have Artemis on the team. Back when Phantom, as Red X, went to Gotham to obtain information, Artemis proved herself an invaluable ally and friend.

No, Phantom was actually glad to see her, but he still questioned as to why she was here. As far as he knew, Artemis had no affiliation with the League. She might not have mentioned it, but if she was somehow related to Green Arrow, then why didn't she mention it when Danny made her combat arrows for her?

"It's nice to meet you." Phantom extended his hand. He had to keep his cool. "And welcome to the team."

"Likewise, and thanks." Artemis took the hand and shook it. "It'll be fun to work with Danny Phantom and the sidekicks of the League."

"Er…" Phantom frowned. "I wouldn't call them that. They really don't like being called a sidekick."

Artemis nodded slowly. "I can understand that."

"So, you're an archer like GA?" Phantom looked to said hero.

"Yep, he's my uncle." Artemis explained.

"Ah…" Phantom knew that was a lie. He could tell, but he said nothing. "So finished your training, or did Speedy's leaving push you into the spot light."

"A little bit of both." Artemis played along.

"So…" Phantom turned to the Leaguers. "Where are the others? They should meet our new teammate too."

"They're changing." Green Arrow noted. "They'll be here in a minute."

"Hey, Phantom!" Robin greeted the halfa as they walked into the center of the training hall.

"Or now…" Green Arrow deflated. "Why must I always be wrong?"

"The beach was so much fun!" Miss Martian cheered. "You should have come with us."

"Sorry, I had business to handle." Phantom shrugged. "Work comes first."

"Work?" Superboy questioned. "What…"

It was then that they noticed Artemis. They all raised an eyebrow at her appearance. The green arrow design probably threw them off.

"Guys, meet our new teammate." Phantom gestured to the archer.

"Hey, name's Artemis." Artemis place her hands on her hips.

"Oh! Like the goddess of the hunt and bow!" M'gann smiled. "That's so clever."

"Greetings." Aqualad shook Artemis' hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you. I'm sure that you'll make a fine addition to the team."

"Yeah, you'll do great but…" Robin looked down. "I was kind of hoping that Speedy would join. Not that you're not great! But…Speedy has a history with us."

"Not all of it good." Superboy grunted.

"So, you two are Robin and Aqualad." Artemis noted. "But you two…"

"I'm M'gann!" Miss Martian floated up to Artemis. "But I'm on Earth now, so you can call me Megan…Oh! And my hero name is Miss Martian."

"Superboy." The clone said simply.

"Wow, didn't know Superman and the Manhunter had…partners." Artemis corrected herself at the end. Her eyes swept across the two aliens. Her eyes lingered a little longer on Superboy, but it wasn't very noticeable.

"We mostly work with the team." Miss Martian cheerfully explained.

"Yeah…mostly…" Superboy looked away.

"Alright then." Aremis nodded. "Wait…I was told Kid Flash was on this team too."

"He is." Robin nodded. "But he had school…poor sap."

"He will arrived shortly." Kaldur explained.

**Recognized: Kid Flash B03**

"Or now…" Kaldur noted.

"I feel for ya kid." Green Arrow stated.

"The Wallman is here!" Wally appeared in the Zeta Tube. He was dressed in swim gear and had beach gear in his hands. "Now let's get this party star-" He tripped and fell on his face. "-ted…"

"I got him…" Phantom noted as the beach ball bounced by them. "Smooth move there, Gracie."

"Wallman, huh? I love the uniform. What exactly are your powers?" Artemis smirked.

"The ability to fail epically." Phantom joked as he pulled Wally to his feet. "You okay?"

"Yeah…" Wally eyed the new girl. "Um…who's that?"

"Artemis." The blond stated proudly. "Your new teammate."

"Kid Flash. Never heard of you." Wally noted.

"Um, she's my new protégé." Green Arrow interjected.

"What happened to your old one?" Wally questioned.

**Recognized: Speedy B07**

"Well, this is going to be good." Phantom noted.

And it was. Speedy…er, Red Arrow arrived and made the situation very awkward. The animosity between Artemis, Red Arrow, and Green Arrow was obvious. Phantom wished he could do something, but this was obviously a…family issue, and Phantom already learned that he couldn't help all that much with family issues.

What really concerned Phantom was the obvious tension between Artemis and Kid Flash. There was a chance that their attitudes would affect Young Justice. He would have to be sure to try and ease the tensions.

It had to be soon, too. Red Arrow told them how he rescued Dr. Serling Roquette from the League of Shadows. He hid her at Happy Harbor High School, and was letting the team guard her. Phantom was glad that RA saved the women, but he didn't like the disrespect the young hero showed to his team. He didn't even offer to help. It was like he thought he was above them.

After Red Arrow left, Phantom turned to Batman. "I know this is important, but I kind of thought we would be stationed to Amity Park for the move."

"What move?" Artemis questioned.

"The League is moving a dangerous artifact from Amity Park today." Kaldur explained.

"Yeah, it's the thing that the news has been talking about for weeks." Superboy shrugged.

"Ah…" Artemis remembered that.

"I understand how you feel about this. It is in your home town." Batman nodded to Phantom. "But the League will handle the mirror. It will be moved safely. You and Young Justice need to focus on Dr. Roquette."

"It's not the League I'm worried about…" Phantom caught everyone's attention. "The ghost's that will be working with them…Many of them enjoy making scenes."

"We'll handle it." Batman left no room for argument.

"Alright…" Phantom nodded slowly. He had heard about Dr. Roquette's disappearance. Anyone that knew about the field of science knew about that. He knew personally what the League of Shadows would do with Roquette's knowledge. The Mist could lead to a disaster. "Let's go then."

In the back of his mind, though, Phantom was still worried. He had hoped to be there to ease tensions between the League and the S-rank ghosts. Now, though, they would be left on their own. He would just have to hope that they wouldn't kill each other.

'Please don't kill each other…' Phantom pleaded in his head.

* * *

><p>"They're gonna kill each other."<p>

"Nyx!" Spirit glared at her friend. "Don't talk like that."

Across the street from the Amity Park Museum, Spirit, Rachel, Youngblood, and Nyx were watching as the members of the Justice League and Council of the Elite prepared to move the Mirror of Memories. They look civil now, but…

"Torch refuses to be in the back! Torch leads, not follows!" A ghost was wearing a chain necklace around his neck. Various rings were on each of the man's fingers. Simple silver piercings were in the man's ears, right eyebrow, and tongue…which was sticking out at them. Finally, a headband with the word _champion_ was tied around the ghost's forehead.

The peace could easily be changed into chaos.

"Be silent, child." Pandora ordered. "We need to be respectful…for now."

"Torch know this." Torch frowned. "But Torch does not like taking orders from humans."

"I can understand that…" Pandora looked at the group of Leaguers. "Although, Frostbite doesn't seem to have a problem with it."

"Harharharharhar!" Frostbite laughed. "It is good to see you again, Aquaman…or at least in better circumstances."

"Yes, Frostbite." The Atlantian nodded. "I am glad to see that you have remained safe since our battle."

"Yes, perhaps we can have a rematch some time!" Frostbite gave him a huge grin. "This time it can be on land."

A little bit away, the rest of the Leaguers watched on.

"Tsk…" Wonder Woman looked away. "It is hard to believe that creature is a ruler."

"Looks are deceiving." Superman tried to reason. "Besides, Aquaman said that he was a good guy."

"He froze Orin in a block of ice."

"Er…" Superman looked uncomfortable.

"It could be worse." The Green Lantern with a green mask and pale face commented. "That monster Colossus could be here. That thing almost killed me and Captain Atom."

"Er…"

"I thought you would be more concerned about the ghost known as Vision." Red Tornado stated. "She will be here as well…"

"Er…"

"Torch remembers you!" Torch pointed at Red Tornado. "The android that is evenly matched with Torch!"

"..That is either a really good thing, or a really bad thing."

"See!" Nyx pointed down to the adults. "They won't be able to work together."

"For once, I agree with Nyx." Rachel stated. "Only a small portion of the League can even tolerate ghosts, and even fewer would trust them."

"Aye…" Youngblood nodded. "Thou yonder warriors shan't be able to work together."

"What you supposed to be, anyway?"

"I beith a wizardith!" Youngblood gestured to his clothes. He was wearing a cloak with stars decorated on it.

The tipped skeleton wizard hat spoke. "Not everything ends with 'ith'."

"Well they should."

"I…can see what you mean." Spirit pulled out her phone. "I texted Danny, but he's…busy."

"Busy enough to ignore this?" Rachel questioned.

"Yeah…" Spirit frowned.

"Well, it must be freaking important." Nyx noted. "Personally, I wouldn't miss this for the world. I can't wait to see the fireworks."

"Will you mom even let you follow them?" Rachel questioned.

"Will yours?" Nyx retorted.

"Probably not, but I'm not the one dying to see this." Rachel rolled her eyes.

"It wouldith be funith if we see the adults fightith." Youngblood suggested.

"I swear, if you don't stop that, then I'm done being your hat…" The ghost's skeleton companion warned.

"…Fine…"

"Hmm…" Spirit eyed the adults down below. "I'm going to follow them."

"You are?!" Everyone turned to her.

"Yeah, I've got a bad feeling about this." Spirit nodded.

"You think they'll start fighting?" Youngblood questioned.

"No." Spirit shocked them. "But…I…feel something in the air."

"Feel?" Nyx questioned.

"Yeah, it's like…I know that something will happen." Spirit explained. "Someone will try and steal the mirror."

"Who would be dumb enough to do that?" Rachel questioned. "There are five Leaguers, and six S-rank ghosts protecting the mirror. Attacking would be suicide."

"Perhaps…" Vision's voice drew their attention. They turned and saw the strategist standing behind them. "But perhaps not. With the right plan, anything is possible."

"You would know…" Nyx noted.

"Is there something you want?" Spirit questioned.

"Yes, I overheard your conversation." Vision explained.

"Ah…that's not good…" Youngblood shrunk back. He knew Vision's reputation.

"So you don't want us to go then…" Rachel sighed.

"No, quite the contrary. I need your help."

* * *

><p>Phantom really felt like pulling his hair out. This mission wasn't even starting well. Artemis had really messed with the team's flow. It wasn't really her fault, though. If they just had some time to integrate her into the dynamic of the team…it would probably have went better.<p>

'Ahk...This is weird…' Artemis commented as the mental link was established.

'And distracting.' Dr. Roquetee noted. She was a blond woman with short hair and glasses. 'Coding a distributed algorithm virus on a kiddy computer with less Ram than a wrist watch is hard enough. Now I have to hear teen think in my skull!'

'Lady, do you always complain when someone tries to help you?' Kid Flash questioned.

'Pot, Kettle. Have you met?' You could almost feel Artemis' sarcasm.

'Enough!' Phantom ordered. 'If you two can't get along, I'll make you wait in the Bioship.'

'But she started it!'

'And I'll end it.' Phantom threatened. 'Now everyone, be quiet.' He looked over at Artemis. 'Go patrol the perimeter, please.'

'Fine.' Artemis agreed.

'What's the plan?' Aqualad looked at the leader.

'Still thinking…' Phantom stated. 'The biggest problem is this place. Way too many entrances. It's a good place to hide until you're found. And when the doc activates the antivirus and tracks the Fog, they will find us, and keeping out trained ninja…will be difficult.'

'Then what are you going to do?' Dr. Roquette looked up at Phantom.

'Hmm…We don't have time to come up with something full proof. The longer we wait, the more the Shadows will use the Fog.' Phantom noted. 'First things first, trying using this instead of the kiddy computer.'

'A Tucker Phone? Those things have impressive processing power for a phone, but…'

'This one's specially made.' Phantom stated as he plugged in the phone to the monitor. 'Trust me, you'll be hard pressed to find supercomputers that can run as fast as this.'

'Alright. Can't hurt.' Roquette nodded.

'Plus, we can move quickly if necessary.' Superboy suggested. 'Keep moving to throw off the attackers.'

'Right.' Phantom agreed. 'With that out of the way, we need to focus on the rest of the mission. Stop the Fog and protect the doctor.'

'And will you be able to do both?' Roquette questioned.

'Yes.' Phantom stated. 'We'll go on the offense too. Kid Flash, Robin, Aqualad, you're all going to track down the Fog. Get to the Bioship and be ready to move when the doctor starts tracking it. Find the person using the Fog and take him down.'

'On it!'

'Of course.'

'You got it, man.'

'The rest of us will stay here.' Phantom explained. 'Superboy, get to the roof. Use your infrared vision to scan the area. The assassin's might be able to move silently, but they can't hide their body heat without some hardcore tech.'

'Right.'

'Artemis guard the south. Miss Martian guard the north. It will force the Shadows to try and enter the side.' Phantom ordered. 'Be ready to move on Superboy's signal, so stay focused.'

'Okay!'

'Whatever you say.'

'And what will you do?' Roquette asked.

'I'm your personal bodyguard.' Phantom stated. 'The last line of defense, but don't worry. I have a few tricks up my sleeve to confuse them. If we at least stall them until the Fog is stopped, then they might just leave. There will no longer be a reason to attack you…besides revenge, but in that case, I can fly you out of here.'

Roquette seemed satisfied. 'Okay then, I'll start tracking the Fog.'

'Good. Let's do this.'

* * *

><p>"Are you okay, Spirit?" Youngblood questioned.<p>

The group of children invisibly followed the truck holding the mirror. They were at a good enough distance so that the members of the League that were leading the truck couldn't notice them. The ghosts probably were aware of them, but Vision most likely told them about the kids. Especially considering…

"My Dad doesn't look happy." Spirit noted.

"Neither does my Mom." Nyx nodded.

"They probably don't enjoy the fact that Vision is using you in her plan to protect the mirror." Rachel stated.

"I still don't see how we can help…" Youngblood noted. "I mean, even if I'm an awesome level 41 wizard dragonborn, I'm still don't think that we can help if a wall of superbeings can't stop something."

"Captain Kyd's got a point." Nyx agreed.

"That's Lord Wizard Kyd." Youngblood was ignored.

"I'm all for jumping in the midst of a mosh pit, but…" Nyx eyed her mother. "I don't want to be around when Mom fights…"

"Are you two…okay?" Rachel questioned. "After what happened after the Freakshow thing anyway."

"I never got an answer," Nyx frowned deeply. "But I ain't giving up. If I can use magic…maybe you can help me?"

"I can try…"

"Hey, I know that's important to you, but…yawn…l-let's stay focused…" Spirit rubbed her eyes.

"You okay?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yeah…Yeah, I'm fine, but…I just feel drained right now…" Spirit mumbled.

"Well, darn…" Nyx yawned. "That yawn made me sleepy, Girl Scout."

"Actually…" Rachel's eyes drooped. "I feel tired as well. How about you, Youngblood?"

"…Zzz…"

"Youngblood!" Nyx snapped.

"Twenty-four!" Youngblood's eyes snapped open.

"Stay…away…dummy…" Rachel noted.

"Gah, it must be that two o'clock wall…" Spirit muttered.

"But it's like nine."

"Then…" Spirit froze. Her Premonition was screaming at her. She stopped flying. The others stopped and turned to the girl.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yeah, come on, Girl Scout." Nyx glared. "We're out of Amity Park now, but they won't stop for us. We'll lose them if we stop."

"No…" Spirit paled. "He can't be here…"

"Who?" Rachel questioned.

"The reason why we are all so tired."

"Huh? What do you –"

Boom! The entire area was covered in an explosion.

Everything went black…

* * *

><p>'So you, know Daniel Fenton right?' Dr. Roquette asked over the mental link.<p>

'Yeah, we've worked together before. I even helped rescue him from the Shadows once.' Phantom stated. 'Why?'

'He's a mystery to the scientific community.' Roquette explained. 'One day, he just comes out as a genius inventor. Granted it was in his genes, but still…"

'Ah…'

'Many people call him the Phoenix. A brilliant mind reborn from the ashes.' Roquette noted. 'But I don't know. I suppose I would have to meet him.'

'Er…no offence, Lady, but weren't you the one giving us a hard time for talking too much?' Superboy questioned.

'That was when I was working on my programming.' Roquette noted. 'But Phantom was right about this phone. Now, I just have to wait for it to process.'

'Wow, is it really that good?' M'gann questioned.

'It's like a miniature supercomputer.' Roquette noted. 'That's why I was asking about Fenton. He made this for you, right?'

'…Yes…'

'Ah. Maybe the rumors are true then.'

'Well, I don't…Crap!' Phantom was alarmed.

'What is it?' Artemis questioned.

'My duplicate patrolling the perimeter has been destroyed. And I know who did it. Superboy, east side.' Phantom ordered.

'…I see someone.' Superboy questioned. 'But…there's also one on the west side.'

'Two of them?!' Roquette panicked.

'Okay, Artemis and Miss M, take the assassin on the west side. Makes sure that assassin doesn't get in. Superboy, follow the plan. I'll take the other one.'

'You sure?' Superboy questioned.

'Yeah, I have a score to settle.'

* * *

><p>Spirit had to force herself out of the crater she was in. Strangely, there was very little pain from the black energy explosion. No, she just felt…weak. It was as if all her power was stopped in a single moment.<p>

"Ah…" Spirit struggled to stand. None of her friends were around her. She could hear fighting in the distance, but she couldn't see it. The trees and darkness were in the way.

"I'm so glad you're awake." A familiar voice spoke behind Spirit.

The halfa flinched and turned. There stood one of the Phantom Family's most despised enemies. He was the person that put them through some of their worst hardships.

The ghost appeared like a demon with his down ward purple horn and red eyes with a scar running down his left eye, and another scar running across his face. One of his horns was broken off too. His body seemed to be made of stars.

Nocturne was back. But…

"What the…" Spirit's jaw fell. Terrifying black energy danced around sleep ghost. Spirit felt a sense of dread from looking at this energy. That wasn't the weird part, though. The weird part was from where the energy was coming.

"Is that…a black power ring?" Spirit stared at Nocturne's starry right hand.

"Yes, it is." Nocturne grinned cruelly. "And with it, I'm invincible."

"I've heard that before. And if I remember correctly, you got your butt handed to you." Spirit mocked.

"Ah…Still have that fake act of cockiness I see." Nocturne chuckled. "It's a really good trick. Makes your opponent underestimate you even more. But it is far from the truth."

"What are you talking about?"

Nocturne eyed his ring. "You see, my powers have recently been amplified. My mere presence makes people drowsy. Not only that, when people sleep, I can see them. Not their dreams. No, I see their souls."

"That makes no sense."

"It doesn't? After all, not a minute ago you were unconscious. In that short period of time, I saw a lot." Nocturne's evil smile made Spirit take a step back. "All your doubts, hopes, dreams, and personality traits were visible before my eyes."

"…W-what?"

"You cherish your family and friends above all else, especially Phantom. Yet, at the same time you feel held down by them because they don't let you reach your full potential. Part of you wants to know what would happen if you were alone, but you also fear solitude." Nocturne's dark laugh rang out. "That's why keep trying to get the Red Huntress back in action. You think that she always be there for you, while at the same time push you past your limits."

"I…I…"

"Let's dig deeper, though. You're cheerful, positive, and imaginative…when you're not thinking about Phantom's almost death that is." Nocturne took pleasure in watching Spirit squirm. "Despite your doubts in yourself, you're confident that you will become stronger. That comes from your more positive outlook on life. It's this aspect that constantly compels you to work to make the world better.

"One of your greatest flaws is your desire to be the center of attention. You relish in attention and praise. This search for acknowledgment and attention is why you despise silence and boredom, always use humor as a deflecting devise for negativity, and are willing to destroy things to bring attention back to you. Very unlike the one known as Nyx who merely likes chaos for entertainment."

"Stop it!" Spirit shouted.

"You love the feeling of accomplishment. That is why you jump at the chance for combat. Recently, however, you have begun to take an interest in art and literature." Nocturne sneered at her. "You hope that this will fulfill both your desire for acknowledgement and your desire to accomplish what few others can."

"Shut up!" Spirit rocketed at the ghost. "There's no way you can know this stuff!"

She sent an ectoplasmic powered kick at Nocturne. Nocturne merely raised his hand. The black ring on his hand glowed and blocked the kick effortlessly. No…that was not the best way to describe it. The energy didn't seem to block the kick. It didn't even absorb the kick. No, it was almost as if…

The energy behind the kick disappeared.

"Wha-Ack!" Spirit cried out as the black ring blasted her back. Like before, the pain was minimal. It was more like Spirit suddenly felt exhausted, like she ran a marathon and had nothing left in the tank. Was it part of Nocturne's powers? No…she wasn't tired. It was more like she didn't have the energy to move.

"But I can know that." Nocturne explained. "You told me after all."

"Guh…" Spirit forced herself and wobbly legs. "What…what happened to you?"

"I became better and stronger." Nocturne stated. "It is all because of the power of the ring."

"No, not that…" Spirit look up with puzzled eyes. "Nocturne was an arrogant, power hungry jerk who wanted to rule the world, but I don't sense anything like that with my Premonition. Your intentions aren't that. You want people to suffer. You're completely different from before. Who…who are you?"

"I am the nightmare of death." Nocturne answered simply.

Spirit didn't understand what that meant. "I don't-"

**ROAR!**

The ground rumbled from the power of the roar. It was almost like a miniature earthquake. After a moment, though, it stopped.

"What?!" Spirit looked in the direction of the demonic roar. In the distance, was a large black and purple dragon. Like Nocturne, it seemed to have an aura of black energy around it. Despite this, the halfa girl recognized the dragon.

"Is that Aragon?" Spirit whispered.

"Yes, the beast of death." Nocturne extended his hand and his ring glowed. "Don't worry, you'll get to see up close and personal soon enough."

"Yeah," Spirit glared. "But it will be after I kick your butt."

Nocturne laughed. "Even you don't believe that. Here let me show you…"

"**Real power!**"

* * *

><p>"Never thought you would be here." Phantom noted as he stood next to Dr. Roquette.<p>

"I guess it's your bad luck." Jinx noted.

"That's the thing." Phantom turned. "I believe that we make our own luck based on our actions."

"You must have made some sucky actions then." Jinx noted.

"That…is hard to argue…" Phantom frowned.

"Oh…" Jinx smirked. "Do I sense some doubt in the almighty hero."

"None whatsoever." Phantom eyed the girl. "I take it that you're working with the assassin Cheshire now. What happened to Walker? Did he dump you for Shiva?"

"Hardly." Jinx rolled her eyes. "I was tired of babysitting that fool."

"I see…" Phantom nodded.

"Enough formalities." Jinx stated. "I'm here to kill the good doctor."

"Figure as much." Phantom then addressed the doctor. "Keep working, doc. I'll make sure doesn't get close."

"False promises. Never figured you for a liar." Jinx charged.

"We're all full of surprises." Phantom attacked the bad luck user.

Jinx first attacked with a blast of pink energy. Phantom easily blocked this with a blast of energy of his own. The two blasts met between the two fighters and canceled each other out. Following this miniature explosion, the two meta-humans began to fight in hand-to-hand combat.

Jinx sent a spinning hooking heel kick at Phantom's head. Phantom ducked under the kick and threw a punch at Jinx's midsection. With the smallest amount of effort, Jinx moved out of the way of the strike. Seeing an opening, she sent a hex bolt at Phantom.

The bad luck energy hit Phantom and sent him skidding back. He could feel his powers be disrupted by the energy. It was a weird reaction. It was almost like…

Never mind, he needed to focus.

Jinx quickly turned her attention to the doctor. She blasted at the doctor. Even if Roquette dodged, the blast would hit the computer. Either way, it was mission accomplished.

If Phantom didn't create a shield of ectoplasm around the doctor that is…

Despite the danger, Roquette still hadn't turned around. Even as the computer monitor spark and rattled because of Jinx's bad luck ability. Jinx was surprised by her resolve in the face of danger.

"Tsk…" Jinx glared at Phantom. "Okay, then. I was going to go easy on you, but…"

Pink energy began to flow off of Jinx in waves. Her cat like eyes disappeared in a pink glow. "I won't hold back anymore."

Phantom expected Jinx to blast at him, but she didn't. Instead she sent a hex bolt at the ceiling. The lights shattered and sparked. The halfa was forced to cover his eyes from the sparks and glass.

Jinx instantly took advantage. This time, she blasted the floor beneath Phantom. The tiles exploded up and forced the halfa into the air. At this time, Jinx decided to attack directly. She sent a barrage of small hex bolts at Phantom.

He was blasted into the nearby wall. Before he could recover, Jinx trapped and pinned him to the wall. "And that's that."

With a wave of her hand, Jinx sent a blast at Dr. Roquette. The bolt hit the computer and caused an explosion. Roquette was sent crashing into the opposite wall. She fell to the ground lifeless.

"You lose." Jinx smirked at Phantom.

"Do I?" Phantom returned the smirk.

"Huh?" Jinx watched as green energy came up from behind her and was absorbed into the Phantom.

She turned. Dr. Roquette was gone. All that was left was a smoking metallic belt.

"A Fenton Disguise Belt. It can hide your hair color, eyes, and clothes. It may not be as perfect as Martian shape shifting, but it was enough to fool you." Phantom smirked. "Oh, and here comes the other one."

Once again, green energy was absorbed by Phantom.

"What did you do?" Jinx hissed.

"I can make three duplicates. One patrolled the perimeter. One was disguised as the doctor. One guarded Roquette in the last place any one looks when they're searching for someone." Phantom explained. "That's why I have Superboy guarding her right now."

"You…"

"Oh, and another thing." Phantom pushed Jinx and sent her flying across the room.

"Duplicates greatly diminish my power. So now…I won't hold back anymore."

* * *

><p>The entire area was covered in black flames. Aragon's fire had burned everything in its path. Luckily, no living being was hit by the fire. The flames covering this area fell from the sky as the dragon ghost fought Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern.<p>

The ghosts were fighting the army of Sleep Walkers that Nocturne created. Usually, the artificial beings were pushovers. Unfortunately, the Sleep Walkers were also covered in the black energy. No matter how hard you hit them, they just seemed to keep coming. Not only that, their attack power was many times stronger than ever before.

"Gah…" Spirit landed on the ground with a thud. Like Nocturne said, he took her to the area where everyone was fighting. There was not much that Spirit could do. Every time she gathered the energy to fight back, the black energy seemed to wipe her stamina away.

"Ah…" Nocturne tilted his head. There where he was looking was the Mirror of Memories. It must have been blasted out of the truck in the first explosions. "That's what I came here for."

"The mirror…" Spirit struggled to move, but her body felt numb. She had to stop Nocturne. 'Come on! Move!'

"With this, it is mission accomplished." Nocturne picked up the mirror.

"Mmm…" Spirit forced herself on shaky knees. "Why…would you want…the mirror? You can already make an army."

"You think I would actually tell you?" Nocturne sneered. "No, you get to die in ignorance."

"Die, huh? I thought it was mission accomplished."

"Perhaps for now, but I know you halfas. It is you that always end up ruining the plans." Nocturne stood above the halfa. "It is always your fault. I think it would be best to end you now."

The ghost of sleep reached down and grabbed Spirit by her throat. With ease, Nocturne picked the girl up and dangled her in the air. The girl would have struggled, but once again the black energy around Nocturne seemed to erasing her energy.

"Moron…" Spirit managed to speak. "You think…I'll just give up…"

"Even the strongest will can do nothing when the body is weak." Nocturne noted. "Goodbye ghost gi-"

"Let her go!" Shadows jumped up from the ground and tried to hit Nocturne. They did nothing.

With a look of annoyance, Nocturne turned. "The daughter of Pandora…It is foolish to attack me."

"Let the Girl Scout go." Nyx warned.

"Or what?"

"Ala-blast him in face!" Youngblood sent a blast of ectoplasm from his wand. Like before, there was no effect.

"Gnats should not attack a giant." Nocturne sighed. Out of his black power ring came two energy hands. They instantly went to grab the two other children.

Both Youngblood and Nyx tried to dodge and destroy the arms. Nothing they did could stop the arms of energy, though. They did their best to avoid capture, but the arms were too fast. In seconds, they were captured.

"Gah!" Youngblood and Nyx struggled and failed to escape from the energy.

"You won't be able to get away." Nocturne remarked. "But if I remember correctly, there was one more child…yes, there you are."

"Azaroth Metrion Zin-" Nocturne's hand grabbed Rachel's head and stopped the words. In the process, he dropped the mirror, but it wouldn't be damaged by that.

"No you don't." Nocturne chuckled.

"Mhmhmhm!" Rachel tried to speak, but couldn't because Nocturne's hand on her mouth.

"Don't bite. I won't do anything." Nocturne mentioned.

"Mmm…"

"Well, then. That was easy." Nocturne commented.

"Is this where…you call…yourself a god?" Spirit struggled to speak.

"No, I was foolish to ever think that." Nocturne glared, but it wasn't at her. No, it was a glare at himself and his past beliefs. "I have met a read god, and I could never compare."

"God?" Nyx questioned through clenched teeth.

"It doesn't matter." Nocturne frowned. "All that matters in this moment is your death…"

* * *

><p>Yeah…the fight wasn't going as well as Phantom wanted it to go. In his last fight with Jinx, he used her inability to work together with Walker to his advantage. Now, though, he no longer had such an advantage. Not only that, the duplicates had exhausted him more than he liked to admit.<p>

"What's wrong!?" Jinx kicked Phantom's midsection. "You're a lot slower than when I first assessed you!"

Phantom grunted and moved back. He was running low on juice. Not only that, he couldn't use a widespread attack because of the limited room… "I don't know what you're talking about!"

He sent a combo of punches at Jinx. The girl expertly dodged the blows. She sent punches of her own at Phantom. Each one was blocked by the halfa. They continued with this exchange until Phantom sent an ectoplasmic powered knee at the girl. This attack caught a glancing blow on Jinx, but she avoided most of the damage.

Despite her aching ribs, Jinx blasted Phantom back with a hex bolt. "Don't lie! I can see it. You're strength, speed, and intensity have drastically dropped."

"Yeah, right!" Phantom sent a barrage of ecto-blasts at Jinx.

Jinx dodged each of them. She smirked. "Right, indeed. Before, you would have overpowered me by now."

"Not my style anymore!" Phantom went back to close combat.

Throughout the exchange, Jinx kept speaking. "Is that because you can't use that style?"

"Shut up!"

"It's true!" Jinx's eyes lit with delight as she kicked him away. "I can see it in your eyes. They're so much duller than before. It's probably a bunch of reasons."

Jab to Phantom's face. "Gassed out from fighting too much."

Cross punch to Phantom's sternum. "Hardened from seeing so much death from the war."

Spinning kick to Phantom's jaw. "Maybe it's a consequence of that super mode you went into."

Finally, she swept his legs and tossed him below her. Pinning him, she added. "Or it could be a combination of all three."

Phantom didn't give her the satisfaction of answering.

"Your face is all the answer I need." Jinx smirked.

'Phantom! The anti-virus has finished downloading! Now it's up to Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad.' Superboy mentally called.

Despite his situation, he smirked. "And what does my face tell you now?"

"…Victory…" Jinx frowned. She placed a hand over her ear. "Cheshire…What do you mean it's time to go…What happened to the Fog?...They what?!"

"You lose." Phantom stated happily.

"That's impossible!" Jinx glared down at him. "There's no way she could finish an anti-virus that fast."

"It is with a little new Fenton Tech."

"You…" Jinx's eyes widened. "You tricked me. I thought that I had enough to fight you. That's why you stalled…"

"Bingo…"

Jinx trembled in anger. "You bastard!"

She punched him in the face. "You made me fail! I hate failing!"

"Ack…didn't think you would be a sore loser…" Phantom groaned. "Never knew about the anger problem either…

"Who do you think you are!?" Jinx shouted as she kept punching him. "Who do you think you are to try and one up me like that!?"

She raised her hand. It glowed a dark pink. Phantom realized that this was a kill blow. He didn't have the energy to block it.

In his head, he quickly ran through his options. There was no way he could stop the attack physically. His teammates were too far away right now to help him. He was on his own.

He had to do something! But what can he do? Nothing Phantom could say would stop her. No, there was nothing he could do…

…As Phantom…

But he couldn't! No! There wasn't even a guarantee that it would work! And if it did…

Nevertheless, as the kill blow drew closer, Phantom's voice worked on its own. He just blurted it out.

"Nobody."

Jinx froze. Her fist was inches away from his face. Slowly, the pink energy faded. "What did you say?"

"…"

"Did…did he tell you?" Jinx questioned. "I can't believe he would tell you that. That was…our thing. How could he?"

"…"

"I…I can't…" Jinx stared at him. She examined him, his eyes, his face, and his soul. "He didn't tell you."

Then it all clicked.

In shock, Jinx stumbled back away from Phantom. Her face paled. Her eyes showed shock. "But you were in two places at once…The duplicates and the Disguise Belt...No way…"

"…Jen…"

"No!" Jinx looked at him desperately. "Why didn't you tell me!?"

"I couldn't." Phantom stood. "Please, I don't-"

They were interrupted by an arrow. Jinx had to dodge the green arrow as it zoomed to her head. Both teens turned to look at the entrance. Artemis and Miss Martian was there.

"Don't move." Artemis ordered.

"No…" Jinx shook her head. "I'm no longer in the mood."

"That doesn't-"

Boom! Pink energy exploded out. All three members of Young Justice had to move to avoid the explosion. Then, when the smoke had cleared, Jinx was gone.

"She's gone…" Artemis frowned.

"What happened?"

Phantom looked over at his teammates. "An old decision came back to save me."

"Okaaay…" Artemis didn't know what that meant. "Care to elaborate."

"Let's just say the forgiveness can go a long way." Phantom explained. "Anyway, did you handle Cheshire?"

"Yeah…well, it was mostly Artemis." M'gann blushed. "I got disorientated by her jellyfish poison. Luckily, my body altered itself to nullify the poison, but by the time I came too, Cheshire was gone."

"You handled her?" Phantom questioned.

"…Yeah…" Artemis handed him Cheshire's mask. "I handled it…"

"Good." Phantom nodded. "Well…Wally will be happy for the souvenir."

"Speaking of them…" Superboy walked into the room with Dr. Roquette. "How'd they do?"

"Let me find out…" Phantom placed a hand over his ear. "Phantom to Aqualad. Did you stop the Fog?"

"_Yes. Unfortunately, we couldn't save Star Labs, but we tracked the Fog to the user. We have captured Dr. Ojo and downloaded the anti-virus to the Fog_." Aqualad stated through the radio.

"Well…" Phantom stated. "That's done then."

"Mission accomplished." Artemis smirked.

"Thank you." Dr. Roquette stated. "I had my doubts, but…you pulled this off flawlessly. I didn't even see an assassin."

Phantom looked around the room. It was completely destroyed. "Well…I wouldn't say flawlessly."

* * *

><p>If Spirit had suspected that anyone would interfere, she would not have it would be him. Her first guess would have been one of the ghosts. Then, a second guess would have been a member of the Justice League. To her shock, though, it was neither of them.<p>

As the large shadow appeared over Nocturne, Spirit was surprised as a ball of greyish white muscle landed on top of Nocturne. "Grundy says leave little girl alone!"

The force of blow caused Nocturne to let go of the children. They all collapsed onto the ground. The black energy of the ring had taken its effect on the children.

Despite her shock over the situation, Spirit forced herself to act. She reached out and grabbed the mirror that Nocturne dropped. The halfa no longer had the energy to use ectoplasm, but she could still do this.

"GRAH!" Solomon Grundy was sent baralling back when Nocturne blasted him with the black power ring.

"Foolish girl, what do you plan to do with that?" Nocturne chuckled. "You can't use the mirror without energy."

"Don't plan to…" Spirit groaned. "But…I can still do this! Nyx!"

Spirit flung the mirror towards the shadow ghost. Gathering as much energy as she could, Nyx sent a wave of shadow energy at the mirror.

Crash! The mirror was shattered into hundreds of pieces.

"What!?" Nocturne's eyes widened. "That's impossible!"

"Don't ignore Grundy!" Solomon Grundy ran at Nocturne.

In anger, Nocturne batted Grundy away. Spirit was surprised to see the wall of muscle be flung away with such ease. "It can't be…The mirror can't be broken…"

"Well it is…" Rachel muttered.

"RAW!" Nocturne glared. "I'll kill you brats-Ah!"

A battered and bruised Plasmius blasted Nocturne from behind. "I think not."

Nocturne glared at the older halfa. "Grr…It appears that my Sleep Walkers have thinned out."

"Indeed." Plasmius prepared himself for battle.

"Fine then." Nocturne sighed. "You lucked out then. I don't know what that was, but it wasn't the Mirror of Memories. It's not here. That means that there is no reason to be here anymore. I will have to kill you halfas later."

"And you think I will just let you leave?"

"I think you don't have a choice." The entire area was covered in black light. The dark energy swirled all around them. In a flash, everything was silent.

"He's gone…" Youngblood noted.

"Yes," Plasmius knelt down by his daughter. "Are any of you harmed?"

"No…" Spirit noted as her father picked her up. "Just drained."

"Yes…" Plasmius nodded. "I know the feeling. That black energy…It was devastatingly strong."

"Nyx!" Pandora flew to her daughter and picked her up. "I knew I should never have let you follow us!"

"I'm fine, Mom." Nyx stated.

"So…" Visions stated as she approached the group. "The mirror was destroyed."

"Yes." Youngblood said as he was helped to his feet.

"Good. I shall show the Justice League." Vision informed them and left.

"Torch has to question what's with this big guy." Torch poked Solomon Grundy with his red and black scythe.

"If I remember correctly. His name is Grundy, correct?" Frostbite examined the downed monster.

"Yes..." The Fright Knight nodded as he helped Rachel. "He attacked Amity Park not too long ago."

"Torch heard he was captured." Torch commented. "Why is he here?"

"He must have escaped." Plasmius noted. "But...why would he come here?"

Spirit looked down at the large beast. "He saved us."

"Yeah! You should have seemed. He was boom! And Nocturne was like waa! And we were like woah..." Youngblood...tried to explain.

"Torch has to ask...what do we do with him?"

"We have to follow the humans rules...even if he saved the children." Pandora frowned.

"So we hand him to the League?" Frostbite questioned.

"It is the only choice we have."

Spirit looked down at the pale monster. She kept questioning why he came to save them...her. The halfa girl knew that they were connected somehow, but did Grundy know? If so, then that would explain his actions. He saw Dani as the only family he had. Yet here she was letting others decide his face.

It left a bad taste in her mouth.

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-August 10, 2010)<p>

"So that was your plan…" Phantom stated. After returning from his mission, the halfa returned home and heard what happened. Phantom wished that he could have been there to help, but after he explained about the Fog, there had been little complaints.

"Yes." Vision nodded. Once again, they were all gathered in the Masters Mansion. This time, though, there was some good news. "Now that the Justice League believes that the mirror is destroyed, there will be no argument when I take it back to the Ghost Zone for safe keeping."

"And how did you pull that off?"

"It was all thinks to young Rachel." Vision explained.

"Yes…" The girl nodded. "My magical energy hid the mirror's presence. No one knew that I switched the real mirror with the fake one in the chaos."

"How did you know that you would be attacked?" Phantom questioned.

"I didn't, but it was a possibility." Vision explained. "In case that happened, I wanted it to be our victory."

"That it was." Plasmius nodded.

"But what about Nocturne and Aragon?" Spirit questioned. "They're back and they have those…rings."

"Yes…" Fright Knight spoke up. "I remember that power…"

"As I explained to the Green Lantern, those rings have a complicated past." Vision explained. "Originally, they were created by the Reaper."

"Freakshow said his name was Nekron?" Spirit mentioned.

"Yes," Vision nodded. "He was embodiment of death and a consequence of the Reality Gauntlet."

"The Reality Gauntlet? How does that work?" Phantom questioned.

"There is the reason the Ghost Writer normally refuses to use his powers for more than teaching lessons." Fright Knight mentioned. "There are consequences for altering reality."

"Yes, remember, there are always consequences for actions. Even the smallest action can cause ripples." Vision explained. "Long ago, a man with good intentions created the Reality Gauntlet. But the road to hell is paved with good intentions. He saved lives and made the world better, but at the same time, he used a power that should not belong to mortals."

"And that was what created the Reaper?" Plasmius questioned. "The distortion in reality created a threat that was unequaled."

"No." Vision looked away. "That was what created ghosts."

"…Do you mean…" Rachel's eyes widened.

"Yes," Vision nodded. "None of us ghosts would exist if it weren't for the Reality Gauntlet."

"So…that's why this is the only planet with ghosts…" Phantom noted. "Because someone messed with death and reality here."

"Make no mistake, though, that vile gauntlet brought more destruction and death than you can even imagine." Fright Knight growled. "Don't forget that the Reaper was one of the first ghosts. The devastation he caused…"

"So there was good and bad, since the beginning for ghosts, huh?" Spirit mentioned.

"You have no idea." Vision seemed…scared. "There was a reason it took all of Fa…Pariah Dark and the King's Advisors powers to kill Nekron. And the reason for that was the black power rings."

"With those rings, the Reaper could transfer some of his power to others." Fright Knight explained.

"Some?" Spirit questioned. "That ring…It was something else. There was nothing I could do against Nocturne."

"And it was also why the Justice League couldn't fight off Aragon. Combining the power of his amulet and the ring is devastating." Vision noted. "The power of the black power rings is one to be feared and respected."

"But why are the rings still around if the Reaper was killed?" Phantom questioned.

"Many of the rings survived the final battle." Vision explained. "They have appeared from time to time. We have hunted down most of them and destroyed them. Hopefully, these will be the last two."

"Aren't you worried about this?" Plasmius questioned. "Those rings are dangerous."

"Of course, but I don't believe Nocturne and Aragon will do anything foolish right now." Vision noted. "They have some sort of goal. I will continue to investigate."

"Not to mention how the Green Lanterns will be looking into it as well." Phantom noted. "And with that happening, are you certain they won't find out about the mirror?"

"Don't worry. I will hide the mirror in a place no one will find it." Vision stated.

"Okay then…"

After the meeting, Spirit left with Rachel to talk. Once outside, the halfa said, "You did great today."

"Thanks, it was fun…except the part where we almost died." Rachel noted.

"Yeah, although, I think Nyx might under house arrest for a while…" Spirit frowned. "It might be boring for a while."

"With you it's never boring." Rachel stated.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"You should…by the way…"

"Yeah?"

"Do you need any help…you know…patrolling?"

"Oh…That would be great! But…your mom?"

"I'll figure something out. I…just want to do some more good for people."

"I'm sure you will, Rachel."

"Call me Raven."

* * *

><p>Knock! Knock! Knock!<p>

"Artemis!" Phantom knocked on his friend's door. "You there?"

It was currently mid-afternoon. Phantom needed to talk to his new teammate, but he couldn't appear in Gotham as a hero, and Artemis didn't know about his duel life. So, Phantom was wearing a toboggan hat to hide his white hair and sunglasses to hide his glowing green eyes. His clothes were simple jeans and a blue t-shirt.

The door cracked opened, but was still chain locked. Phantom had to look down to see the person answering the door. The woman had dark hair and eyes. She was of middle age, but could pass as younger. Oh…and she was in a wheelchair.

"Hello, can I help you?" The woman questioned.

"I'm sorry. I must have the wrong apartment." Phantom scratched his head. It had been a while since he'd been there. "I'm looking for Artemis Crock."

"I'm her mother." The woman stated. "Are you her friend?"

"…You could say that." Phantom eyed the woman. "Do you now about her new…extracurricular activity?"

"Oh…" Mrs. (Miss?) Crock's eyes widened. "That."

"Yeah, can I come in? I need to speak to her." Phantom requested.

"Of course." Artemis' mom unchained the door and let him in. "Come in."

"Thank you." Phantom nodded.

"Artemis!" The woman called. "A friend is here!"

"What?" The blond walked into the room. She was now dressed in civilian clothes. "Who…"

"Hey, Artemis." Phantom removed his hat and glasses.

"You're…" Artemis' mother stared at him.

"Don't gawk, Mom." Artemis frowned.

"Well, it's not every day a ghost walks into my home." The woman noted.

Phantom eyed Artemis. Her mom obviously didn't know about his last visit here.

"Well, I'm sorry to just drop by, but I needed to talk to Artemis." Phantom stated.

"Okay."

"Mom, I think he means alone." Artemis mentioned.

"Whatever you say in front of my daughter you can say in front of me." Mrs. Crock frowned at the ghost.

"No offence, Mrs. Crock, but that's not true." Phantom corrected.

"He's right, Mom. This is Young Justice business." Artemis nodded.

"Fine…" The woman sighed. "Keep your door open, though."

Artemis rolled her eyes.

Phantom just chuckled, though. "Don't worry. My girlfriend would tear my balls off for just thinking about cheating…That and I'm pretty sure you or your daughter could kill me."

"True enough."

When they were out of ear shock, Artemis smirked at the halfa. "Girlfriend, huh? You never mentioned that before."

"It never came up before." Phantom stated as they walked into Artemis' room. He was surprised that it was rather plain. The only qualities that stood out were the two beds and Alice in Wonderland poster. It was obvious that someone else lived in this room with Artemis once. It was probably a sibling.

"Do the others, know?"

"Er…"

Artemis laughed. "Oh, this is good. I'm soooo gonna enjoy telling them."

"Whatever…" Phantom shrugged. "So…Is that one of the parents that didn't care about me being here a few months ago?"

"…Yeah…" Artemis nodded.

"It seems like she cares a lot." The halfa mentioned.

"Well…that's new, okay?"

"…Okay." Phantom asked no more.

"Thanks…So, what did you want something?"

"Yeah, there is…"

"Then what is it?" Artemis questioned.

"Is there a reason you joined the team?" Phantom asked his friend.

"Yeah," Artemis nodded. "Batman and GA asked me to…"

"And you weren't concerned?" Phantom asked.

"No, should I be?" Artemis questioned.

"You aren't a side…partner to a hero. You have no connection with the League." Phantom explained. "Why would they ask someone they didn't even know?"

"You don't have a connection to the League either." Artemis snapped. She was annoyed with his questioning. "Maybe they were just impressed by us."

"Exactly." Phantom hung his head. "We made an impression. They know that eventually we could become a threat. That's why they're trying to get us on their side."

"Tsk…" Artemis looked away. "Why are you saying this?"

"The same reason I was worried about you being a vigilante in Gotham." Phantom explained. "You're my friend."

"I…thanks…" Artemis sighed. "But I can handle myself."

"I know." Phantom nodded. "But I just want to ask you if this is what you want. I can guarantee you that a hero's life is a lot harder than it looks. Not only that, you're on a team. You're going to have to trust the others to protect your life. Can you do that?"

"I…I don't know. But I can try."

"Yeah…" Phantom sighed. "But sometimes trying isn't good enough."

* * *

><p>"The Mirror of Memories was destroyed." Joel heard a voice close to his cage speak. Despite this, he continued to pretend to be asleep.<p>

"No it wasn't." A dark gravelly voice answered. "That mirror is nearly indestructible. But it's no longer our concern, old friend. The ghosts probably hid it, and if its Vision's fault, then we won't be able to get to it. What really concerns me are the black power rings."

"Yes, you told me about those, Vandal." The first voice spoke. "Do you believe that the rings appeared because of the Reality Gauntlet?"

"I don't know, but it is possible, Lex." Vandal's voice noted. "Either way, the Light will need to focus on finding both Freakshow and the ghosts with the power rings."

Lex's voice chuckled. "It seems that we have the Justice League and the ghosts on our side with those goals."

"Yes, everyone understands the danger and destruction that could happen because of them." Vandal sound displeased.

"You witnessed the Reaper first hand if I remember correctly."

"Yes…it is not a pleasant memory." Vandal sound pained. "The world was set aflame. Millions died. Entire races went extinct."

"That's not a pleasant thought." Lex noted.

"No, it's not. It would completely destroy all that we have worked for, if it happens again." Vandal stated.

"Then we will have to stop it."

Joel continued to listen as they walked away. He recognized those voices. They were partners of the Master. If the boy remembered correctly, they were both cool headed and calm individuals. If these Freakshow and ghosts worried them so much, then they were bigger threats than Joel can even begin to imagine.

Despite this, though, Joel was more worried about another piece of information. The mirror everyone wanted was now out of the picture. That meant that the Ghoul Project would continue on without any more delay.

'It will be my turn soon…' Joel thought. And when that happened…

His story will be over.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Kid Flash<strong>

"Are you ready for this?" Wally glared.

"Oh, you know it." Phantom glared back. "I'm so going to win."

"In your dreams."

Robin stood up and commented. "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages. Welcome to the first annual Young Justice Eat-off!"

"This is so stupid." Artemis noted.

"Yep," Superboy nodded. "Who'd you bet for?"

"Kid Mouth. You?"

"I went with the guy that can literally put food though his skin into his stomach."

"Good point."

"You both know the rules." M'gann, the official ref, stated. "Whoever eats the most in five minutes wins. You are allowed to use your powers to eat, but you can't interfere with your opponent's eating."

"Why did you agree to referee this?" Kaldur questioned.

M'gann shrugged. "They asked and it gave me a chance to try some new recipes."

"Thanks again, beautiful!" Wally smiled. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to win for you."

"No way! I have the perfect plan." Phantom stated. "I'm totally going to win."

"Dream on, Inviso-Bill!"

"I never approved that name!"

"You two ready?" Robin questioned as he held up the timer.

"You know it."

"I was born ready."

"Alright. Ready…Set…Go!"

And thus the feasting began. Phantom created three duplicates and had each of them eat alongside him. Wally merely stuffed as much food as possible down his throat. In the blink of an eye, the food began to disappear.

Not all the food went into the teen's stomachs, though. A lot of it was flung all over the place. You can imagine that disgust of the rest of the team as they dodged the storm of food being flung at them.

After five minutes of this, the timer went off.

"And stop!" Robin called.

"Who won?" Superboy questioned.

"And the winner is…Wally!" M'gann raised the speedster's arm.

"Yeah! I'm the king!"

"King of pigs, maybe…" Artemis muttered.

"Dude, there were four of me! How did you eat more than four people while remembering to breathe?" Phantom questioned.

"It's a talent." Wally shrugged.

"Pretty useless talent." Superboy remarked.

"You are truly a worthy foe." Phantom complimented.

"You're not so bad yourself." Wally stated. "You were pretty close to beating me."

"This is the weirdest thing to bond over." Kaldur commented.

"Meh, whatever works, right?" Robin noted.

"Next year, I'll have to make more duplicates." Phantom stated. "That way, I'll totally win."

"I'll have to work on my technique." Wally agreed.

"Wait…You're actually going to make this an annual thing?" Superboy questioned.

"Oh, completely."

"Of course!"

Artemis placed her face in her hands. "You're both so disgusting…"

"Thank you!"

* * *

><p><strong>Ah...I love Spring Break. Not much of a party person, but I love the chance to relax.<strong>

**Quick note: For everyone that remembers this episode of YJ, it took place on August 8, not 9. August 8, 2010, however, is on a Sunday. Wally went back to school on this day, so it couldn't be on August 8. Thus I changed the dates of this chapter to fit that logic. Not a big change, but it would have bothered me if I didn't change it.**

**It has been pointed out to me that my portrayal of some DC characters such as Cassandra Cain are different than in the comics. Please note, that I know this. I have my reasons for making minor changes to the characters. For example, it would be nearly impossible to portray Cassandra from a different perspective is she couldn't originally speak like in the comics. I am aware that she couldn't talk before meeting Batman. As such, there will also be changes to other characters too.**

**Captain America: Winter Soldier comes out soon. I'm excited, but I wish I didn't know who the Winter Soldier was. That's the bad part of knowing a lot about comics. It ruins some of the twists in the movies. Oh, well...**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	7. Distaste

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Men often oppose a thing merely because they have had no agency in planning it, or because it may have been planned by those whom they dislike." Alexander Hamilton

* * *

><p>Chapter 7: "Distaste"<p>

(Thursday-August 19, 2010)

"You wanted to see me, Vision?" Phantom approached the ancient ghost.

He had traveled to her domain in the Ghost Zone. Unlike the rest of the Ghost Zone, Visions' domain was full of life. The yard was full of flowers and blooming sakura trees. The nearby building were three-story circular buildings connected to each other by corridors. The roofs looked like huge spiral cones. Each building had black rune designs written across the white paint.

"Yes." Vision was seated below the largest sakura tree on a small hill. As far as he knew, this was Vision's spot for meditation and contemplation. "There are some things we need to discuss."

All around Vision were her green visual birds. They were the strategist's spies and informants. Created from Vison's special Avian Necklace, these birds were both intelligent and loyal to Vision. They're greatest ability, however, were their ability to project holograms.

"What is it?" Phantom sat down on the ground across from Vision.

"Many things have begun to trouble me." Vision stated. "It seems that more and more problems have resulted from the war.

"I know what you mean…" Phantom nodded solemnly. "Every time I turn around, there seems to be a new threat…"

"Yes." Vision closed her eyes in concentration. "But I don't believe you truly understand the threats."

"What do you mean?" Phantom frowned.

"I have had my birds keep an eye on the human world…and I am not pleased." Vision noted.

"Oh? And here I thought you would be in a good mood." Phantom remarked. "Vlad sure has been in recent months."

"Be silent, child."

"Yes, ma'am."

Vision gestured to her birds. They opened their beaks and sent out holograms. "As you know, all the ghosts that are in hiding consider you their enemy."

Phantom looked at the various pictures and sighed. "Yeah, I already met up with Walker."

"Yes, he has allied himself with the League of Shadows…" Vision stared at the ex-warden ghost. "He will be difficult to track, but I believe that he will make a mistake soon."

"He's going to want to come after me, but I don't think he's willing to break some of the unspoken rules of the Ghost Zone." Phantom explained. "The Shadows don't my secret…mostly."

"Yes…" Vision looked at another hologram. "Jinx…or as you know her Jenifer."

"Yeah…"

"Do you believe that she will compromise you and your family by revealing your secret?" Vision questioned.

"Compromise?" Phantom thought about it. "Probably not. She's kept a hell of a lot of my secrets. If she reveals my ghost secret, then there's a chance that she'll reveal her helping me before the war. Though, she may try to kill me personally…or kiss me. I'm not entirely sure with her."

"Oh, I believe the Ember ghost will love that."

"…Was that a joke?" Phantom questioned. "I didn't know you knew how to tell jokes."

"Moving on." Vision left no room for argument. "Nocturne and Aragon have been moving as of late. They appear and disappear randomly. It's as if they are being teleported."

"Great…" Phantom nodded. "But hopefully the Green Lanterns will find them for us."

"I doubt it." Vision almost grumbled. "They've already asked to search the Ghost Zone. It's as if they believe we don't have a handle on our own dimension."

"I think they're just concerned." Phantom offered. "They've had to deal with threats of different colored power rings from what I've heard. And apparently, these black power rings are terrifyingly powerful."

"They are." Vision nodded. "That is why they are now a larger threat. But…I don't understand their motives. They just seem to be destroying old art and artifacts…"

"I know." Phantom shrugged. "I have no idea why. According to the Justice League database those items were rumored to have magical properties, but…"

"It is hard to say what they are thinking. Perhaps they are removing threats." Visions noted. "But that is unlikely. Those items were not anything too special. Nothing like the Mirror of Memories or some of the other ghostly artifacts."

"Nothing we can do about them right now…" Phantom remarked. "What about Undergrowth, Spectra, and Bertrand?"

"Undergrowth is nowhere to be seen and is suppressing his presence." Vision explained. "Mostly likely, we will have to wait for him to act."

"Oh, joy."

"Don't worry. He is not a patient being. He will act soon, or he will go crazy." Vision mentioned.

"Neither option sounds good, but if he ever attacks Amity Park, he'll be in for a surprise." Phantom noted. "He won't have a chance to make some grass before he's jumped by three S-rank ghosts."

"Indeed." Vision nodded. "As for Spectra and Bertrand…I have detected movement. Some cities have been hit by waves of despair."

"Oh?" Phantom frowned. "How come I haven't heard about it?"

"It only lasts about a day." Vision remarked. "The humans probably consider it a bad day, and there have been no specific pattern, but I believe it is Spectra."

"I see…" Phantom nodded. "Again, we will have to wait to act."

"Yes…" Vision sighed. "There's no helping it right now. I could most likely find them relatively quickly if I were allowed to personally search the Earth, but that's against the agreement we have with the humans."

"So…is this just an update?"

"No." Vision pointed to two holograms. "I have found Freakshow and Lydia."

"You have?!"

"Yes." Vision then commanded a bird to bring up a marked map. "He has constantly been moving, but he has stopped for now. He's in Salem, Massachusetts."

"That's great!" Phantom rocketed to his feet. "Now we can stop the Freak and the Reality Gauntlet."

"Yes, but unfortunately, it will be up to you to stop him…or at least you will have to be responsible for other ghosts that you bring. Just be careful about who you bring, and what they do." Visions stated. "If the humans get the feeling that we are invading…"

"Yeah." Phantom frowned. "You can't just go around the world unsupervised anymore. It was okay when the League was with you guys, but… I'll have to handle it."

"I'm sure you will…" Vision nodded. As the halfa began to leave, she added. "Danny."

"Yes?" Phantom stopped.

"About that team of yours…" Vision stated. "I was fine with you joining them. It allowed you to gain access to the Justice League database, but I must warn you not to get too attached."

"What?"

"Remember, you are a ghost. That makes you different from them. Even the aliens." Vision explained. "You have been putting yourself in very dangerous situations for them. I assumed it was part of your plan, but recently…"

"What are you trying to say?"

"The living will always value themselves more than the dead." Vision remarked. "It's not their fault, but it's a fact. If it comes down to it, they will betray you if necessary."

"I…"

"If their lives, the lives of their loved ones, or any living creature are in danger, they will expect you to make the sacrifices. They will look at you and think, 'He's already had his chance and wasted it. Why should a real life be wasted for him'?" Vision noted.

"Not all humans are like that." Phantom remarked.

"Oh? You had a human ally before the war, correct? What happened to her?"

Phantom was silent.

"I thought so." Vision sighed. "I am not trying to be cruel. I am merely telling you the facts. In the end, you will not be able to trust this Young Justice with your life, and I…I do not wish for you to be hurt."

"…I know…" Phantom looked down. "But I want…I want to have some connection to life, you know? And those guys…They're good people."

"I have no doubt they are. They are your friends after all." Vision mentioned. "But it changes nothing. You are expendable to them. They may not show it, but they think it."

"Yeah…they probably do. I just wish they didn't."

"I do too, child. I do too."

* * *

><p>"Hi, there!" Dani smiled as she spotted a new boy not that far away from her. "I'm Dani."<p>

"Hey, name's Victor." The African-American boy smiled back. He was about Dani's age and was rather tall for his age. His hair was trimmed short, and he had dark brown eyes.

Currently, Dani was at the park with her friends. With summer ending soon, Dani wanted to spend as much time as possible having fun. Thus, she dragged her friends to the park to play…

"You play football?" Victor's face lit up.

"We were going to, yes." Dani nodded.

"Just because you wanted too…" Rachel mumbled. Despite the summer heat, she still wore her purple hoody with the hood up.

"Oh, come on Birdie." Nyx had switched Rachel's nickname when she realized that Rachel actually like it. "The tackling, the broken bones, the chaos…Who can resist that?!"

A disguised Youngblood looked over to the equally disguised Nyx. With the disguise rings, neither of them drew any special attention. "I thought we were playing touch football?"

"Then why are you dressed in a full uniform?" Nyx questioned.

Youngblood was wearing a full football uniform including a helmet, jersey, and shoulder pads. "I'm dedicated to my roles! Now let's get a touchup!"

The parrot on Youngblood's shoulder, who was disguised as a regular parrot, screeched. "Rack! Touchdown!"

"That too!"

"Okaaaaay…" Victor gave them a strange look.

"Ignore them." Dani waved off his confusion. "They always act strange."

"Hey! You picking a fight!?" Nyx glared.

"Bring it on!" Dani glared back.

"There they go again…" Youngblood noted.

"So Victor, did you just move to town?" Rachel questioned.

"I moved a few weeks ago." Victor noted. "My Mom and Dad got a job here at Axion Labs so…"

"Wait…" Dani stopped pulling Nyx's hair as the shadow ghost clawed at her face. "Does that mean you're Silas and Elinore Stone's son?"

"Yeah, how did you know that?"

"They work for my Dad." Dani noted.

"Wait…" Victor's eyes widened. "That means…You're Dannille Masters."

"No, she's just a Girl Scout." Nyx glared as she let go of Dani.

"Yep, but call me Dani." Dani extended her hand.

"Um…" Victor shook her hands. He looked at her clothes. She was wearing an old t-shirt, faded jeans, and an old hat. "I expected…something different."

"What? Did you expect the daughter of Vladimir Masters to be a frail little princess that wears dresses and speaks politely?!" Dani glared.

"Um…."

"I'm just kidding!" Dani smiled. "I get that a lot."

"Oh…" Victor smirked. "Alright, you got me. But I'll get revenge."

"Fair enough." Dani nodded. "You want to play football?"

"But that would make an odd number." Victor pointed out."

"That's okay. Cujo can play on my team. Right, boy?" Dani knelt down at the disguised dog.

"Bark!"

"He's like Air Bud."

"Okay." Victor shrugged. "As long as I'm not on the team with the mutt."

"Fair enough." Rachel nodded. "You hear that, Nyx, you can't be on his team."

"I will kill you." Nyx glared.

"You can try."

* * *

><p><strong>Recognized: Danny Phantom B04<strong>

Phantom entered the Cave in a flash of light to see familiar sights. Kaldur and Superboy were sparing. Wally was eating…as usual. Also, M'gann and Artemis were talking…or gossiping…or whatever it is girls talk about alone.

The halfa was glad that Artemis quickly integrated into Young Justice. Of course, M'gann, ever the optimist and people pleaser, was the first to befriend the archer. She was quickly followed by Kaldur and Robin. Phantom believed that Superboy liked Artemis, but it was hard to read the clone at times. He never glared or got angry at her, so that was something.

Even Wally grew fond of the blond girl. In fact, they almost seemed to gravitate to each other. They seemed very similar in some aspects such as free thinking and rationality, but exact opposites in other aspects. This led to in depth discussions (arguments) about subjects varying from science and morality to what was the best pizza topping. Yet at the same time, they never remained upset for longer than a few minutes.

In fact, if Phantom was being honest, he would compare them to an old married couple.

"Dude!" Wally waved at the ghost and spoke with a full mouth. "What's up!? You were supposed to be here an hour ago."

"Something came up." Phantom explained.

"Is it that girlfriend that you've been trying to hide from us?" Wally grinned and elbowed the halfa in the ribs.

"No, she's mad at me right now." Phantom muttered. "Had to cancel our date."

"Trouble in paradise?" Artemis smirked at the ghost.

"You have no idea…" Phantom walked to the front of the Cave's training hall. As he did this, Superboy grappled Aqualad and threw him to the ground.

**Fail: Aqualad**

"Nice move." Phantom stated as he synced his phone to the Cave's computer.

"Thanks, Black Canary taught me that." Superboy smirked.

"Gah…yes, it was quite impressive." Aqualad grunted.

"Yeah…That's super impressive." Artemis eyed the shirtless Superboy and the sweating Aqualad.

"Completely." M'gann giggled.

As the girls continued to oogle…er, admire the guys, Wally walked up to Phantom "What're you doing?"

Phantom paused for a moment. "I…think I have a mission for us."

"A mission?" M'gann turned her head.

"Er…Isn't that Batman's job?" Artemis questioned.

"Hey, don't look a gift horse in the mouth." Wally looked back at the archer. "Rob and Batman are doing that Dynamic Duo stuff, so this is the best we're gonna get."

"Very true." Kaldur nodded and looked at the leader. "What is the mission?"

"Well…It's going to be a bit different from what we usually do." Phantom mentioned.

"Different good, or different bad?" Superboy questioned.

"It depends on how you feel about hunting down wanted criminals." Phantom shrugged.

"Oh, I feel really good about that."

"Good." Phantom then began to bring up images involving the mission. As he did this, Red Tornado flew into the Cave. The members of Young Justice greeted their supervisor as Phantom began to explain the mission.

"This is Frederich Isak Showenhower." Phantom pointed to the first hologram. "Aka Freakshow. He was once the ringmaster of Circus Gothica until he was discovered to be stealing large amounts of jewels, gold, and money from the cities he was visiting."

"I remember seeing commercials for that circus from the vids that Uncle J'onn brought to Mars a year ago…" M'gann frowned. "I didn't like it. Too creepy."

"Yeah, 'Unleash your dark side at Circus Gothica.' I remember that…" Phantom nodded. "That was part of the reason we're going after him though."

"What do you mean?" Kaldur questioned.

"You see, Freakshow is perhaps the greatest expert on ghosts in the world." Phantom stated.

"I thought that was Fenton." Artemis noted.

"Dealing with technology, yes, but Freakshow…He knows more about the secrets of ghosts than any other living person. For example, he once had a staff that was able to control ghosts against their will." Phantom frowned. "I know this from experience…"

"Oh…" Wally mumbled to himself.

"Yeah, but the staff was destroyed, and he was captured." Phantom explained. "But because of his knowledge on ghosts, he was taken to Guys in White custody. He was held at one of their bases until…"

"The war." Superboy's eyes narrowed.

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. He then pointed to the next two holograms. "He escaped with the help of his partner Lydia-"

"A ghost?" Artemis raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think ghosts and humans normally worked together…Well, besides here, I mean."

"Well…Truth be told. I don't know why she works with him." Phantom noted. "But she is, and with her help, Freakshow managed to get his hands on the Reality Gauntlet."

"Reality Gauntlet?" M'gann questioned.

Phantom nodded. "Its name explained most of it. It's a gauntlet that uses the power of three powerful gems to alter reality."

"That…sounds very dangerous." Kaldur noted.

"It is. In more ways than you know." Phantom stated. "Unfortunately, the Gauntlet can easily hide Freakshow and Lydia as long as they don't make a big show."

"Then how do we find them?" Artemis questioned.

"They just made a big show." Phantom answered. "The signal they created was tracked to Salem, Massachusetts."

"Salem, Massachusetts?" Red Tornado finally spoke up. "Are you certain that was the area Freakshow has appeared?"

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "I mean, it was Vision who found him, and I've never known her to give me bad information."

"Vision? Who's that?" Superboy questioned.

"I believe that is the ghost that defeated both Green Arrow and Black Canary in combat." Aqualad noted.

"For real?" Artemis frowned. "I never heard about that."

"The League likes to keep a lot of the details from the war hush hush, if you know what I mean. Granted, a lot of people know that the League didn't exactly do well against the ghosts…no offense, Red." Wally grinned.

"None taken."

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "That happened, but right now she's more of the ambassador for the Ghost Zone. Thus, she needs to keep an eye out for people that could threatened the peace. And one of the biggest threats is Freakshow. Right now, he can't use the full power of the Reality Gauntlet, because he doesn't know the secret access code to unleash its full power."

"So finding this code is probably on the top of his to do list." M'gann observed.

"Yeah, but usually he stays hidden better than this…" Phantom noted. "I don't know what's so important there that he would be willing to be found."

"I think I may know why." Red Tornado interjected.

"Ah?" They all turned to the android.

Red Tornado stepped up and began to work on the holographic computer. A picture appeared. "This is Kent Nelson, a friend. He is 106 years old."

Phantom whistled as Wally whispered something in Artemis' ear.

"And he has been missing for 23 days. Kent was a charter member of the Justice Society, the precursor to your mentors' Justice League." Red Tornado changed the image to one of Kent wearing a black body suit, a gold cape, and a golden helmet.

"Of course." Aqualad stated. "Nelson was Earth's sorcerer supreme. He was Doctor Fate."

"Ack…magic…" Phantom mumbled.

"Not a fan?" Superboy questioned.

Phantom shook his head.

"Kent may simply be on one of his…walkabouts." Red Tornado mentioned. "But he is caretaker to the Helmet of Fate, the source of the Doctor's mystic might."

"Well, crap…" Phantom sighed. "I'm guessing the reason that you're telling us this is because the Helmet is in Salem."

"That is correct."

"Then that's probably Freakshow's goal…" Phantom frowned. "Damnit, it just had to involve magic…dumbass magic."

"Why are you so opposed to magic?" M'gann questioned. "Dr. Fate is like the priests and priestesses of Mars. He should revered."

"Yeah, dude." Wally interjected with a glance at M'gann. "Disrespecting the Doctor's not cool, man."

"I'm not disrespecting him." Phantom stated. "It's just that magic and ectoplasm usually don't go well together. In fact, they're pretty much enemy forces to each other. So I usually tend to avoid magic…No offense, Kaldur."

"None taken." Kaldur nodded. He understood avoiding natural enemies. "It's the same reason I or M'gann would avoid fire."

"Oh…" M'gann nodded. "That makes sense."

"We're going to check this out, right?" Artemis interjected. "Freakshow could be getting the helmet now."

"Yeah, he might even have kidnapped Nelson to get to the helmet." Superboy suggested.

"Let's not jump to conclusions. That's definitely possible, but we don't have any facts right now." Phantom stated. "These could be two completely different issues for all we know. Either way, though, it's two birds with one stone if we go to Salem."

"Then let's go." Wally smiled at M'gann. "Let's go see the great sorcerer."

"Okay." Phantom looked at Red Tornado. "We're going then."

"Of course." RT handed Phantom a key. "Take this. It is the key to the Tower of Fate.

As they went to the hanger, Phantom spoke to his team once more. "Er…I forgot to mention something."

"What is it?" Kaldur questioned.

"I didn't know if you would agree to come or not, so I came up with a backup plan just in case." Phantom explained. "So I asked a few friends to meet me in Salem."

"Who?" Superboy questioned. "Is it some of the S-rank ghosts?"

"One is. The other is still pretty strong, though." Phantom stated.

"Okay, but what's the problem?" M'gann questioned.

"These two…have communication problems. Especially with humans." Phantom stated. "You guys are my friends, so they'll most likely be cool with you."

"I'm guessing there's a 'but' coming up here." Artemis noted.

"Yeah." Phantom frowned. "Let's just say that you don't want to piss them off."

"What happens if we do?" Wally questioned.

"Well…do you like being torn and cut into tiny little pieces?"

"No."

"Then that's the problem."

* * *

><p>After the football game was over, Victor had to leave and go home. Similarly, the others had to leave as well. It was getting dark, and some of them weren't allowed to stay out very late. Not all of them were happy to go, though…<p>

"AHG!" Nyx yelled as the group of four began their trip back to Master's Mansion. "Another day gone, and another one closer to starting school."

"Well, that's obvious." Rachel noted. "You seemed rather mad about the facts, though."

"Of course I am! I'm going to be stuck in the classroom for eight hours doing nothing! I'm going to be so bored!" Nyx complained.

Youngblood groaned. "I know how you feel."

"If you didn't want to go to human school, then why did you guys agree to go in the first place?" Dani questioned.

"I didn't." Youngblood stated. "But it was the only way to get to come to the human world without trouble."

"Ditto…" Nyx grumbled.

"You did know that you would eventually have to go to school, though." Rachel reasoned. "Is coming to the human world worth sitting through school? You two aren't the types to sit still more than two minutes."

"Actually…" Youngblood frowned. "I didn't think that the peace would last long enough to get to school in the fall…"

"Eh?" Dani raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, come on, Girl Scout." Nyx rolled her eyes. "You really believe that everything will be fine forever, do you? Eventually a ghost will mess up. Then we won't be allowed to come to the human world at all. I just wanted some time away from home before that happened."

"Mess up?" Rachel questioned.

"You know…" Youngblood shrugged. "Destruction, chaos, rampaging, maiming, pillaging, soliciting, jaywalking, littering…"

"I don't think those last ones are that serious…" Youngblood's parrot mentioned.

"Really?" Youngblood questioned. "Good thing that I'm not dressed up as a lawyer or cop."

"Well…I figured that one of the wanted ghosts would attack eventually." Dani admitted. "But I don't see how that will ruin it for everyone. The League, UN, and US government know that they're outlaws."

"You think I was talking about them?" Nyx snorted.

"Um…yeah?"

"Not!" Nyx rolled her eyes. "I'm talking about the regular ghosts."

"What do you mean?" Rachel questioned.

"Ghosts aren't the type of people to just sit back, relax, and follow the rules." Youngblood noted. "We have obsessions for a reason. We constantly think about them. It consumes us. Some ghost might be able to follow the rules as long as they don't interfere with their obsession, but if they do…"

"They'll go freaking nuts." Nyx finished.

"What about you two?" Rachel questioned.

"My obsession revolves around entertainment." Nyx shrugged. "As long as I'm amused, I'm happy."

"And I want to stay young forever." Youngblood explained. "In fact, I'm pretty sure that I'm created from the idea of eternal youth, and the human desire to return to childhood. Being a kid is all that matters to me."

"But the others aren't so simple…" Dani realized. "Their obsessions could be anything, and if they're bottled up too long…"

"Boom." Nyx finished.

"But that's what your mom and the other S-rank ghosts are trying to prevent, though, right?" Rachel reasoned. "That's why the police force and prison you told me about was created."

"Yeah, but does the human police and justice system always work?" Youngblood questioned.

"Obvioiusly not." Rachel stated.

"Then what makes ghosts any different?"

"Not much, I guess."

* * *

><p>"Did anyone find anything?" Phantom questioned.<p>

"Nothing." Wally stated as he came to a halt. "This isn't simple camouflage."

"I can see nothing from the sky, my liege." Fright Knight descended.

"Wulf?" Phantom turned to the wolf ghost.

Wulf sniffed the air again. "(Yes, there's something. I can't tell what it is, but there's some kind of disturbance here. What it is, however, I have no clue.)"

"…What did he say?" Kaldur asked.

"He smells something." Phantom told the rest of the team.

As a whole, Young Justice was shocked by the appearance of Wulf and Fright Knight. Both ghosts had very intimidating appearances. Seeing Phantom interact with the ghosts gave the others a push to interact with the ghosts somewhat. Despite this, Wulf's mangled English and Fright Knight's terrifying stare gave them pause.

Not to mention the way Fright Knight called Phantom as lord and liege. That took a lot of explaining….

"What do you think, then? Adaptive micro active electronics combined with phase shifting?" Artemis questioned.

"That is absolutely…" Wally glanced at M'gann. "Wrong! This has to be some kind of mystic force working here."

"The young hypocrite is right." Fright Knight nodded. "If this involves Dr. Fate, then the tower is hidden by magic."

"You know Doctor Fate?" Superboy questioned.

"Unfortunately…" Fright Knight grumbled.

The rest of the team didn't seem all that comforted by that answer.

"I don't even want to know…" Phantom reached into his trench coat and pulled out the key Red Tornado gave him. "But if this has to do with magic…" Phantom stepped forward and extended the key.

With a click, a tower appeared in front of Phantom. It was a simple brick tower. Phantom was surprised. He expected something different.

"Huh…" Phantom shrugged. "I was expecting something more like Hogwarts."

"(Just wait until you get inside.)" Wulf commented.

"Yeah…" Phantom pushed the door open, and… "AH!" He was shocked when he tried to enter the tower.

"What's wrong?!" M'gann questioned worriedly.

"Ag…" Phantom pulled his hand away. "Dumbass magic."

"Wow, magic really doesn't like you." Superboy commented.

"No, it doesn't…" Phantom stepped back.

"What are you going to do?" Kaldur questioned.

"Hmm…" Phantom frowned. He couldn't just turn human, even if the Diguise Belt hid his appearance. Explaining how he could just turn his powers off would be…difficult. So, he reached into his coat and pulled out a Fenton Thermos. "Something I hate doing."

"Isn't that used to capture ghosts?" Artemis questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom handed the thermos to her. "It will allow me to get in if you press that button…don't do it yet!"

"Okay, okay."

"You guys probably don't want to get crammed in there, I guess…" Phantom turned to his ghost allies.

"Er…duh." Wulf grunted.

"My appoligies, my liege." Fright Knight bowed his head.

"Fine, stay out here and guard the place. If Freakshow isn't inside, he will be soon. Try to take him down." Phantom ordered. "Or at least give us time to get the Helmet."

"Understood."

"Okay." Phantom turned to Artemis. "When we get inside, you're going to let me out immediately. To do that you press- AHHH!"

"Woops. Did you not want me to do that yet?"

"No!"

"My bad." Artemis obviously wasn't sorry about it.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Miss Roth." Dani greeted her friend's mother as she and Rachel waked into the simple apartment. Nyx and Youngblood had already returned to the Ghost Zone, but neither Dani or Rachel were ready to rest yet.<p>

"Ah…" The taller older looking version of Rachel smiled down at her child's friend. The only real difference between Angela Roth and her daughter was Angela's curlier hair. "How are you, Dani?"

"Just fine." Dani smiled.

"That's not the way you put it before we got here." Rachel sat down at her couch. "You kept going on and on about how no one was around."

"It's not my fault everyone's gone…" Dani sighed. Fright Knight and Wulf left with Danny. Vlad had a date tonight. Even Ember was busy…although, she might just be sulking that Danny was gone again.

"Bark!" A now undisguised Cujo gave his owner puppy dog eyes. Both Rachel and Angela were aware of the Phantom Family's secret, so remaining disguised was no longer an issue.

"Except for you Cujo." Dani picked up the puppy. "You're always there for me…"

"Bark!"

"Yeah…" Rachel looked over at her mom. "Can Dani spend the night? If she doesn't I will never hear the end of it."

"Sure." Angela seemed happy that her daughter actually wanted a friend to stay over…kind of, anyway… "As long as it's okay with her dad."

"I'll text him." Dani pulled her phone. "Although, I don't know if he'll answer that quickly."

"Oh…" Angela nodded slowly.

"Wouldn't he be ready in case of an emergency?" Rachel questioned.

"He'll know if there's an emergency." Dani stated as she petted Cujo. "In fact, he'll get this text, but he probably won't answer quickly. His girlfriend can be rather…demanding…"

"Demanding…" Rachel frowned. "Do you mean-"

"Rachel!" Angela admonished.

"What?"

"It's not proper to speak about that!"

"Oh…you sure? Because I'm pretty sure it is. I mean, it's on TV, the web, and almost everywhere else." Rachel noted.

"Rachel!"

"Not to mention those high schoolers making out earlier in the park." Dani put in her two cents.

"Exactly."

Angela sighed. "Society is corrupting my child…"

Dani just laughed. It was unusual to see emotion from this family. They were always either eerily calm or exceedingly worried. What they were so worried about, Dani didn't know, but she was glad they were lightening up a little.

"Hahahaha! I'm sure that-"

Rumble! Tremble! Crack!

Everyone steadied themselves as the ground below them trembled. The entire apartment shook.

"What was that?" Angela asked after the rumbling ended.

"An earthquake?" Rachel questioned.

"Amity Park doesn't just get earthquakes…" Dani stood and put down Cujo. Looking to her friend, she added. "Something is up, and I need to go see what it is. Are you coming?"

Rachel looked at her mom.

"Rachel, you know that you can't…" Angela began, but paused. "I-I mean, I don't want you to get hurt."

"Mom…" Rachel looked at her mother. "Please, we talked about this…"

"I…O-okay…" Angela looked to Dani. "Keep her safe, young ghost."

"I will." Dani nodded and looked at Rachel. "You ready?"

"Of course."

"Alright, I'm going ghost!"

* * *

><p>"Dumbass magic." Phantom stated as he stared at the arctic weather all around him. "But…at least this is better than the lava…"<p>

Their entrance into the Tower of Fate had not gone well. Wally continued to try and impress M'gann by lying about his belief in magic. This led to Young Justice almost falling into a pit of lava. Granted, Phantom didn't have a lot of risk of falling, but Martian and Atlantian physiology was very weak to extreme heat.

Luckily, a quick explanation of their purpose being at the tower allowed them to avoid a fiery death. Of course, their exit from the pit led them to the polar opposite.

"Ever hear of string theory? This is a pocket dimension." Wally tried to explain.

"Wally, shut up." Phantom glared as he approached the cane floating in the air. "This is magic. No other way around it."

"Don't tell me you actually believe in this stuff." Wally scoffed.

"Yeah, I do." Phantom frowned as he examined the cane. He didn't want to touch it, though. He had no idea what it would do. "There are plenty of things that I've seen that can't be explained by science."

"Name one." Wally challenged.

Phantom could name one hundred. "Well, what about me? In case any of you forget, I'm dead."

"Science can explain that too." Wally stated. "The electric pulses from the brain causes the ectoplasm to shift into a replica of a body."

"Yeah, that's what people try to do to explain it, but it's a lot different when you experience it firsthand." Phantom turned and explained. "The human will pushes the soul to live on when the body can't. Trying to explain the human will, souls, or even the force of death with science is impossible."

"But you're the one constantly criticizing this stuff!" Wally yelled in outrage.

"Because I don't like magic." Phantom stated. "Every time I come in contact with it, it blows up in my face. There are magic users that I get along with, but magic and ectoplasm don't mix."

"You speak from experience?" Superboy questioned.

"Yeah, one of my strongest enemies is a magic user." Phantom frowned. "No, that's not the word for it…He's the magic user. You'd be hard pressed to find someone that could rival him in raw magic power."

"What's his name?" Kaldur questioned.

"Kla-Ah!" Phantom felt something grab him and pull him.

"Danny!"

In an instant, Phantom was pulled through a portal into an area filled with staircases leading in all different directions. He suddenly felt the force pulling him stop. In a thud, Phantom hit the ground, but he also noted that the cane from before had landed beside him.

"Well…look at we have here." Freakshow's voice sounded behind Phantom. "I was trying to catch fetch a stick, but instead got a ghost. What a lucky day for me."

"Freakshow!" Phantom jumped to his feet. "…and Klarion?"

"Phantom…" Klarion muttured unhappily.

The scene before Phantom was a strange one. Freakshow was holding was standing next to Klarion while holding Klarion's cat Teekl. As always, Lydia was at Freakshow's side. Most of her tattoos were already animated and wrapped around an older man. Many of the tattoos looked ready to cut and bite at the old man if necessary.

"Kent Nelson…" Phantom breathed.

"Danny Phantom." Nelson smiled. "Nice to meet you. Just wish the circumstances were better…"

"I bet."

"Phantom!" The rest of Young Justice ran through the portal and landed behind the ghost.

"Oh! The ghost boy has some new friends!" Freakshow chuckled. "I must say, this explains why you weren't in Amity Park last time I was there."

"I guess Red Tornado was right, then." Artemis noted as she pulled out her crossbow.

"Indeed." Kaldur pulled out his Water Bearers.

"Wait!" Phantom stopped them. "Lydia will kill Nelson if we move."

"Very astute observation." Freakshow noted. "It seems I have all the power here."

"At least until Teekl is freed." Klarion snarled at Freakshow.

"Careful…" Freakshow slowly petted the cat. "We couldn't want the pussy cat to lose its claws."

"Grr…"

"Then what do we do?" M'gann questioned.

"Wait." Phantom instructed.

"Wait? Why wait, when I'll tell you what I want." Freakshow pointed to the cane. "Hand that to Lydia."

"What? The magic wand?" Wally rolled his eyes.

"Not the time!" Artemis glared.

Phantom picked up the cane. "How did you get in the tower? What about…"

"Ah, the ghosts guarding the front of the tower." Freakshow smiled. "I had a fake magician handle them. Kadabra's most likely defeated by now, but it gave me time to get us into the tower."

"But Lydia…"

"Reality Gauntlet." Freakshow rolled his eyes.

"Great…" Phantom frowned as he extended his cane to Lydia. Glancing at Nelson, he noticed the subtle nod. 'This is gonna suck…'

As soon as Lydia grasped the cane, Phantom surged energy into the cane. The effect was instantaneous. Painful electricity surged through the two ghosts as the magic lashed out at the ghosts. The tattoos holding Nelson immediately let go of the old magic user.

Young Justice took this as their cue. The young heroes sprang into action. Unfortunately, Freakshow reacted immediately. With a wave of his gauntlet covered hand, Freakshow made the stair cases come to life and attack the young heroes.

Klarion took advantage of Freakshow's distraction. He tried to grab Teekl, but was blasted away by a shield protecting Freakshow.

Acting quickly, the now freed Nelson grabbed his cane and pulled it away from the ghosts. Both weakened ghosts fell to their knees in pain and exhaustion.

"Drat!" Freakshow exclaimed when he saw the situation. In an instant, he lost his advantage.

"You okay, kid?" Nelson dragged Phantom to his feet.

"Yeah…" Phantom looked at his team. "But the others are in trouble."

"Yes, I think it's time for all of us to leave." Nelson held his cane up. "Evom su ot ytefas!"

In a surge of white light, Nelson and the members of Young Justice disappeared away from the fight. Soon, the group was now located in a simple sitting room with a fireplace.

"Erg…" Phantom collapsed on the nearby couch. "Thanks."

"It should be me thanking you." Nelson nodded. "I'm Kent Nelson but you already seem to know that."

"Obviously…Ow!" Wally was elbowed by Artemis.

"I'm Artemis. That's Kaldur, Superboy, and M'gann. Captain Manners here is Wally." Artemis introduced. "And you probably know Danny."

"That I do…" Kent smiled as he walked over to the nearby wall. "I'm glad for your help, but we're not out of danger yet. We've got some dangerous opponents on our hands."

"Yeah, Freakshow and Klarion. Never thought I'd have to deal with the two of them at once." Phantom groaned.

"You know them both?" Nelson questioned.

"Yeah, they're both old enemies of mine." Phantom nodded.

"So you have an idea of their danger?" Nelson commented.

"Yeah." Phantom nodded. "We all know about the Reality Gauntlet, but Klarion is a Lord of Chaos. The opposite of Order. And if either of them gets their hands on the Helmet of Fate, then the world will be in serious trouble."

"Right you are." Nelson nodded.

"Was he the guy you were talking about before?" Superboy questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. "He's hard to fight because his only weakness is the cat. That's why he's following Freakshow's orders. If Teekl goes, so does Klarion."

"Really? A cat?" Wally snorted. "That is so cliché."

Nelson laughed. "Klarion invented cliché."

"What are we going to do?" M'gann questioned.

"I'll take us to the helmet." Nelson pointed his cane at the door. The door glowed and oponed to reveal a bell. "That's what their after. And I sure don't want them getting their hands on the Doctor's powers."

Helping Phantom to his feet, Kaldur moved Phantom to the door. After exiting, the door behind the Team disappeared. Kent then stepped forward and rang the bell with his cane. The bell began to glow.

"So that's where it is…" Freakshow's voice rang through the room.

A large wave of energy and tattoo creatures blasted around them. All members of the group were sent sprawling. In his weakened state, Phantom was knocked to the edge and forced to hang off the edge to avoid falling. His body was still weakened by the magic. He couldn't focus his powers enough to float. The only probable reason Lydia was ready was because of the Reality Gauntlet.

"Gah!" Phantom felt a foot land on his hand.

"Hey there." Freakshow smiled. "So good to see you before your trip."

"Bad puns…are my thing…" Phantom looked desperately at his team. They were all busy with fighting off Lydia's tattoo creatures. At one point, they all looked at Phantom, but didn't move to help. What were they doing? Didn't they see he was in trouble?

"Watch out!" Wally pulled Artemis to the ground to avoid Lydia's attack.

"Superboy!" M'gann used her telepathy to pull the tattoo creatures off the clone.

…Why weren't they…helping him…

"Raw!" Nelson swung his cane at Freakshow, but was stopped by Freakshow effortlessly. "Really?" With a flick of the wrist, Freakshow sent Nelson sprawling.

"Freakshow!" Klarion screamed. "We had a deal. Let Teekl go now!"

"As you wish…" Freakshow flung the cat over the edge of the staircase.

"Teekl!" Klarion lunged over the edge to save the cat.

"Come." Freakshow dragged Phantom up. "I need a witness for my greatest victory."

"Gah!" Phantom felt the Reality Gauntlet begin to absorb his strength.

"Phantom!" Wally and Superboy now began to run towards Phantom and Freakshow.

"Come to help your friend, eh? The how about a choice? A dead boy, or a man with a foot in the grave." Freakshow waved his hand at Nelson. The wizard was electrocuted and blasted off the edge of the staircase.

"No!" Wally lunged off the edge to save Nelson.

Superboy tried to stop Freakshow, he really did, but he wasn't fast enough to get there in time. Freakshow had already dragged Phantom through the bell. With a bang, Superboy slammed into the now solid bell.

They were gone.

Phantom groaned in pain as Freakshow threw him to the ground. They now appeared to be at the top of the Tower of Fate. In front of them was the floating Helmet of Fate.

"Ah, my ticket to the secret of the Reality Gauntlet…" Freakshow smiled.

"Do you really think that Dr. Fate will give you the answer?" Phantom groaned.

"Not willingly, but the Gauntlet will get the information straight from the helmet…" Freakshow admitted the helmet as he grabbed it.

"Gah…" Phantom pushed himself to his knees. "Then what?"

"Then I'll be master of all reality." Freakshow stated.

"And what will that give you?" Phantom frowned. "Control? Power? Happiness?"

"It will give me all that I have lost." Freakshow whispered. "It was fate that did this to me, and now I will take it all back-Ack!

Phantom blasted Freakshow in the back, caused him to drop the Helmet, and sent him sprawling. "Sorry, but I can't let that happen."

Picking up the dropped Helmet, Phantom debated on what to do. He doubted his ability to fight off Freakshow right now. But if he put on the Helmet…

"You wouldn't dare!" Freakshow called as he stood up again. "I've listened to you the entire time you were here. You hate magic!"

"Maybe…" Phantom acknowledged. "But…sometimes you have to deal with the things you hate for the greater good."

He place the helmet on his head.

"Dumbass magic…"

* * *

><p>"What are those?" Raven questioned. She was once again in her purple hooded cloak and leotard.<p>

"My guess…giant super robots." Spirit noted as they watched the blocky mechanical being fly through the sky.

"Did they cause the rumble?" Raven asked.

"Nope." Spirit pointed to the side. "I think that's the even more giant, more super robot."

"What…" Raven stared up at the giant monster. It was as tall as a skyscraper. The robot was covered in black and green armor. Most of its body appeared to be made out of weapons.

"I have no idea." Spirit commented. "Where do you think we even start?"

"The big one's probably controlling the small ones." Raven stated. "If we take that out, then we take out the others."

"But if we ignore the small ones, a lot of people will be hurt." Spirit argued.

"That's true…" Raven sighed. "It's not a good day for the other ghost to be gone."

"No, it's not…" Spirit frowned. "Dad and Vision will be here soon to help, though."

"Until then, what do we do…" Rachel stated. "I don't have a lot of experience with combat."

"Yeah…" Spirit nodded. "Okay. You and Cujo go help evacuate the civilians. I'll deal with the big guy."

"You sure?"

"I can definitely handle it!" Spirit snapped.

"…Fine."

Flying in the opposite direction, Spirit approached the giant robot. She had inadvertently gained its attention. The massive squared head of the robot turned to her. The hundreds of guns on its body was pointed at her and ready to shoot.

"Greetings, ghost girl!" Technus' voice sounded from the robot.

"…Technus?" Spirit paused. "W-what are you doing!?"

"What I planned to do all along!" Technus cried. "I, Technus master of all technology, will use the weapons I gained from Axion Labs to conquer this city, then the world!"

"What?!" Spirit's eyes widened. "I thought you changed your ways!"

"I never changed my ways, foolish girl!" Technus exclaimed. "People don't change! Our nature dictates what we do, and it's in my nature to be a conqueror!"

"That means…" Spirit glared. "You faked everything!?"

"Of course!" Technus laughed. "Why would I, Technus, ever want to change?!"

"To make yourself better! To bring peace between the worlds! To fulfill your obsession!" Spirit argued.

"My obsession is to have the world acknowledge my greatness!" Technus roared angrily. "How can I do that if I'm in the shadows of ignorant humans?!"

"Danny wouldn't let that happen!? He would give you the credit you deserve!" Spirit exclaimed.

"Lies!" Technus shouted. "He would have used me just like everyone else! But I refuse to be used! I will fulfill my obsession my way!"

"Please!" Spirit pleaded. "It's still not too late!"

"Yes…" Technus readied his guns. "It is…"

A storm of ectoplasmic bullets rained down on the girl. Using her Premonition, Spirit manage to dodge and block a great number of the bullets. Unfortunately, the constant of barrage made getting closer impossible.

Circling around the massive robot, Spirit weighed her options. She was hoping to get in close in order to pull Technus away from the robot. That would be impossible right now, though. She was stuck at the same distance.

She would have to take out as many weapons as possible. If she did that, it might give her the chance to get close enough to attack Technus personally. That was the best possible plan.

Doing that, however, would leave her open to attacks. She was sure that a large number of the blasts would hit her. There was a good chance that she would become Swiss cheese if she tried this strategy.

It would be a lot safer to wait for her dad and Vision. They would show up soon, and Technus would be screwed. Even one of them would be able to take down the ghost while taking almost no damage. Together, they would win almost instantly.

But if she did that…Spirit would feel even weaker. She wouldn't have the guts to put herself on the line for victory. If she did this, then Spirit wouldn't be able to look at herself in the mirror.

'No!' Spirit mentally screamed. 'I refuse to be weak! I'm taking him down myself!'

Spirit's hands began to glow green as she prepared her next attack. It was time to go on the offense.

* * *

><p>Danny could honestly say that wearing the Helmet of Fate was one of the weirdest feelings he had ever had. He was literally watching his body move without his consent. It was strange, yet…Somehow, he felt more powerful than he had in a long time.<p>

The unusual thing about magic and ectoplasmic energy is that they both work with the user's will. Usually, when the two energies meet, the wills between the users always contradict each other and lead to backlash. Now, however, both Danny and Dr. Fate were willingly working together.

Dr. Fate was using ectoplasm to power magic. The result was explosive.

Even with the power of the Reality Gauntlet, Freakshow couldn't keep up. Dr. Fate was flying circles around the ringmaster. His golden energy seemed to tear through everything Freakshow did. Danny could see the desperation growing on Freakshow's face.

"Now that's impressive…" Kent Nelson appeared beside Danny in the darkness of the helmet.

"Mr. Nelson?" Danny looked on in shock.

"Hey, kid. It seems that we never meet in good circumstances." Nelson commented. "I'm dead and you put on the helmet."

"You…died?" Danny muttured in shock. If he died, why was he here? Shouldn't Death be coming to take him to the afterlife?

"Meh, don't worry about it." Nelson shrugged and pulled out his pocket watch. "I was near the end of my life anyway. Besides, now I get to see my dear Inza."

"Ah…" Danny nodded as he looked around. Maybe Death wouldn't come into the Helmet of Fate? It was a possibility.

"So, I got to ask about why you appear so different…" Nelson pointed to his appearance.

"…I guess I'm human mentally, or at least right now." Danny noted as he looked at his human appearance. "That, or its because Dr. Fate is using my powers as fuel."

"I can see that." Nelson agreed. "Never seen Namu act like such a beast…did I say that right?"

"Yeah." Danny nodded.

"But, of course, I never once thought that a ghost would put on the helmet and cooperate with Namu like this." Nelson noted.

"Not like I had a choice." Danny muttured.

"I suppose not." Nelson sighed. "Don't let Klarion's actions dictate your feelings on magic. Not many users are like that."

"I know that. I like most of the magic users I know, but that doesn't change my vulnerability to magic." Danny stated. "Ghosts hate magic. That's just how it is."

"Hmm…" Nelson looked up at the fight. "It appears that Freakshow doesn't enjoy magic all that much either…"

"Gah!" Freakshow stumbled back from Dr. Fate's last blow. "Curses!"

"You lose." Dr. Fate and Phantom's mixed voices spoke at once.

"Yes…I suppose that I should cut my losses while I can…" Freakshow growled. "But this isn't over. I will unlock the true power of the Reality Gauntlet, Phantom."

"Then I suppose I should stop you while I can." Dr. Fate spoke as he extended his hand.

"Unlikely!" Freakshow raised his hand and energy poured out of the Reality Gauntlet. It surged around them, and in an instant, Freakshow as gone.

"He probably took Lydia with him…" Danny mentioned.

**You are correct, young Phantom. I sense no more enemies within the Tower. The one called Freakshow left with Lydia, and Klarion as soon as you put on the Helmet.**

"What?" Danny looked around.

"Namu, it's nice to speak with you again." Namu stated.

**Kent Nelson. It has been some time.**

"Yes, it has." Nelson nodded.

"Er…sorry to interrupt, but I have to ask…what now?" Phantom stated. "I would prefer to have my body back."

**That's not how this works child. The world needs Dr. Fate.**

"But my city and family needs me." Danny argued.

**The world is more important. And with our combined power, we can easily protect the world from all threats.**

"Oh, come on, Namu." Nelson smiled. "You know that the kid's will won't always agree with yours. That's the problem with a ghost wearing the helmet. You may have power like never before, but you won't be able use it if he fights against you. In fact, you might be weakened."

**That…is a valid argument.**

Namu almost seemed depressed. Danny couldn't blame him. It must be depressing to be trapped in a helmet all the time. "What…what if I found a person to wear the helmet for you?"

"Yes…" Nelson nodded. "With me dead, someone will need to guard the helmet. And until he finds you a new user, I will stay here and keep you company."

"But…" Danny eyed the pocket watch.

"Oh, I've already waited a long time to see Inza. What's a few more years?"

**This deal is acceptable. I will be waiting Danny Phantom.**

"I understand…" And with that, the helmet was removed.

* * *

><p>(Play: I Burn by Jeff Williams feat. Casey Lee Williams and Lamar Hall)<p>

"Ah!" Spirit cried as she was blasted in the stomach once again. Like she predicted, her change to offence had opened her up to getting hit. Several blasts had already hit their mark, and Spirit was feeling the wear and tear now.

Nevertheless, the sacrifice was worth it. She now had a way to get closer to the head. It was a small, narrow way that would still be treacherous and fatal if she made a mistake, but it was better than nothing. Spirit just hoped that her Premonition would allow her to dodge the hundreds of blasts and missiles being sent her way.

Deciding that she had better act before Technus fixed his guns, Spirit began her rush to the robot's head. She twisted and dodged all the blasts coming her way.

Technus took note of this, though, and decided to act. He raised the robot's massive arm and tried to swat the ghost girl away. Instead of hitting the girl, though, it merely provided her with a safer route to her target.

Spirit quickly turned intangible. The massive arm arm passed right through the girl. Instead of exiting the robot arm, though, Spirit stayed intangible and began to fly through the arm to the shoulder.

As she flew through the metal, wire, and hardware, Spirit activate her Spectral Claws. She dragged the claws along as she flew up the arm. As she went, her claws cut through the metal like butter. In her wake, Spirit left sparking mechanical scrap metal.

Eventually, Spirit managed to get through the arm. She finally passed through the robot's shoulder and was directly by the head. If she looked back, Spirit would have seen the now useless, sparking arm that hung lifelessly from the gigantic robot.

"Got cha'!" Spirit cried as she tried to attack the head.

"I think not!" Technus retorted.

Metal arms sprouted from the robot's head. They grabbed Sprit's arms and legs to prevent her from moving. Then the arms began to surge with electricity. Spirit cried out in pain as she was electrocuted.

"Foolish girl!" Technus laughed. "You could never defeat me, Technus master of all things-"

"Shut up!" Spirit cried as she once again activated her Spectral Claws. The ectoplasmic nails tore through the arms holding her arms. The same thing soon happened to the mechanical arms holding her legs.

Now free, Spirit once again lunged at the head. Turning intangible, Spirit easily passed through the metal. As she passed through the metal head, Spirit grabbed Technus from the brain of the robot and began to push him out of the robot.

After he was pushed out of the head, Technus exclaimed. "You think this will hurt me?! I can still control the robot without being in it!"

The guns on the robot that would hit Spirit while not firing in the direction of Technus all fired at the halfa girl. Spirit dodged these blasts with ease. The rate the guns were firing was significantly less than when Technus was in the robot's head.

"Maybe, but you're a lot weaker!" Spirit exclaimed as she rocketed at the technology ghost.

In anger, Technus tried to fight Spirit with hand-to-hand combat. This, however, was not Technus' strong point. Spirit easily dodged the blow and pushed Technus off balance.

As Technus tried to right his balance, Spirit moved forward and spinned at the same time. Technus watched in horror as Spirit's now glowing green foot spun with the halfa girl. In a show of absolute grace and power, Spirit flowed to Techus and delivered an incredibly devastating spinning back kick at Technus' chin.

Bam!

Technus's head snapped back. Green blood and spit flied out of Techus' mouth. The technology ghost's eyes rolled into the back of his head for a moment as he began to fall to the ground.

Catching the tech ghost, Spirit began to lower him to the ground slowly. As she did so, the massive robot began to crumble into scrap metal. Soon, the street below them was filled with Fenton and Axion tech.

After she landed, her dad's voice sounded from Spirit's side. "Now that was impressive."

"Dad!" Spirit looked on in shock as her father approached her.

"I was coming to help you, but it looks like you didn't need it." Plasmius smiled.

"No…I guess not…" Spirit smiled lightly. "But…I don't think this is a victory that I actually wanted."

"I'm sure…" Plasmius sighed. "Daniel with be disappointed to say the least.

"I think everyone will be." Spirit frowned. "The first attempt for humans and ghosts to work together publicly…and it failed."

"Yes…" Plasmius eyed Technus. "We will have to call Pandora to arrest him."

"Will we send him to Belle Rev like Grundy?" Spirit looked sad at remembering that incident.

"No, hopefully not." Plasmius stated. "Technus is a ghost, and the damage was contained to Amity Park. We most likely will be able to keep him in Torch's prison."

"That's good…I guess."

"It's better than the alternative." Plasmius scratched his chin. "But I have to wonder what Technus was thinking."

"What do you mean?" Spirit asked.

"He had to know that his plan would never work." Plasmius explained. "Even if he attacked at a time of weakness like today, he was doomed to fail in taking over the world. There are too many obstacles for him to conquer on his own with brute force."

"So…he knew he was going to fail?"

"Yes. Technus is not stupid. He had to know that his chances were almost zero."

"Then…" Spirit frowned at the downed ghost. "Why did he do it?"

"Perhaps…He just couldn't help himself."

* * *

><p>"Torch isn't surprised to see you." The warden of the Ghost Zone's prison commented as he met Phantom at the gates of the prison.<p>

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded solemnly. "I had to come."

"Right. Torch will take you to his cell." Torch began to lead Phantom into the prison. "Torch guesses that this wasn't a good day to be DP."

"No, it wasn't." Phantom sighed.

"Torch won't ask then." Torch commented.

Phantom looked at Torch. Despite his appearance, Torch was an incredibly loyal person. He would walk through hell to save a friend. Perhaps he was the person to talk about this. "Actually, I have to ask you something.

"Ah…" Torch removed his sunglasses. "What is it?"

"Vision advised me earlier to keep an eye on my human allies." Phantom stated. "She says that humans won't value ghosts as much as the living."

"Torch sees…"

"And…I saw a glimpse of that." Phantom stated. "My allies had a chance to help me when I was in trouble, but they helped each other instead. It might because someone else was about to help me, but…"

"You have doubts." Torch summarized as they walked deeper in the prison.

"Yes…"

"Hmm…" Torch frowned. "Loyalty is such a difficult thing to obtain. It is a combination of respect, admiration, and integrity. All of Torch's minions are loyal to Torch. Torch knows this, because they have proved it."

"Okay…" Phantom nodded. "Then…what are you saying."

"Torch doesn't see much difference between the living and dead." Torch answered. "Loyalty doesn't depend on what you are. It depends on who you are."

"Who you are?"

"People are loyal, or they're not." Torch stated. "You just have to ask, do you trust them?"

"I…don't know."

"Then find that out, and you will have your answer." Torch nodded.

"…Thanks." Phantom nodded. "That was actually helpful."

"Torch is full of good advice!" Torch exclaimed.

"And the moment's lost…"

Torch just laughed. "The cell you want is the third one on the left."

"Thanks…" Phantom began to leave.

"…DP?" Torch called out.

Phantom stopped. "Yeah?"

"You and the ghost Ember are dating, right?" Torch questioned.

"Yeah, why?"

"Because so many ghosts have love!" Torch cried. "Plasmius and Vison. DP and Ember. Even Box Ghost and Lunch Lady! Torch needs to find some love!"

"Why don't you ask out Dora?"

"She said no!"

"Oh…Sorry?"

"I-It's fine…" Torch mumbled. "But just remember, treat your lover right. You don't want to lose her or make her unhappy."

"Okay…" Phantom didn't know where that came from.

"Anyway!" Torch turned. "Torch has a lot to do! When you're done, you can show yourself the exit."

* * *

><p>"Why did you do it?" Phantom stood outside the jail cell. "I don't understand. You had a second chance and you wasted it."<p>

"What's there to understand? I had an opportunity, and I took it." Technus questioned from his bed in the cell. "I did what I always did before the war."

After being defeated by Dani, Technus was taken here quickly by Pandora and her forces. There would be a trial for the technology ghost, but considering what Technus had done and the evidence against him, he would definitely be in this prison for a while.

"Yes! Before the war!" Phantom exclaimed. "Things have changed!"

"Yes, the rules have changed. My new home is evidence enough of that." Technus chuckled lifelessly. "But even if the rules and world changes around us, the ghosts and the humans have not changed."

"What do you mean?" Phantom eyed the white-haired ghost.

"People don't change, ghost boy." Technus noted. "They never do. The most that they will ever do is hide their true nature."

"I don't believe that." Phantom stated. "I was once destined to bring only destruction and death. But with I chance from Clockwork, I changed. Now-"

"You only bring destruction and death." Technus smiled. "Just like your future self."

Phantom's face paled.

"Do you believe that I could gather information?" Technus questioned. "Especially when a future version of myself comes to the present time."

"I see…" Phantom's eyes narrowed.

"What is the difference between you and your alternate future self?" Technus asked. "Not very much, actually."

"You're wrong. I am nothing like him!" Phantom shouted.

"Perhaps in goals and personality, but…" Technus sighed and leaned back. "Danny Phantom, no matter what version of him, always brings death and destruction with him. The only difference is that one Phantom made the destruction himself while the other brought it about by the enemies and the decisions he made."

"The war was necessary…" Phantom muttured.

"It was. Doesn't change the fact that you led hundreds…maybe thousands to their death. And those were the people you didn't care about." Technus noted. "If I remember correctly, it was your choice that lead to your family's death. It was because of you that the ice ghost Klemper died. Who else will die because of you?"

"Trying to get me angry won't work." Phantom stated.

"Oh, I know that. You're eyes only show dullness." Technus smirked. "Now you're like me."

"What are you even trying to prove?" Phantom questioned. "Are you just working on my guilt for your amusement?"

"No, I'm trying to make you see." Technus stated. "People can't change their nature. Inside they will always be the same. There's no use even trying to change."

"So you didn't even try…" Phantom closed his eyes and sighed. "Trying to be different proved too hard for you so you gave up and decided to go back to your old ways."

"Yes. It was pointless to try and be something I'm not."

"…And here I thought we shared at least that in common." Phantom frowned. "Apparently you don't believe in human progress like I do, though."

"It seems so…"

"Then there is nothing left to say." Phantom turned and began to walk away.

Technus stood and gripped the bars to his cell. "You'll see! You can't change your nature! In the end, like my trying to take over the world, you'll end up hurting and killing those around you in some way!"

Phantom stopped.

"Your new family will meet the same ending as your old one! Your allies will die for you like Klemper." Technus called. "And even that new team of yours! Either they will die or you will."

"Quite trying to make excuses for yourself." Phantom answered. "You couldn't compromise and work with people…No, you can, but you refused too. It had nothing to do with your nature. It had to do with your bitterness. You hate humans because one woman stole everything from you. So, now you put the blame on everyone else."

Technus was silent.

Phantom looked back for a brief moment. "Everyone is responsible for their own actions. So, everyone must deal with the consequences of their actions. I'm dealing with mine, so you'll have to deal with yours..."

As Phantom's footsteps sounded through the silent prison, he added. "Unlike me, though, you will have to deal with your consequences in a depressing hole. I hope it was worth it."

* * *

><p>There were many times where Joel just sat and pondered. He thought about life, love, death, violence, and many other topics. The boy just sat and thought. He had covered many topics in his short life, especially while locked in the Ghoul Project.<p>

Recently, he had been thinking more and more about ghosts. It was hard not too with all the ghost experiments happening around him. That wasn't the only reason, though. Despite his distaste in the thought, Joel had to admit it. He could deny it no longer…

He was going to die.

Granted, before he knew that it was likely. In fact, the only way it could have been more obvious if there was a giant sign in front of his face. Yet, part of him always believed that he would come out fine. A small part of him believed that he would live. That's why he did what he always did and shrugged it off.

But he couldn't do that anymore. It would be his turn very soon.

With this in the front of his mind, Joel couldn't help but ponder what would happen after death. He didn't know how ghosts were exactly made, but there was a possibility of him becoming one. But…if he remembered correctly, ghosts had…obsessions. That was what they lived to do.

Joel didn't think he would have one of those. He didn't have anyone or anything he really liked. The boy didn't really know affection or hate. No, he was what an agent of the Shadows should be. No attachment. No concern.

…Well, that was not quite true. If he didn't have concern for lives, then he wouldn't be in this situation…

But that wouldn't be enough. So, he had to ask…what would happen when he died?

Being a ghost was off the table. Joel didn't know if he believed in a God. In fact, he didn't know if he even believed in life after death. Maybe things would just end. Then there would be nothing.

Joel didn't like that. He didn't like the uncertainty. And…

He didn't want to die.

But…that didn't seem to be a factor in this.

"Subject 34…" A scientist stood over Joel's cage.

"According to these reports, he's a failed agent for the Shadows." The other scientist noted. "Says that he refuses to kill."

The first scientist snorted. "No wonder he's here. What's the point of an assassin that won't kill?"

"At least I have principles." Joel looked up at the scientists stared up at the scientists with cold eyes. "You two have given up your humanity in these experiments."

"Have we now…" The second scientist knelt down and grinned. "Well, at least we have the appearance of a human. Soon, you'll be nothing more than a pile of goo…"

The first scientist opened the cage. "Get out. It's time."

Joel weighed his options. He could easily knock down the scientists and run away. There were a lot of soldiers with guns, though. If he ran or fought, he would be shot, then put through experiments that might be even worse than what the scientists were originally planning.

Option one: die painfully.

Option two: die more painfully.

Tough choice…

Deciding, Joel stood and was led away by the scientists. It was over. He had no time left.

'I don't want to die…'

* * *

><p><strong>Meet the Girlfriend<strong>

"So…you're Danny's friends, huh?" Ember questioned the group of teens in front of her.

"Yes!" A now Caucasian M'gann walked up to Ember. "It's so nice to meet you!"

"Er…Okay?"

Eventually, Phantom's temmates wore him down and demanded to meet his girlfriend. The halfa tried to argue, but they wouldn't take no for an answer. Eventually, Phantom took the team to Amity Park's recording studio where Ember was working on some new songs.

"So, you're the famous girlfriend." Artemis looked the siren up and down. "I was expecting someone…different."

"Is that a compliment or an insult?" Ember questioned.

"A compliment to you, and an insult to Phantom." Artemis smirked.

"I can live with that."

"Dude!" Wally whispered as he elbowed the ghost. "Nice! You're the man."

"Thanks…" Phantom smiled.

"No offense, but how did you get a rockstar as a girlfriend?" Robin in civilian clothes questioned.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll tell you in great detail." Phantom smiled evily.

"What do you mean?" Superboy questioned.

"Just wait."

"So, what's Danny like when he's not with us?" Kaldur questioned the ghost.

"You mean in public or private?" Ember questioned.

"Er…does that make a difference?" M'gann questioned.

"Of course." Ember nodded. "When he's in public, he's always his wisecracking, yet serious self. Always worrying too much about what will happen next."

"And in private?" Artemis questioned.

"He's an animal."

"Excuse me?" Superboy raised an eyebrow.

"I'm going to be over here." Phantom flopped on a nearby couch and pulled out some Fenton Phones to listen to music.

"What are you doing?" Robin questioned.

"I warned you about meeting her. Now suffer the consequences."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, leave him be." Ember rolled his eyes. "He's too nice a guy sometimes. He doesn't like to talk about making out or sex while around others."

The rest of Young Justice's eyes widened.

"In my opinion, though, it's nothing to be ashamed of." Ember smirked. "He's getting some, so he should be proud. Especially because some is equal to me."

"Er…" Kaldur shifted uncomfortably.

"He's such a stiff at time." Ember smirked. "But the first time we kissed, he couldn't keep his tongue to himself."

"I don't think this is…" M'gann blushed deeply.

"After that, though he got all shy. Until I finally seduced him that is." Ember snorted. "Convinced him it was music lessons."

"I don't need to hear this…" Suberboy mumbled.

"You should have seen us! I'll tell you this, when the threat of death is in the air, things get wild."

"Please stop…" Robin mumbled weakly.

"The first thing we did-"

(*Please stand by. The following content has dubbed by the overlords as being too inappropriate. Take this time to reflect on yourself. Think about who you are and who you want to-*)

"And, good Lord, his tongue!"

(*Woops. Jumped back too early there. Instead, let's think nice things. Waterfalls. Rainbows. Love. Divine good. And all that jazz.*)

Ember finished her story.

Ever member of Young Justice now had their jaws on the floor.

"I don't…I can't…" Artemis mumbled.

"W-wow…" M'gann's entire body was glowing red.

Superboy remained silent.

"I will never look at him the same way again…" Kaldur muttured.

"…Can people actually do that?" Robin questioned.

"I am so jealous right now…" Wally was in a daze.

"I know." Ember nodded sagely. "I was surprised that Danny could be like that too, but, man am I glad he is."

Everyone was silent.

"But enough about that." Ember shrugged. "You probably want to hear about something else."

"Yes, please…" Kaldur nodded slowly.

"Okay. I'll tell you about the time we got in this big mosh pit at a rock concert." Ember stated.

"What?" Superboy questioned.

"You see, this guy grabbed my butt, and Danny got all mad. He got right up in his face and was cussing him off like no tomorrow."

"Wait? When was this?" Robin questioned.

"Three days ago. You should have seen the guys face when his sucker punch hurt him more than Danny. But that was when it got really good-"

(*Please stand by. Once again, the overlords have deemed this inappropriate for the rating of this story. This time, the story will be revealed in a G-rated way…It involved a lot of violence, then sexual content, then more violence. And finally a combination of the two.*)

"Long story short, I'm no longer allowed in Mexico City." Ember summarized.

Everyone else was pale and silent. They were too shocked to speak or move.

Phantom removed his Fenton Phones. "Yawn!...Did I miss anything good."

"Plenty." Ember commented.

"Oh…" Phantom looked over his friends. "And I see that they're now mentally scarred."

"Yep."

"I told them that they couldn't handle it." Phantom shook his head. "Let's hope next time they listen to good old Danny Phantom."

* * *

><p><strong>I was really tempted to do an April Fools joke by posting a chapter that said "Notice: Story Abandoned." It would have been really funny to me, but I didn't want to deal with the rage. It was bad enough when I convinced my family that I crashed my car, and my friends that I was moving to Chicago.<strong>

**No bonding moment this time. Instead, Young Justice meets Ember. I hope that you enjoyed that. Next chapter will be another bonding moment, so don't worry.**

**So...Captain America: Winter Soldier was awesome. That movie had balls, I'll give it that. I won't spoil it for anyone, but it is now my third favorite Marvel movie after Avengers and the first Ironman.**

**For those of you that don't know, I'm a huge wrestling fan. As such, I watched Wrestlemania 30, and was floored when the Undertaker lost to Brock Lesnar. I was actually in shock when the match was over. Not only that, I'm actually sad that the 21 year undefeated Streak is over. Obviously, this points to the Deadman's retirement, and though some of you might not care, I would like to take a moment and thank the Undertaker for his work. Rest in Peace, Undertaker.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	8. Be Selfish

*In honor and memory of the Ultimate Warrior. June 16, 1959-April 8, 2014. Run on, Ultimate Warrior. Run on.*

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Sometimes you have to be selfish to be selfless." Edward Albert

* * *

><p>Chapter 8: "Be Selfish"<p>

(Friday-August 27, 2010)

"Sorry…" Phantom removed his hand from the enemy. "Your powers seem to be weak against me. It's your bad luck, I guess."

The large beige blob was silent. Of course, it was hard to talk when you were completely frozen solid. So, Phantom decided that he would let the rudeness go this time around.

Originally, Phantom had not gone on the mission with the Team. He had a lot of work to do at Amity Park and decided to forgo the mission in Gotham City. Batman actually seemed pleased with the prospect of measuring Young Justice's effectiveness without Phantom. So, the Team had went of their first mission without Phantom and were ready to try and prove themselves.

It had not ended well. Phantom had to respond to their SOS signal and save them.

This new clay creature proved to be a great challenge to Young Justice. His ability to recover from any physical damage left most of the Team powerless to him with their combat strategies. They did have options, but it seemed as if they weren't thinking outside the box.

This Clayface may be immune to physical damage, but they had other options. M'gann's telepathy could have been a big help against the creature, but maybe his mental structure had changed, so Phantom didn't dwell too much on that. But there were also the options of Aqualad's control over water, and Robin and Artemis' electric devises.

Looking over his filth covered team, Phantom noted how exhausted they looked. Perhaps the constant barrage of missions and training had taken its toll. More than one of them seemed a little distracted the past couple of days, none more so than Aqualad, however. That might be the main reason the mission had ended to hectically. The person in charge needs to be focused. If the leader failed in his or her job, how could you expect the Team to prosper?

Phantom frowned. Of course, the same could be said for him. He was pretty distracted himself right now. Why else would he have missed the mission in the first place?

It seemed that both he and Aqualad had some soul searching to do.

Perhaps he should request some time off from Batman…

* * *

><p>Usually, Spirit thrived on attention. She loved the spotlight. There was, however, too much of a good thing. For example, when a helicopter begins to stalk you around town so a reporter could get an interview with you…Yeah, that was a bit too much.<p>

"Spirit!" Spring Whitiker, a local field reporter, yelled from the helicopter. "Can you tell the public about the new dark hero that has been seen with you?!"

"No!"

"Any word on the Red Huntress?!"

"No! Go away! I'm trying to walk my dog!"

"Bark!" Cujo, in puppy form, agreed.

"What about the videos of you and Phantom pulling pranks around town?!"

"Leave me…" Spirit paused. "Videos? What videos?!"

"The ones of you starting a food fight at the mall!" Spring yelled over the helicopter.

"I never started a food fight!" Spirit glared. She wanted to, but she didn't want to get in trouble for it.

"We have footage of it!" Spring turned to her cameraman. "Show her!"

The cameraman from the helicopter rewound the footage and showed it to Spirit. In the video, Spirit was flying around the mall's food court while flinging food. The Spirit in the video seemed to be taking great joy in her actions. In fact, if Spirit didn't know better, she would have assumed that the person in the video was her. That expression was definitely one that Spirit would have in that situation.

"What?!" Spirit was outraged. "That's not me! How dare someone use my image like that!?"

"Er…"

"Come on, Cujo!" Spirit turned invisible and flew away. She wasn't in the mood to be followed by the press.

Pulling out her phone, Spirit called for help.

"Hello?"

"Rachel!" Spirit shouted in the phone. "Did you know that I started a food fight at the mall?!"

"Yes." That was Rachel's simply answer.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" Spirit cried.

"I…thought you knew…" Rachel was obviously confused.

"Of course I didn't!" Spirit exclaimed. "If I knew, don't you think I would be bragging about it?!"

"That…is an excellent point." Rachel commented.

"Yeah! Someone is pretending to be me." Spirit growled.

"Oh…" Rachel stated. "What does this have to do with me?"

"You're going to help me find this guy." Spirit explained.

"I'm a little busy right now." Rachel said neutrally. "You know I need my meditation to control my powers."

"Yeah, but Danny got called in for an SOS. So he can't help me." Spirit explained.

"…Fine. I'll finish up and come find you." Rachel noted. "You shouldn't be that hard to find you if your emotions and ectoplasm are running wild."

"Right! See you soon." Spirit ended the call and put away the phone.

The next minute, Spirit was phasing through the ceiling of the Amity Park mall. Floating into the food court with Cujo, Spirit began to look around. This, of course, caught the attention of everyone in the food court. Everyone gaped at the sight of one of the city's designated guardians and heroes.

"Cujo," Spirit addressed her dog. "See if you can find a weird scent."

"Bark!" The ghost dog immediately got to work. As he did this, though, the crowd began to address the heroine as she floated to the ground.

"It's Spirit!"

"What you did earlier was awesome!"

"What?" Spirit looked over the crowd. Plenty of people she knew were there. The A-listers from Casper High were even there. "That wasn't me!"

"You don't need to deny it!" A thing blond girl name Star called. "It was so much fun!"

"Yeah, it's great to see a superhero cut loose like that." A large teenager of Asian descent named Kwan spoke.

"I know!" Spirit was now sad. "Someone else had the fun! It wasn't really me."

"For real!?" Blond quarterback Dash Baxter's eyes widened.

"How dare someone do that?!" The beautiful Paulina was outraged.

Murmurs and anger spread through the crowd. The people of Amity Park had obtained an absolute trust in the Phantom Family. They were always there to protect them. You can imagine their discomfort to learn that someone could impersonate your hero right in front of you, and you don't even realize the truth.

"Don't worry! I'll find the impostor!" Spirit exclaimed.

And, of course, they cheered.

Spirit beamed. She loved this part of the job. It made her feel like a rockstar.

"Bark!" Cujo stood at her feet. He seemed a bit confused. The dog smelled her, then smelled the air. It was like he thought his nose was lying to him.

"Did you find a scent?"

"Bark!"

"Alright, let's go!"

* * *

><p>"So…" Phantom mentioned as Young Justice zeta'ed into the Cave. "That sucked."<p>

"Yeah…" Kid Flash grumbled. "No kidding."

"It could be worse." M'gann smiled. "At least, you showed up when you did."

"Not to mention your intangibility getting rid of the muck." Artemis noted. "It would have been killer to get out of my hair."

"That, and the smell would have been terrible." Robin smirked. "Wally already smells bad enough as it is."

"Dude!"

Superboy smirked. "Burn."

"I don't think you get it…" Phantom sighed. "This was mostly your chance to do a mission without me being there. If I hadn't, there would be a good chance that Batman would have saved your asses instead of me."

None of the Team liked the sound of that. It would have been humiliating to be saved by someone from the League. It would have lowered the respect and trust they had worked to build.

"I think that we should do some critical thinking drills. Learn to fight unusual enemies like that clay monster." Phantom suggested.

"Fair enough…" Kaldur sighed.

"But that's for later." Phantom noted. "Go. Relax. Have fun, and frolic through the flowers for all I care."

"I think he was talking to you, Supes." Wally smirked.

Superboy just glared.

"Kaldur?" Phantom addressed the Atlantian. "We need to talk."

Everyone turned.

"Alone."

With that, everyone began to leave. Most of them didn't seem to care all that much. Robin, however, looked unhappy. He must be angry about not being leader or second-in-command.

'I'll talk to him later…' Phantom stated. "I wanted to talk about the mission."

"I am sorry that you had to intervene." Kaldur bowed his head. "This was my opportunity to prove myself as second-in-command, and I failed."

"Yeah, you kind of did." Phantom bluntly stated. "But not for the reasons that you're probably going to tell me."

"I-"

"I don't know what it is, and I don't need to." Phantom stated. "If I'd have to guess, I'd say you're homesick, but, hey, what do I know?"

"Yes…You are correct." Kaldur sighed. "Of late, I am not even convinced I belong on the surface world. For so many years, it filled my every thought, but now that I am here, my dreams are all Atlantis."

"Dreams, eh…" Phantom rubbed his head. "I don't know much about that, but I do know about being consumed by a thought. I can tell you this, trying to divide your attention won't work, especially if you desire to be in Atlantis. Right, now, I'd say do some soul searching. Find out what you really want. Either way, I'll respect you decision."

"Thank you. I appreciate that." Kaldur smiled. "But…if I do decide to stay…"

Phantom turned. "I won't be able to keep the second-in-command spot free, but you'll always be welcome on this Team."

"Thank you." Kladur seemed relieved. "You are a good friend."

"I guess…" Phantom sighed. "Truth be told, I need to take my own advice. It's not easy to lead this team, and be fully active at home."

"I see…" Kaldur noted.

"Yeah." Phantom waved. "I'll talk to you later, Kaldur."

As he walked away from the Atlantian, Phantom noted that Robin was talking with Batman. It was possibly about the mission, but Phantom wasn't sure. "I'm guessing you want the mission report?"

"Robin has already informed me on the mission." Batman frowned. "I was hoping for the Team to have the chance to complete a mission without you."

"I know. Don't want them to become reliant..." Phantom looked at Robin and smirked. "Especially, you bird boy. Don't expect me to solve all your problems."

Robin snorted. "You wish, Inviso-Bill."

"I never approved that name!"

"Anyway." Batman intervened. "Your work today was satisfactory, nevertheless. But I get the feeling that there is something else you want to talk about."

"Yeah, I think the Team needs to train in strategy against unusual enemies. Gain some critical thinking skills and all that." Phantom noted.

"Agreed." Batman nodded. "I will speak to Black Canary, and you can begin your own drills immediately."

"…About that…" Phantom frowned. "I was going to ask for some time off."

"…I see…" Batman nodded.

"Bro, are you quitting?" Robin asked in shock.

"No…" Phantom shook his head. Not yet at least… "I just have a lot of backed up work to do in Amity Park. Just…give me a week. That'll give me some time to get everything settled."

"Fine." Batman agreed.

"Good. I'll see you guys soon." Phantom stated as he pulled out his phone. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm getting some super weird texts from Spirit. Something about a 'no good, filthy copycat who needs to get her own life and stop ruining my fun like a pathetic little…' Well, the rest gets a little too vulgar for my tastes. In fact, I didn't even know that she knew those words…"

In fact, he didn't know if he knew those words…

* * *

><p>"Aha!" Spirit glared at her look alike. "I found you!"<p>

Cujo had followed the trail of the impostor. He seemed to be confused the entire time, but he managed to get it down. He led Spirit to downtown Amity Park. There, they found the impostor overshadowing people and making them embarrassing things. Spirit was completely outraged by this.

She always wanted to do that!

"No, it is I that found you!" The impostor pointed at Spirit.

"What are you talking about?! I was clearly the person that was looking for you! You were here messing around!" Spirit exclaimed.

"No! I was trying to draw out the impostor!" Fake Spirit exclaimed. "And here you are!"

"There is no way I would do something that stup-Hahahahaha!" Spirit burst out laughing. "S-sorry. I-I couldn't finish that sentence. That is totally something I would do…"

"You mean, I would do!" Fake Spirit glared.

"Um, no!" Spirit frowned. "You may look like me, sound like me, and act like me, but…Wow, I don't think I'm helping my case."

"Bark!" Cujo growled at the fake Spirit.

"Well, look at that." Spirit puffed out her chest. "Cujo knows who's real."

"You just tricked him." Spirit smiled at Cujo. "Cujo! It's me boy! Come on, boy! Get away from the faker.

"He won't fall for that! Right, Cujo?" Spirit waited for a response. "…Cujo, you're kind of leaving me hanging here. Back me up."

Cujo did no such thing, though. He looked between the two girls. Smelling the air, the dog merely whimpered. He had no idea which one was real. They both smelled completely the same. He could go with the girl he came with, but he wasn't sure that she was the imposter from the beginning of today. For a dog, smell doesn't lie. To him, they were both Spirit.

"Gah!" Spirit cried. "I can't believe this!"

"Yeah!" Fake Spirit frowned. "How come my dog doesn't recognize that he's been following an impostor?"

"Your dog! He's my dog!" Spirit lunged at the faker.

"No way! He's my dog!" Fake Spirit lunged too.

* * *

><p>Phantom arrived in downtown Amity Park to find an unusual scene. There was a large crowd around a single point. It reminded Phantom of High School when people gathered around to encourage a fight…<p>

"Crap…" Phantom placed his face in his hands. "That's Dani, alright…"

"That was what I was thinking…" Dani's friend Raven appeared next to Phantom in a swirl of energy.

"You just get here too?" Phantom questioned as they eyed the crowd below them.

"Nope." Raven answered. "I've been here fourteen minutes."

"What?" Phantom raised an eyebrow. "And you didn't help, yet?"

"I was too amused to interfere." Raven answered in a monotone voice. "Seeing two Dani's get into a literal cat fight is incredibly fun to watch."

"Well, I can't deny that…" Phantom nodded. "Maybe I can wait to interrupt them…no, no, I need to stop them now."

"Do you have to?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

With that, the two began to descend to the ground. As they floated inside the ring of people, they noticed that the two Spirits were on the ground wrestling. They were pulling in each other's hair, tearing clothes, and trying to beat each other.

The crowd around them were watching and recording the fight. None of them seemed bothered by the fact that those two beings fighting could through them through a wall. Considering that this fight looked like it should belong in mud, Phantom couldn't blame them.

Well…actually, he could.

"Hey!" Phantom addressed the crowd. Every head turned to him. "Shows over. You shouldn't be watching little girls fight like this anyway. Yes, it would be stupid to try and separate them, but you shouldn't be standing around like this! You've seen ghosts fight. They usually aren't that safe to be around."

Murmurs of agreement spread through the crowd.

"Reporters too!"

"Aw…" The Amity Park News Team looked down dejectedly as they began to walk away.

"Phantom!" Both the Spirit cried.

"Alright…" Phantom looked at the two girls. "What's going on?"

Both Spirits burst out explanations about the circumstance. Despite the confusion of them talking at once, Phantom managed to make out some of the words. Apparently, one of them was an impostor. The other was real and trying to prove that the other was fake.

"Okay!" Phantom yelled. "I get it."

"Well?" Spirit #1 questioned. "Get the impostor!"

"No!" Spirit #2 pointed at the other. "Get her!"

"I'm obviously the real one!" Spirit #1 exclaimed.

"No way! I'm the real one!" Spirit #2 shouted. "It's obvious because I look better."

"What?! No you don't!" Spirit #1 glared. "You're super ugly!"

"No, you're the ugly one!"

"You do realize that you're insulting yourselves?" Raven commented.

Both Spirits paused. "Doh!"

"Well…" Phantom examined the girls. "There's no obvious difference in appearance."

"There's also no difference in ectoplasmic signature." Raven commented. "They're exactly the same. I could try to tell by their emotions, but they're both distraught, so I don't think I'll be able to tell the difference."

"Okay…" Phantom looked over at Cujo who was sitting of to the side. "Cujo, can you smell the difference?"

Cujo whimpered.

"Alright then, no…" Phantom sighed. "Well…now what?"

"What? I'm obviously the real one!" Spirit #2 shouted. "Don't you believe in me? I'm your sister!"

"No, I'm your sister!" Spirit #1 argued.

"I know what to do." Raven intervened. "We can set up elaborate tests to prove which one is real. First, a physical test. Then, a mental test. Finally, we ask them questions that only she would know."

"Or…" Phantom pulled out his phone. "I could just call her."

"I like my idea better." Raven muttered. "It'd be more embarrassing for them."

"Hey!" Both Spirits glared.

Phantom called Spirit's phone. Ring! Ring! Ring! The sound was coming from Spirit #2.

The Fake Spirit gulped. "Well, crap."

* * *

><p>"Hey!" The faceless, trench coat wearing ghost with a cane yelled. "No need to be rough."<p>

"I think there is." Phantom mumbled as he shoved Amorpho to the Ghost Portal in Masters Mansion. "You pretended to be my sister. That obviously is a problem."

"I didn't do anything bad! I just pulled a few pranks." Amorpho argued.

"That's why I'm no calling Pandora to arrest you." Phantom noted. "But you know you can't just do things like that anymore."

"I just wanted attention…" Amorpho mumbled.

Phantom sighed. "I know, but the rules have changed. I don't have problems with you pranking, but I can't let people mess with our reputation at all. Not only that, your powers are too dangerous. There was literally no physical difference between you and the person you copied. This is above even Martian transforming. If someone finds out and tries to use you…"

"You…have a point." Armorpho nodded.

Spirit decided to try and cheer him up. "What you did was funny at least. If you weren't impersonating me, then I would have thought they were hilarious."

"Thanks…" Amorpho stated happily. "I'm sorry for copying you. I just thought it would be more believable than Phantom."

"You're not wrong." Spirit nodded.

"I'm just glad you didn't cause any damage." Phantom sighed. "If you did…"

"I know, but that's not the attention I want." Amorpho noted. "But perhaps, I'll keep my mischief to the Ghost Zone."

"That might be for the best. Just don't cross the wrong person." Phantom advised. "Also, if things get really bad, you can call. I'll do my best to try and help."

"Noted." Amorpho nodded. "And if you ever need a little mischief or impersonating done, I'll be there."

"How would you know?" Spirit questioned.

"There's an upside to being unnoticed." Amorpho noted. "You tend to hear things you shouldn't…"

With that, he flew into the portal.

"Well…That was a rather tame adventure." Phantom noted.

"Yeah, usually my fights and conflicts get out of hand really fast." Spirit mentioned.

"Not just you…" Phantom sighed.

"It seems that way." Spirit mumbled. "It's been forever since you've been here for this stuff…"

"Dani…"

"What?" Spirit frowned. "Are you going to apologize?"

"What do you want me to say?" Phantom questioned. "I have responsibilities to my team."

"Do you?" Spirit questioned. "Because it seems like you're forgetting the people here more and more."

"I don't forget." Phantom argued. "But if I'm not there, they might die. I mean, I took one day off, and they were defeated by one monster."

"So, you're putting yourself at risk because they want to prove themselves?" Spirit frowned. "If they really wanted to prove themselves, then they shouldn't rely on you. Cause, I know for sure that you don't have anything to prove."

"I just want to get them to the point where they don't need me…" Phantom mentioned.

"You keep saying stuff like that, but why do they need you? They have the League." Spirit argued. "They don't need you."

"But they've been running into my enemies…"

"So that's it? You're using them to track down the enemies, because that makes sense." Spirit stated.

"No! I'm not using them!" Phantom seemed outraged. "What's with people thinking that? First Vision, now you. I'm not going to use people who I…"

"What?" Spirit frowned. "Care about? Is that what this is about? You care about them more then Amity Park? More than me? More than your obsession?"

"My obsession is to protect what matters." Phantom argued.

"But there's different degrees of things that matters!" Spirit yelled. "Family matters more than friends that you don't even really know! Have they even told you about their families? About their lives outside your team?"

"No…"

"Then what makes them so special?" Spirit questioned. "Why are they so more important than the people here?"

"They're not! It's just that…" Phantom sighed. "Look, I know that I've been spending too much time there. That's why I took a week off."

"Good." Spirit nodded. "Because I'm not the only one who feels like this."

"I know, and plan to deal with that." Phantom sighed.

"Right. Deal with it…"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-August 28, 2010)<p>

Belle Reve Penitentiary was basically a fortress. It was surrounded by thick steal walls and was armed with the latest and most dangerous weapons. Not only that, the supervillian prison had trained guards and inhibitor collars to stop a meta-human's powers. Under these circumstances, even Superman wouldn't be able to break out on his own.

Recently, the prison was even upgraded to be able to hold ghosts and people who use ectoplasmic powers. This was done to hold ghosts, but it also helped to hold unusual beings such as Solomon Grundy. Considering that Solomon Grundy had just escaped from his last prison not even a month ago, this could be considered a good thing.

For Spirit, however, this left her feeling uncomfortable. It felt weird to be in a place where her powers could be completely suppressed if necessary. But she had a purpose for being here, and she was determined to see this through.

"It is unusual for anyone to visit Belle Reve." The large African American women spoke to the halfa girl. "Especially when it's one of you heroes."

"I felt like I needed to come now that everything's been settled." Spirit mentioned as the warden led her into a large room that was separated into two parts by a bullet proof window.

"Well, I don't know why, but I'm not here to judge you." Amanda Waller commented. "I'm surprised that Phantom didn't want to be in here with you."

"I asked him to wait." Spirit noted. "I need to talk to Grundy alone."

"There will be guards." Waller mentioned. "You won't be completely alone."

"Yeah, but it's different with Danny." Spirit stated. "Besides, I think he wants an update on Agent Z."

"Yes, I agreed to meet with him." Walled nodded. "Considering what happened between those two, his concern is understandable, but Belle Reve is inescapable. There's no way a person with no powers can even hope to get out."

"I believe it…"

"Well, I need to speak with Phantom." Waller noted. "You have fifteen minutes, girl. That's the most I can give you."

"Thanks."

"Good luck talking to him." Waller muttered. "He's not the chattiest person in the world."

"I think I'll be fine." Spirit noted as the woman left.

The ghost girl didn't have to wait a long time. Soon, several guards was leading Solomon Grundy into the prisoner side of the room. The pale giant was now wearing an orange Belle Reve jumpsuit and inhibitor collar.

"Grundy…" Spirit picked up the cord phone to speak to the hulking beast.

"D-"

"Spirit." Spirit corrected. "My name is Spirit."

"…Yes, Grundy remember…" Grundy mumbled. "Why Spirit here?"

"I have a lot of reasons." Spirit answered. "First, I have to thank you. You saved me from Nocturne."

"Grundy did what Grundy had to." The huge being stated.

"But I have to ask…why did you have to?" Spirit questioned.

"…Grundy could hear it." The pale monster spoke. "A voice. It told Grundy to protect Spirit. So Grundy rammed through prison wall and ran."

"But…how did you know that I was in trouble at all?" Spirit questioned.

"Grundy always feels it. It always in Grundy's brain." Grundy answered. "Spirit in trouble. Help Spirit. Help family."

"So you know it too…" Spirit mumbled. "Grundy…where did you come from."

"Grundy don't know."

"But…" Spirit frowned. "How did you get to Amity Park?"

"Grundy don't know."

"Why were you so violent?" Spirit asked.

"Grundy…angry." Solomon Grundy frowned. "Feel it. Always angry. Always want to break things. Especially that one prisoner."

"What prisoner?"

"Shiny head and grey hair on face." Grundy growled. "Grundy got in trouble for attacking bald man."

"Agent Z…" Spirit mumbled. "You don't like him?"

"NO!" Grundy roared.

Spirit's brow wrinkled in thought. "You…feel the need to protect me and hate Agent Z. That sounds a lot like…"

"Huh?" Grundy frowned.

"Never mind." Spirit dismissed the thought for later. "Tell me, Grundy. Besides feeling angry, do you remember anything?"

"Grundy…remembers one thing before fighting Spirit." Solomon Grundy answered. "One word. It rings through Grundy's head. It makes Grundy even angrier."

"What's the word?"

"Ghoul."

* * *

><p>(Monday-August 30, 2010)<p>

"You took a lot of time off…for you at least." Ember noted as she and Danny sat on the roof of Masters Mansion and enjoyed the small bit of peace.

"I needed it." Danny mentioned. "There was a lot I needed to settle."

"Really?" Ember questioned.

"Yeah…or more like people to appease and leads to catch up on." Danny clarified. "Made sure Agent Z is still locked up, talked with Dani, and managed to finally catch up on Vision's reports on the missing ghosts and Freakshow."

"Anything new?" Ember asked.

"No, but at least Vision won't be angry anymore…"

Ember snorted. "Sometimes, you suck at lying. I think it happens when you think too much. Or maybe, you just can't lie around me."

"Yeah…"

"It's not all your fault, though." Ember commented. "We've both been dancing around the issue for weeks."

"I know." Danny sighed. "It's the real reason I took off. I'm pretty sure everyone knows."

"Everyone does know, Dipstick." Ember rolled her eyes. "It's pretty obvious when you decide to take a mini vacation the week before I leave."

"Never was the most subtle person." Danny commented. "At least in my personal life."

"You didn't want to be discrete." Ember noted. "I know you. This kind of stuff is how you show you care."

"Hmm…"

"So, we have to address this…" Ember frowned. "What do we do when I leave to go on tour?"

"…I don't know." Danny sighed. "But I know that long distance relationships don't work."

"No…they usually don't. And I don't think it would work with us." Ember noted.

"No, it won't." Danny nodded.

"Then…do you want to break up?" Ember questioned.

"No." Danny answered immediately. "I don't want to break up. The…the time we spend together is one of the few things that keep me happy. I've questioned a lot of my past choices, but I've never questioned you. You were the only one really there for me after…"

"I know." Ember nodded sadly. "Why do you think I always sneak into your room at night? I know the war has hurt you more than anyone can understand."

"I'm not arrogant enough to say that I'm the only one that's hurting from the war." Danny noted. "I can tell that even Dani's had a hard time coping."

"But you are the one hurting the most." Ember sighed. "You mumble in your sleep you know. Every time I walk in, I hear you begging for forgiveness."

Danny was silent.

"Do you want me to stay?" Ember questioned. She gave him a rare soft look. It was one of complete vulnerability. "Because I'll stay. For you, I'll stay."

"I can't ask you to do that." Danny frowned. "This is your obsession that we're talking about here. It's what you live for. I could never ask someone I care about to give up their hopes and dreams for me."

"But you want me to stay." Ember noted.

"Of course, I do!" Danny exclaimed. "For Pete's sake, you're my first real girlfriend. I've shared more with you than I've even told Dani, Wulf, or…Klemper. That…that's not something I want to give up. But if it makes you happy to leave, then I'll gladly let you go. That's what it means to care about someone else."

"You're too good of a guy, you know that?" Ember gave a small smile. "You're such a sap, Babypop. I could make a ton of top hits by writing about the crap you say."

"I bet…"

"So…the long distance thing won't work. And you're too selfless to ask me to stay." Ember summarized.

"Yeah…then I guess-"

"But I'm not too selfless." Ember interrupted.

"What?" Danny questioned.

"Come with me." Ember beamed at her boyfriend. "Come with me on tour. We can travel the world together. You'll be free from responsibility and your troubles. It will be one big party for you. I may have to work and sing, but we can still be together."

"Ember, I can't…" Danny muttered.

"Yes, you can." Ember whispered. "Leave that team that constantly puts pressure and stress on you. Leave this city that has only caused you pain. Leave your old life of guilt and come with me."

"I can't…I can't just leave my responsibilities." Danny argued.

"Why are they your responsibilities?" Ember questioned. "Your team has the Justice League. This town has Plasmius, Fright Knight, Wulf, and even Dani. The Ghost Zone has Vision and the Council of the Elite. If you come with me, they'll survive."

"I…I don't know." Danny felt very tempted.

"Be selfish." Ember gripped Danny's arm. "All you ever do is sacrifice. For once, be selfish and do what's best for you."

Danny was silent.

"You don't have to answer me now." Ember stated. "But I need an answer before I leave. Think about it, then answer me."

"…Okay…"

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-August 31, 2010)<p>

Spirit rolled to the side to dodge the blast of magical energy. The blast missed her by a hair. The halfa girl quickly tried to counterattack, but was interrupted when a cat made of shadow ectoplasmic energy lunged at her.

Activating her Spectral claws, Spirit swung her arm at the shadow cat. Her green claws easily cut through Nyx's creation. She knew better than to be idle, though. If she didn't keep moving, she would get overwhelmed.

As Spirit flew away, Raven and Nyx turned their attention to each other. Knowing that Raven was better at far ranged combat, Nyx decided to close the gap between them. Pandora's daughter flew at Raven as fast as possible.

Realizing Nyx's intention, Raven decided to make sure that they remained at a good distance from each other. "Azaroth Metrion Zinthos!"

A wall of magical energy appeared between Nyx and Raven. Unable to stop her momentum, Nyx rammed into the wall of energy. Stunned from the sudden stop, Nyx held her head in pain. This left her open to the follow up attack. With a wave of her hand, Raven sent the wall of magical energy around Nyx, and rapped it around Nyx's body.

This, however, was an opportunity for Nyx. The shadow ghost began mumbling to her herself in backward sentences. She tried to focus her magic to disrupt Raven's magic. Nyx's power and control was novice at best and couldn't hope to overcome the girl who had been practicing magic since she was a toddler.

Nyx, however, lucked out. Youngblood, in his usual pirate outfit, flew up to Raven's side. Extending his peg leg, Youngblood fired an ectoplasmic cannon ball at the magic user. At the last second, Raven diverted her attention from Nyx to the attack coming at her. A magical shield blocked most of the attack, but the blast caused Raven to be sent back.

Now free, Nyx tried to attack Youngblood. Spirit, however, beat her to the punch. She lunged at Youngblood. Her Spectral Claws blazed as she swiped at the pirate ghost. Youngblood was prepared, though. He had his sword ready and blocked the incoming attack. Sparks flew as Spirit's Spectral Claws cut along the blade.

"Don't ignore me!" Nyx rushed into the fray. She gathered ectoplasm to her hands and was ready to attack.

Nyx's blast caused the two other ghost to separate. In an unorthodox move, Nyx began to spin and gather her shadow ectoplasm around her. This created a miniature tornado hit the two ghosts and sent them further apart.

Nyx's attack was interrupted when Raven came back into action. With her signature chant, Raven extended three magical bird claws that went to grab the ghosts. All three ghosts were prepared for this, however. They knew how to deal with this type of magic and managed to destroy the magical limbs.

After this, the four children were about to charge at each other again. Just when they were about to go into a free for all, a timer went off. The children stopped in midair and relaxed. The sparing match was over.

"Woo…" Nyx smiled. "That was fun."

"Argh! I agree!" Youngblood cheered. "That battle was most epic!"

"I'm pretty sure a pirate doesn't say epic…" Youngblood's parrot commented.

"This one does."

"I agree." Raven acknowledged. "These sparing matches have been helping me improve a lot."

"You should come over when Valerie does hand to hand combat training." Spirit suggested. "It would really help you."

"Aye, she be telling the truth." Youngblood commented. "Your magic may even the playing field, but if someone attacks you up close…"

"I know." Raven agreed. "But that's what Nyx has been helping me with."

"Yeah, but your progress is going about as well as mine with magic." Nyx frowned at her hands. "It's there, but I just can't focus it."

"Well…" Spirit commented. "Magic is basically the polar opposite of ectoplasm. Switching like that can't be easy."

"You're right." Nyx frowned. "If only my Mom would give me some help, or at least tell me about why I can use magic…"

"She must have a good reason." Youngblood noted. "I mean…what happens if you can't control both magic and ectoplasm? You might explode!"

"Well…I doubt it will be that extreme." Raven stated. "However, I don't think anyone would know the consequences if a single being could perfectly mix magic and ectoplasm. That person…would be nearly unstoppable."

"So she doesn't want me to become strong?" Nyx didn't seem to like that.

"No, I don't think it's that." Spirit interjected. "She might just be afraid about how that power will affect you…"

"What do you mean?"

"Solomon Grundy…He's a pretty good mix of ectoplasm and magic." Spirit explained. "He's tough as nails and is nearly immortal from what I've seen…but at the same time, he's lost most of his intelligence and common sense. He struggles to understand things, and I can tell he walks a thin line to madness."

"So…my learning magic could make me go cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs?" Nyx questioned.

"That may just be what happens…" Spirit shrugged. "But that may just be in Grundy's case. Not even he has an idea of where he comes from. It might just be his origin that caused his borderline insanity."

"Either way, no one knows what will happen." Raven stated.

"Well, we're going to find out." Nyx looked away. "Even if it kills me…"

* * *

><p>(Wednesday-September 1, 2010)<p>

"You have been up here for a few hours, my liege." The Fright Knight appeared behind Danny as he sat on top of Fenton Works. The Ops center on the brick building was tall enough to overlook the entire city.

"Yeah, I lost track of time…" Danny agreed. "Been thinking…"

"Ah." The Fright Knight nodded as he overlooked the city. It was quite beautiful at night. "I see. May I inquire what troubles you?"

"…I don't know how you'll take it." Danny admitted. "Probably better than everyone else, but still…"

"What do you mean?"

"I can see how everyone would react if I asked for advice. Dani and Vision would be angry. Wulf and Vlad would tell me to do what makes me happy. And the other S-rank ghosts…well…"

"_Follow your instincts, Great One!"_

"_You'll abandon your family! How dare you, ignorant child!? Go to your room and reevaluate yourself!"_

"_I have several books relating to stories and theories of love. Perhaps they would help."_

"Yeah…" Danny sighed. "That…"

"You can predict what they will say, but not me?" Fright Knight questioned.

"You are a hard person to get a read on." Danny admitted. "Your loyalty is unquestionable, but your line of thinking is hard to predict."

"It comes with a love of drama." Fright Knight stated. "Sometimes I find it nice to be unpredictable."

"If you say so…"

"Well…If you know what everyone's advice would be and still haven't come to a decision, then this must be an important decision." Fright Knight noted.

"It is…" Danny sighed and looked at his loyal friend…servant…companion…whatever…. "You see…Ember is leaving soon."

"I am aware of the siren ghost's departure." Fright Knight nodded.

"We…we talked about our relationship. We decided that long distance relationships don't work." Danny admitted.

"Many times it doesn't. That's why it is difficult to be in a relationship with a soldier." Fright Knight stated. "Not everyone can handle it. The loneliness and solitude that comes with distance."

"And with everything that I'm responsible for, I don't think I can." Danny acknowledged. "I don't have the time."

"I see…"

"After we decided that, I told her that I couldn't ask her to stay. I can't do that to her. Making her give up her dreams and obsession…it would be like asking her to give up on being Ember." Danny stated.

"So, you ended the relationship?" Fright Knight questioned.

"No, she asked me to go with her."

"…"

"Fright Knight?" Danny looked at the dark knight ghost.

"And you are thinking about this?" Fright Knight asked. "You are thinking about leaving?"

"Yes." Danny looked down in shame. "I am."

"…It must be tempting to you." Fright Knight acknowledged. "You have a lot of burdens that would cause most men to crack under pressure. To have the opportunity to forsake them all and leave…It must seem like a dream."

"It does." Danny admitted. "Part of me…really wants to go."

"I don't blame you." Fright Knight nodded.

"But…to do that, I'd have to give up my own obsession." Danny explained. "To protect what matters…I won't be able to do that if I leave. But if I leave, I'll have peace, safety, and joy that I would never know here."

"In the end, it's a conflict between your two halves." Fright Knight noted.

"It is. My human half wants happiness and love. My ghost half wants to fulfill my obsession…to protect." Danny sighed. "I can't decide. Either way, I'll have to sacrifice. Do I ignore my human side or my ghost side?"

"It is quite the dilemma…" Fright Knight sat by his master. "One of which that I can relate to…"

"Really?"

"Yes. Long ago, I had to decide between my friends and the Ghost King." Fright Knight gained a far off look. "Do I remain loyal to my king, or my most trusted comrades? You know my decision."

"Do…you ever regret it?"

"Yes." Fright Knight nodded. "I think about what could have been. But at the same time, I decided what mattered to me most at the time and I stuck with it. Many may not have liked my decision, but they respected it."

"And my decision?" Danny questioned. "If I decide to do something that you disprove of?"

"I will respect it, because you decided to do what's right for you." Fright Knight acknowledged. "And that's how everyone will feel…eventually. At least the people who care about you will."

"Thank you." Danny gave a small smile.

"And know this." Fright Knight got on one knee and bowed. "Whatever you decide, I will always be here to protect this city and all you care about. You are my lord. My loyalty lies only with you."

"Why? What did I do to deserve that kind of loyalty?" Danny questioned.

"What is a king? What is a leader? It is the person who loves the people before him and does everything in his power to protect them. It is the person whose words matches their actions. It is the person who will let go of his anger and forgive those who have wronged him." Fright Knight. "You have proven that you are worthy to lead and to be trusted. You are the king. The man that leads when no one else will."

"…And what if I don't want to be this king?"

"Then that proves one thing. One crucial thing that allows all the Council of the Elite to trust and respect you…" Fright Knight looked up. "You are different form Pariah Dark, a man who desired to be king and refused to give that up."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-September 2, 2010)<p>

"Are you okay, Danielle?" Vision asked as she entered Dani's room. It was a rather messy room with clothes all over the place. The walls were covered in posters and weapons. On the girl's dresser were pictures of all her family and friends.

"Yeah…" Dani nodded. "I'm just sad that summer vacation is over. Going back to school next week. It kind of sucks."

"That is not what I meant." Vision shook her head. "I meant the unusual way you have been acting lately."

"…What do you mean?" Dani questioned.

"You've been reckless…more reckless then before." Vision explained. "You go out of your way to fight alone and try to prove yourself. Just like a few weeks ago with Technus. You could have had Raven and Cujo help you, but you decided to fight alone."

"Someone needed to help the civilians." Dani argued.

"Perhaps, but that was not your reasoning." Vision sighed. "It seems to me that you're trying to put yourself in sink or swim situations in order to become stronger."

"I…I have no idea what you're talking about." Dani looked away.

"Hmm…really?" Vision eyed the ghost girl. "Then why won't you look me in the eyes?"

"Er…"

"Sit." Vision instructed.

Dani immediately sat down on her bed.

Vision sat next to her. "I'm not the only one who noticed this. Your father is worried as well."

"…I see." Dani frowned.

"I…understand. More than you know, I understand." Vision explained. "To feel inferior. To feel weak among your peers. It is not a good feeling."

"What?!" Dani's eyes narrowed. "You understand?! You're the most dangerous ghost in the Ghost Zone."

"Not because of raw power, though." Vision began. "Long ago...I was not strong. I was a young ghost with untapped potential. It was the Ghost King that saw this potential. He found me at a time when the Reaper was at his strongest. He was convinced that I could become one of the strongest ghosts that ever existed. He put me in with the other King's Advisers. There, I thrived, and we defeated Nekron."

"So you became strong…" Dani clarified.

"Yes, it was a long and difficult process, but eventually I become what I am. The most dangerous ghost to ever live." Vision stated. "But not because of raw power. It was because of intelligence, cunning, control, and ingenuity."

"But that's you." Dani mumbled. "I'm different."

"Yes, you definitely have the potential to have far more raw power than I ever had." Vision stated.

"…Really?"

"Yes. I can already see it," Vision smiled, although Dani couldn't see it. "But right now, you are like what I was. An uncut diamond. Someone that needs proper training."

"But I train all the time. Dad, Valerie, and everyone else helps me train every day." Dani noted.

"And you are becoming stronger, but not at the rate you wish. Or to the point you'll need to be soon." Vision looked away. "I see great trouble in the future, and I don't know if you'll have help when you need it."

"I figured that…" Dani muttered.

"I'm not saying to doubt your allies, but you need to be prepared for anything." Vision explained. "A situation could occur that was like your fight with Mirror Master, and I wouldn't try to rely on like with you using the Mirror of Memories."

"…I see…" Dani nodded. "Then what do you suggest."

"You need to be trained by someone who has been through what you have been. You need a teacher who understands how to bring out potential. Someone who can train you to fight with both grace and deadly force. A combination that your other mentors have lacked." Vision explained.

"Who?"

"Danielle…I wish to make you my apprentice."

* * *

><p>"Hey!" Ember smiled as her boyfriend approached her. "It's great to see you."<p>

"I saw you yesterday." Danny noted. "Remember, you made me make a bike and race against Johnny 13 so that you could win a bet against Kitty."

"That was yesterday afternoon." Ember noted. "And you were distracted the whole time. You didn't even do the victory dance with me when Kitty was handing over the money."

"Sorry, but you did drop a bomb on me the other day." Danny admitted.

"Yeah, I guess I did. Sorry, I just…I try to distract myself from these type of situations." Ember stated. "Been running around these past few days trying to find anything to keep my mind off…this."

"But this has to happen." Danny stated.

"You're right…" Ember sighed. "I'm leaving for my tour tomorrow. If you needed to tell me something, now would be the time to say it."

"I have a lot of responsibility here." Danny noted. "It would be selfish of me to leave."

"I-I know." Ember looked away. She didn't like people seeing her be emotional. "And I understand, Babypop. Asking you to leave was too much."

"Ember…"

"I mean, this place is your life."

"Ember…"

"All your family and friends are here. There's no way someone would pick me over that."

"Ember." Danny gently grabbed Ember by her shoulders and turned her around. "I want to go with you."

"W-what?"

"I did a lot of soul searching." Danny admitted. "And I realized that I've been selfless for a long time. I've put everyone else first, and it's never made me happy. But because of that, there's peace between our two worlds…maybe a weak peace, but still…"

"Danny…"

"Amity Park is safer than it's been in a long time. There are several ghosts ready to protect it at a moment's notice. Young Justice will survive without me. And the Justice League and Council of the Elite can handle the missing ghosts and Freakshow." Danny smiled gently at Ember. "For once, I'm going to be selfish. Please, let me come with you."

"Danny…Yes, let's go." Ember grabbed Danny behind his head and pulled him down into a kiss.

In that moment, there was only happiness. It was like a scene described in a love ballad. The two lovers held each other and kissed. They enjoyed simply being in each other's presence.

The couple's hearts soared. They both had the opportunity to be happy. They would travel the world together. Danny would no longer be held down by his responsibilities and stress. Ember would be free to fulfill her dreams with absolutely no regrets.

…If this was a perfect world, of course. For Daniel Fenton, nothing in this life was that simple, because…

Ember was crying.

Danny pulled back. "What's wrong?"

"I-I can't let you do this…" Ember cried. "I can't let you give up your obsession for me."

"Ember…"

"No. Y-you can't come with me." Ember gave a sad smile. "Because if you do, you'll regret it. Every day, all you'll think about is Amity Park. You'll become more and more depressed. It'll grow to the point where you won't even be able to speak."

"I…No, I wouldn't…"

"You know that will happen." Ember wiped her eyes. "Because that would happen if I stayed. But…you cared enough to think about that before this. Thank you Danny."

"I don't want this to end." Danny begged.

"There's no other choice." Ember shook her head.

Danny looked away.

"You know, when I was alive, I never thought I would be in a situation like this." Ember admitted. "I'm not a strong enough ghost to have all my memories from my first life, but I remember a few things. The day I died is one. The fact that I had a brother and dad was another. But I also remember my dreams. I wanted two things. To be a rockstar and to fall in love."

"Looks like you got your wishes." Danny hugged Ember. "I'll still come with you. Even if it kills me…"

"No, you must stay. The world needs you here." Ember stated. "This time, it's my turn to be selfless. Stay, Babypop, be the hero that I know you are."

"…Okay…"

Breaking the embrace, Ember noted. "I guess this is it."

"Yeah…" Danny muttered in depression. "Stay safe, Ember. Go live your dream."

"I will, and thank you Danny." Ember smiled. "Make sure to stay alive, you hear? Because if you die, I'll drag your butt back so that I can kill you all over again."

"I'll do my best." Danny nodded.

"Good." Ember slowly began to walk away. "See ya, Hero Boy."

"See ya…" Danny waved.

For a brief moment, Ember stopped. "And one more thing…just so you never had any doubts about me…"

"Yeah?"

Ember turned and smiled. "I love you, Danny."

"Yeah…" Danny nodded. "I love you too…"

* * *

><p>(Friday-September 3, 2010)<p>

**Recognized: Danny Phantom B04**

Phantom walked into the Cave. The only person in the Zeta Tube area was Batman. He seemed to be working on something.

"Did you get everything settled?" Batman questioned.

"I did." Phantom nodded. "And I'm ready for the next mission."

Batman looked at the ghost for a moment. "Are you certain? You look terrible."

"Didn't sleep all that well." Phantom answered. In fact, that was the worst night of sleep he had ever had, and he had his fair share. "Don't worry, though. I can handle it."

"I'm sure you can." Batman nodded.

**Recognized: Aqualad B02**

"And it looks like I'm not the only one…" Phantom mentioned as Kaldur approached them. "How did it go?"

"Worse than I could have ever imagined." Kaldur answered. "But I'm here. 100%."

"Know how you feel." Phantom nodded. "But I'm sure neither of us want to talk about it."

"Indeed." Kaldur nodded.

"So…" Phantom turned to Batman as the other members of Young Justice arrived. "What's the mission?"

"The Watchtower detected an immense power surge in Bialian desert…"

* * *

><p>"<strong>AAAAHHHH!"<strong>

Joel had an incredible endurance for pain. It both natural and part of his training with the Shadows. There was, however, pain that no mortal being could possibly endure. This pain which Joel was suffering was under that category.

His skin was on fire. He could feel his blood boil. Vital organs seemed to be ready to burst at a moment's notice. In fact, his entire body felt like it was turning inside out.

The young boy writhed in agony and screamed. He couldn't think. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't even hope. All that he knew was this terrible torture.

It had been going on for weeks. These sick scientists had been pumping him full of God knows what. Each day, Joel went through this treatment. Each day, his body weakened. He had lasted longer than any other normal human that went through these tests. He pushed himself to survive against the odds.

And, of course, this pushed the scientists to put him through more and more.

Joel could feel the madness knocking at the door. It was begging to come in and ease him of the agony. The boy was tempted beyond reason to just give in, but if he did that, then he would never be able to come back. So, he fought. He fought against the agony and insanity.

"His body's resisting the ectoplasm!" One of the scientists called.

"Turn on the electricity to activate the energy inside him!" Another scientist called.

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"** Joel screamed as electricity ran through his body. It hurt so badly. The pain was multiplied by three.

"Gack…" Joel spit out blood when the electricity stopped.

"I don't understand…" The first scientist noted. "Why is his body surviving for so long? His compatibility level is the lowest of all our test subjects."

"It doesn't make any sense…" The second scientist answered. "There is no logical reason as to why he's still alive.

"…nt….up…" Joel muttered.

"What?"

"Wo….give…p." Joel mumbled.

"I don't understand what he's saying."

"I won't give up…" Joel finally gasped out.

The scientists shared a look. "We'll see about that. Turn the electricity up. We need to figure out why his body hasn't dissolved yet."

The electricity and screams started all over again.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Miss Martian<strong>

"Did I do that?" Phantom said in nerdy voice.

"Family Matters."

"Have mercy." Cue the Elvis impersonation voice.

"Full House."

"Waka waka."

"The Muppets." M'gann smiled as she stirred the cake mixings.

Young Justice currently had a break day. Not many of the team members were at the Cave. Phantom originally came for some sparring and training; but Superboy and Aqualad were gone, and M'gann was busy baking a cake. At first, Phantom was going to just head back home, but he became distracted when M'gann handed him a plate of cookies.

It was then that the two teammates began to talk. It stared out with Phantom asking about the cookies. Miss Martian then explained the cooking show she liked to watch. Phantom wasn't really interested in that, and noted that he only ever really watched old television shows.

Man, did that get the Martian worked up.

"Okay, theme songs. Moving on up!"

"The Jeffersons."

"Where everybody knows your name."

"Cheers."

"Thank you for being a friend…"

"Golden Girls."

Apparently, Martians loved Earth television. Despite their incredibly advanced technology, the Martians lacked entertainment like television. Phantom was really beginning to question Martian priorities…

"Wow," Phantom was impressed. "That is impressive. I can't believe you know all those shows."

"They weren't that long ago." M'gann mentioned.

"For you maybe. A few decades mean a lot to humans." Phantom mention. "You're like what forty-eight? And you're still considered a child?"

"Yes, most Martians aren't considered real adults until the end of their first century." M'gann explained.

"Well…some ghosts are the same way…" Phantom noted. "But I haven't lived long enough to remember those shows personally."

"I imagine." M'gann smiled.

"Not even that Hello, Megan show you love so much." Phantom commented.

M'gann paused. "W-what?"

"You know, Hello Megan! You quote that show all the time." Phantom explained.

"You…know about that?"

"Well yeah. Back when I was a… Before, my friends and I spent a whole summer watching old TV shows. My friend Sam despised that show." Phantom smiled.

"What?!" M'gann seemed outraged. "How can that be? It was the best show ever!"

"Don't blame her." Phantom shrugged. "She didn't like anything involving cheerleaders or anything that portrayed women in a stereotype."

M'gann huffed. "Stereotype?"

"Yeah. You know, that girls cook and clean. Stuff like that."

"What's wrong with that?" M'gann frowned.

"Nothing, but Sam was big on feminism." Phantom stated. "But if you like cooking, then cook. No one can tell you what to do in your free time."

"Hmm…" M'gann looked down at her cake batter. "I guess things have changed on your planet. It seems that your culture evolves so quickly. Mars culture hasn't changed since Uncle J'onn first came to Earth."

"Maybe, but not everything has changed." Phantom smiled. "Most guys still can't cook to save their lives."

"Really?"

"Yep. Couldn't cook to save my life." Phantom laughed.

"Well, how about I teach you?" M'gann offered.

"I don't know." Phantom mumbled.

"Oh come on," M'gann smiled. "What could go wrong?"

(Ten minutes later…)

"AH!"

"How is this possible?!"

"I have no idea!"

"You literally caught water on fire!" M'gann stumbled back from the flames. "I thought you were an ice ghost?!"

"I am!" Phantom tried to use his powers to put out the flames. "But it's not working!"

"This breaks so many rules of the universe!" M'gann cried.

"I know!" Phantom picked up the pot of boiling water. He took it over to the freezer and threw it into the freezer.

"Did…did you stop it?" M'gann questioned after a minute.

Phantom opened the freezer again. "…Yep…"

"Good…" M'gann sighed. She couldn't deal with fire.

"But I think that I burned the peas and cooked the roast beef." Phantom noted.

"Oh…"

There was a moment of silence. Then…

M'gann giggled. Phantom began to chuckle himself. Soon both of them were laughing uncontrollably. This continued for most of the day as Phantom and M'gann cleaned the mess they made. In all, they had enjoyed the day.

Despite this, though, there was a new rule in the Cave. It was one that could never be broken. Ever.

Danny Phantom was not allowed to touch the stove under any circumstances.

* * *

><p><strong>Wow, that was a hard chapter to write. So much emotion.<strong>

**Finals are coming up again. Thus, I can't guarantee anything about my updates besides my rule of updating at least once a month.**

**Something that I missed last time. Right after I updated last time, I learned that the Ultimate Warrior died. For any wrestling fan, it is a big blow. He wasn't that old after all. Fifty-four and he died right after his induction into the Hall of Fame. It's sad, especially for his family. But as his last words on Monday Night Raw stated, "Every man's heart one day beats its final beat. His lungs breathe their final breath. And if what that man did in his life makes the blood pulse through the body of others and makes them believe deeper in something larger than life then his essence, his spirit, will be immortalized."**

**Chilling words. Rest in peace, Ultimate Warrior. The spirit of Ultimate Warrior will run forever!**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	9. Relapse

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Maya Angelou

* * *

><p>Chapter 9: "Relapse"<p>

(Saturday-September 4, 2010)

Phantom rarely slept well after the Nasty Burger Incident. This was especially true after the Nocturne Crisis. Sometimes, however, he just collapsed onto his bed at nights from exhaustion. As the halfa regained consciousness, he assumed that was what happened. After all, he had been working on beating up tractor tires the night before.

But this was not the case.

Phantom could feel people dragging him. Sand beneath him was shifting under his weight. There were men speaking around him. He couldn't understand the language, though. He knew it wasn't Spanish, but that was all that the halfa could discern.

After taking this all in, Phantom realized something very important. He wasn't in his bed at home. He wasn't in Masters Mansion. Hell, he probably wasn't even in Amity Park. So, Phantom responded the only way a person who had been messed with in his sleep multiple times in the past month.

He was filled with rage and decided to take his anger out on these men.

Phantom's eyes snapped open. He saw a group of soldiers moving him across a desert. The halfa recognized the uniforms from the news. If he wasn't so outraged, Phantom would have questioned why the soldiers were moving him. That was a question for later, though. Right now, it was time to break some skulls.

A wave of anger and outrage spread throughout the area. Phantom unleashed his anger the way only an S-rank ghost could.

He unleashed his Haunting Aura.

The affect was instantaneous. The soldiers around Phantom flinched and squirmed under the force of Phantom's anger. Not many normal humans could handle the intensity of a Haunting Aura, and it was showing. They left themselves completely vulnerable.

Phantom decided to take advantage of their weakness. Breaking the hold that two of the soldiers had on his arm, Phantom grabbed their heads and slammed them together. A loud crack filled the air as the soldiers fell to the desert floor.

Continuing in his assault, Phantom sent blasts several of the soldiers in the chest and sent them rolling back. The force of the blast easily knocked the soldiers unconscious, but Phantom wasn't done. No, he was too angry to defeat them all in an unpainful way like that.

With a roar, Phantom grabbed a soldier. He brought the soldier's head down and slammed in into his knee multiple times. Realizing that the soldier was unconscious, Phantom let him slump to the floor. For good measure, he spit at the downed soldier.

There was one soldier left. This soldier was cowering, even as Phantom stopped releasing his Haunting Aura. He was terrified of the being in front of him that could take about a whole platoon of soldiers with ease.

Eventually, the man's fight or flight instinct set in. Realizing that running wouldn't work, the soldier decided to attack. With a shout that Phantom didn't understand, the soldier raised his gun. With a twitch of his finger, he sent a barrage of deadly bullets at the ghost.

This meant nothing to a ghost, however. The bullets passed through the now intangible being. It was like Phantom wasn't even there.

"It never stops being funny…" Phantom gave a smirk. "Humans think their normal weapons will work on me. Really? Does anyone watch the news?"

In despair, the soldier charged at the ghost. This was useless, however. Phantom grabbed the soldier by his throat and lifted him into the air. "Hi there."

The soldier cursed at Phantom. Well…the halfa assumed it was cursing. It was a little hard to know with the language barrier…

"Okay," Phantom's eyes narrowed. "You speak English, Esperanto, or anything similar to it? Because if you do, then I'll let you keep your teeth."

"I…can speak English, demon." The soldier growled.

"Great. So, I wondering if you could help me?" Phantom questioned. "Because if you don't, I have no reason to keep you conscious."

"Gah…I won't help you, demon ghost. Fu-ACK!" The soldier gasped when Phantom punched him in the gun.

"Language, dude. I'm only a fourteen year old ghost, after all." Phantom noted.

"Grr…"

"So, first question. Where the hell am I?" Phantom asked.

"In the great nation of the Republic of Bialia!" The soldier stated proudly.

"Well…That explains the Bialian soldiers." Phantom mentioned. "Alright, question two. Why am I here? Because if this has anything to do with Nocturne, I'm going to pull my damn hair out. A guy can only handle so much of this dreaming and nightmare crap."

"I have no idea why you are here, demon!" The soldier spat out. "All I know is that you're invading my great country."

"Great country…Whatever helps you sleep at night…." Phantom muttered. "Okay, question three. Why the hell did I fall asleep in the middle of the desert and wake up with a migraine the size of Texas?"

"No! I cannot speak! I have my orders!"

"Orders? Orders for what? To capture me?" Phantom inquired.

The soldier was silent.

"Cat got your tongue? Alright, who gave you these orders? Queen Bee?"

"Don't you dare speak her name, you filthy ghost!" The solder glared. "You don't deserve to even be able to utter her name."

"Are you going to keep acting like this? Because I really don't want to deal with a mouthy prisoner." Phantom mentioned.

"Be silent! When more soldiers get here-"

Bam! Phantom knocked the man out. "I'll take that as a yes. Fine, I don't need you. I've got a perfectly working phone…What the hell is this?"

The phone in his hands looked like a Tucker Phone, but it was different. Its black and white desing was slicker. More technology seemed to be packed into the device. It was obviously Danny's handy work, but he didn't remember ever upgrading his phone.

"Okay, this is getting weirder…" Phantom mumbled as he examined the new phone.

After activating it, Phantom saw that the phone had a passcode. Most likely it was a long passcode too. And, if Phantom was to guess, if he put the wrong passcode in too many times, then the phone would have safety measures. He could guess maybe, but the halfa didn't trust himself to remember anything right now.

Especially considering the date on the phone's screen.

"September fourth? It was March third last time I checked!" Phantom growled. "Great! I have memory loss again. If this is Desiree's work, I swear, I'm going to wish that she slaps herself in the face for a month!"

Sighing, the halfa looked across the night covered desert. If he wasn't so angry and distressed right now, he might have considered the view beautiful. "Well, this is just peachy. I'm in the middle of Bialya with six months' worth of memory loss. Just great….I guess I should look around and check if anyone's here. Lord, I hope none of them have larger memory loss than me. It would be annoying to deal with Vlad, Dani, Wulf, Valerie, or Klemper with no memory of our friendships."

With that, Phantom took off into the air and left he downed soldiers on the desert floor.

* * *

><p>Dani groaned in terrible pain. She was sore beyond reason. Before, the halfa thought that her Dad and Valerie were slave drivers. She was very very <strong>VERY<strong> wrong…

Vision was, by far, the worst and best teacher she ever had. She was terrible because she pushed Dani beyond her limits to the point of collapsing. Yet, she was great because she pushed Dani beyond her limits to the point of collapsing. Yeah, it was a bit confusing…

Dani didn't know how to feel. Part of her felt outraged by the ancient ghost's hardcore training…not to mention the fear she had for he life. Another part of her was glad that she was going to become so much stronger. She was certain of one thing she felt though…

She was tired and sore like she had never been before. Despite the fact that it was the last Saturday of her summer vacation, Dani couldn't motivate herself to move. Her arms and legs hurt too much for anything. She didn't even feel like fighting…

Yeah, she was that tired.

Unfortunately, not everyone got the message…

Bazinga! Bazinga! Bazinga!

Dani answered her phone. "Hello?"

"Dani!?" Nyx yelled through the phone.

Dani flinched. "What?"

"Where are you?! You're missing it!" Nyx exclaimed.

"Home. I'm too tired to…wait…What am I missing?" Dani questioned.

"There's a carnival going on at the high school!" Nyx answered. "You need to get over here. The rides are insane!"

"Carival?! Why didn't I hear about this earlier?" Dani questioned.

"It's weird, it just showed up out of nowhere, but don't look a gift horse in the mouth!" Nyx sounded like she was about to die from excitement. "Get over here!"

"Okay…I'll try…" Dani groaned and then tried to stand up.

"…"

"…"

"…I can't do it…" Dani felt like crying. "Vision worked me to the bone. I can't move…"

"Oh…well it sucks to be you." Nyx noted. "As for me, I'm going to have fun."

"Oh, why don't you just…" Bazinga! "Hang on, I have someone else calling me. I'll insult you later."

"Whatever you say, Girl Scout." Nyx smugly stated.

"Hello?" Dani answered the call waiting.

"Ahoy!" Youngblood cheered. "How are you, fair maiden?"

"I wouldn't call myself a maiden or fair, but okay." Dani sighed. "What do you want? I'm not really in the mood for this."

"Ah…sorry." Youngblood seemed deflated. "But there was this ice-cream truck that broke down…"

"An ice-cream truck broke down?!" Dani yelled in disbelief at her luck.

"Yeah!" Youngblood confirmed. "And the driver is giving away free ice-cream because it's melting! I thought that you'd want to know, but if you're in a bad mood…"

"It's not that! It's-" Bazinga! "…Hang on. Got another call…"

"Aye!"

"…Hello?" Dani asked reluctantly.

"There's a mosh pit going on downtown." Rachel stated simply.

"What? No greeting?"

Rachel sighed. "Okay…Hello, Danielle. How is your day going? Mine's full of sunshine and rainbows."

"Hey, no need to be a jerk about it…" Dani muttered. "Wait…mosh pit?"

"Yeah, you know that thing that you go on and on about." Rachel confirmed. "People are freaking out. The police are here and everything. I'm going to help, and I thought you would like in on this action."

"…"

"…Dani?"

Dani looked up at the sky in despair and asked. "What did I do to deserve this? I'm a hero for Pete's sake. The universe must hate me…"

"…I'll just call you back…" Rachel began. "This doesn't seem like a good time…Oh, wasn't Valerie supposed to meet us for training later?"

Dani made a whimper noise.

"I'm guessing that's a no…"

* * *

><p>"Hey, wake up." Phantom stood over the fallen Atlantian. He had used a small bit his ice powers to cool the blond haired teen from the desert sun. Now, he trying to get the Atlantian to drink water from a water bottle that was stored in his Portable Fenton Crammer container. Luckily, that hadn't changed in six months.<p>

"Erg…" The Atlantian…Aqualad slowly opened his eyes after drinking the water. He began to speak in a language that Phantom didn't even begin to recognize.

"…Huh? I can't speak…that…" Phantom frowned. Why was everyone speaking languages he didn't know? Granted he was in another country, but still...

"I…apologize…" Aqualad coughed out. "Most people on the surface can't speak Atlantian."

"It rarely shows up…" Phantom noted. "Can you stand?"

"I…believe so…" Aqualad groaned as Phantom helped him stand.

"Good…" Phantom let go of Aqualad after he had found his balance.

"Not to sound ungrateful, but…where are we…and what happened?" Aqualad was still dazed.

"Well, we are currently in Bialya. As for why…I was hoping Aquaman's sidekick could tell me that." Phantom noted.

"You…" Aqualad seemed to gain enough bearings to realize who he was speaking to. "You're Danny Phantom."

"Yeah, I am, and you're Aqualad." Phantom tried not to let his annoyance get the better of him. "Now that we established that, can we please move onto the fact that we're in the middle of the Bialyan desert with no knowledge of how or why?"

"Yes…" Aqualad was sweating and panting. "I don't…erk…"

"Here…" Phantom pointed his hand at the young hero. A cold energy came off it and hit the Atlantian. It wasn't cold enough to hurt Aqualad, but it would keep him cool in the desert heat.

"My thanks…" Aqualad nodded. "So…you say we are in Bialya?"

"Yeah, or at least that's what the desert, soldiers, and my phone say." Phantom noted. "But besides that, I have no clue."

"Strange…." Aqualad stated. "It was only yesterday that I was Atlantis with my king…"

"…And yesterday was…March 2 for you?" Phantom questioned.

"Er…" Aqualad raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Is time different for ghosts?"

"Only when we forget a few months…" Phantom muttered as he pulled out his phone to show the Atlantian. "No, but I think we have a problem. You see…my phone says its September 4."

"…2010?" Aqualad questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom noted. "Thank goodness for that, too. If I thought it was 2009, then I wouldn't barely have any combat experience at all."

"Yes, but this still leaves a great problem…what happened in those 6 months?" Aqualad question.

"Knowing my life, a hell of a lot." Phantom sighed. "But I don't know what would put me in Bialya with a Justice League sidekick. If one of my enemies erased my memory, it would definitely be before the Nocturne Crisis. That way I would have the leftover emotions as ammo."

"Alright…"

"Besides, none of them are that subtle. Anyone of them would have attacked me by now." Phantom noted. Ghosts usually enjoyed having their plans known.

"Then it might not be a ghost." Aqualad noted. "There are plenty of enemies of the League that might be able to do this."

"But why us? I have no real ties to the League, and I don't they would take you as a serious threat." Phantom mentioned. "Er…not that you wouldn't be a threat, but…you know how adults think. The young can't possibly be a threat to the mature."

"You are correct." Aqualad nodded. "But that will be an issue for later. For now, we need to figure out the reasons for why all this is happening."

"Right. And I guess it would be better to stick together, since you can't survive in the desert, and I have no freaking clue where to even start." Phantom stated. "Although…I probably won't turn my back on you. Just to make sure that you aren't a shapeshifter posing as Aqualad or some weird crap like that."

"I was thinking a similar thought." Aqualad gave a small smile. He then lifted his arm and his tattoos begin to glow with electricity. "But your powers seem to give away your identity. Like mine do for me."

"Alright…" Phantom nodded. "Er…We would make better time if we flew…but…"

"…Fine. I would prefer to make better time…" Aqualad noted.

"Okay." Phantom grabbed Aqualad by the armpits and lifted him up. "And up we go…"

"So…do you have any theories as to what happened?" Aqualad questioned as he was carried through the sky.

"Amnesia disease, apocalypse, Microsoft finally took over the world…" Phantom noted. "Lord, I hope it's not time travel related."

"Bad experience?" Aqualad seemed amused.

"Yeah…" Phantom mumbled. "But there is one thing I do know about this situation. Something that seems to happen in every single one of my little adventures…"

"What is it?"

"This will get a lot worse before it gets better…"

* * *

><p>"Uhg…." Dani groaned. "I feel like I'm going to die…"<p>

After a lot of effort, Dani had managed to drag herself out of bed. Despite the soreness and pain, Dani couldn't just lie around. This was especially true when her hunger was getting the better of her. Thus, Dani was dragging herself down the stairs and to the kitchen.

"Ah…" Dani muttered as she pulled out food from the fridge. "For once I wish we had personal servants or something…That way I could get food served to me in my room."

Unfortunately, that wasn't an option. Their family had too many secrets to have human servants, and ghosts…yeah, that wouldn't work out in the human world. So, they were on their own. It was kind of unusual for family with billions of dollars, but it was necessary.

This, of course, left a very quiet mansion when no one else was home. With Danny on a mission, Cujo and Wulf wandering, and her Dad working in downtown, Dani was completely alone in the mansion at the moment. Usually, her desire for attention and companionship would cause her to dislike this, but the fatigue really got to her. Right now, she didn't even care…

"It will be all worth it in the end…" Dani mumbled to herself. "She said it would be…"

* * *

><p><em>Memory sequence begin<em>

"_What are we doing anyway?" Spirit questioned her new teacher. "Shouldn't we be…training?"_

_They were currently at the isolated Lake Eerie. It was the only place in Amity Park that had enough room and lack of civilians to host Vision's training. The two female ghosts were currently sitting at the side of the unusual lake._

"_Don't worry, you will receive your training soon." Vision stated. "But we must first establish the point of this training."_

"_Point? Isn't the point to become strong?" Spirit questioned._

"_Yes, but what is the point of strength?" Vision answered with a question of her own._

"_Er…you're strong?" Spirit wasn't sure._

"_No, what do you do with that strength?" Vision clarified._

"_Fight?"_

"_Yes, but why? For what cause? What would you put your life at stake for?" Vision asked._

"…_I…Um…okay?"_

_Vision chuckled. "I would expect that from such a new ghost. You see, we ghosts gain our power from our emotions which is based in our obsession. Knowing and properly understanding your obsession is a vital part of controlling your power."_

"_But…Danny didn't understand his obsession for a long time…" Spirit pointed out._

"_Subconsciously, he did. All ghosts do. But understanding it completely is a difficult matter." Vision noted. "Very few ghosts know exactly what they want. It's rare for them to be able to explain every exact detail of their existence."_

"_Er…I think that's every living creature." Spirit mentioned._

"_Exactly." Vision seemed pleased. "That is the question of both life and death. What is the point of our existence?"_

"_I don't know." Spirit frowned._

"_Of course." Vision said gently. "Few rarely do. But ghosts are different. You see, if what we do conflicts with our obsessions, we become weak and useless. The same could be said if we resist completely fulfilling our obsession. We create an inner conflict in us that could kill us."_

"_Okay…" Spirit was completely lost. "And I…am creating a conflict?"_

"_You may if you continue to push others away to gain battle experience." Vision noted._

"_So…be careful in what I choose to do? I can do that." Spirit nodded._

"_That's not all. You need to be prepared for other ghosts that are in conflict. There is a good chance they will simply… fade." Vision warned._

"_Who?" Spirit questioned._

"_That is not for me to say, but I can say this. Learn to understand your obsession completely. It is what defines you and your powers." Vision noted._

"_That makes sense." Spirit acknowledged._

"_Good. Then let's get started." Vision stood. "We shall start with working on your dodging. You have become too reliant on your Premonition. We need to boost your reaction speed."_

"_Alright, what do we-OMPH!" Spirit was hit in the stomach by a ball of deep purple energy._

"_One word…Dodgeball."_

_Memory sequence end_

* * *

><p>"Sadist…" Dani muttered into her sandwich. "Oh… my poor…everything…"<p>

The halfa was half tempted to just pass out on the floor. Heck, Danny had did it once. Why shouldn't she? It wasn't like she cared about being classy and crap like that…

But that would be a waste. While sore, she wasn't tired enough to sleep. "Maybe I could work on some painting or something…"

Creek…

"Hmm?" Dani looked at the door. "Dad? Is that you?"

Silence…

"Danny?"

More silence…

"Okay…" Dani sighed and forced herself to stand. "I get it, you're trying to scare me, but you know I don't scare easily you jerk."

The halfa girl walked into the huge entrance hall. There was no one there, but considering that her family could turn invisible and fly, this could mean anything.

"Please, you know that won't work on me. I'll find you, even if I have to get Cujo or W-Ack! Cough! Hack!" Dani chocked. "What's that smell?! Did you set off a stink bomb?!"

Silence.

"Fine! Be like that! Just don't come crying to me when Dad gets ma….aaaa…aaaaaaaa…..d…" Dani stumbled. "Wh…aaaa….t…"

"What was that you said before?" A voice whispered through the air. "You don't scare easily? I'd like to test that."

Dani watched in horror as the room shifted. The ceiling, walls, and floor all shifted into fleshy pink substance. The floor squelched beneath her feet as the ceiling released a sickening green goo. Rusting crumbling machines appeared in the room through the walls and floor. Dani instantly recognized the machines. They were…

Necromancers…and they were approaching her.

"**Enjoying the show?**" A demonic voice whispered behind her.

Dani turned slowly. Behind the halfa was what could be described as a demonic scarecrow. Yet, at the same time, she saw flashes. They were flashes of a white haired teen with a huge gaping hole in his chest.

The girl collapsed to the floor in fear.

"**I guess so….Not easy to scare? You wish, little girl.**" The demonic scarecrow was amused.

"Hey, Scarecrow, stop messing with the girl." A loud growl sounded up the stairs of the entrance hall. "Do you want Masters to come after our asses cause we hurt his daughter?"

The trembling Dani looked up. A large scaled beast was descending from the tales. He was massively tall and had sharp teeth and yellow eyes. Despite being a deer in headlights, Dani managed to recognize the huge man as Killer Croc.

"**I suppose not…But we could just drive him insane too.**" Scarecrow suggested.

"No! You know that they would be mad if Masters was hurt in any way by us. We wouldn't live to see the end of this month." Killer Croc growled. "Seriously, this is why I hate working with you. All you can think about is spreading fear. There's no profit in it!"

"**Says the man that likes the taste of human flesh.**" Scarecrow noted.

"But I don't do it when it can come back to bite me in the tail." The large beast glared.

"**Whatever you say.**" Scarecrow stated. "**Did you find the boy or any of the information?**"

"Naw, he's not here and his computer is encrypted to hell." Killer Croc shrugged. "It will take hours to crack for even a super genius, and neither of us are super geniuses. Not to mention, he probably didn't store the info we want anyway."

"**Great, then how are we supposed to find that Red X?**" Scarecrow questioned.

"Fenton's probably the only one who knows anything 'bout 'm." Croc gritted his teeth. "The boys we brought are searching for 'm in the city. That's where everybody is."

"**Just in case…**" Scarecrow gleamed down at the terrified girl. "**Perhaps we should take an incentive for him to talk?**"

"I just told you that would be dumb. Leave the Masters girl, and we'll find 'm ourselves." Croc growled.

"**But how will we get him to talk? He's under Masters' protection as well, so we can't torture him without the old billionaire sending an assassin like Deadshot after us…**" Scarecrow argued. "**Besides, we won't hurt her. We'll just make some false threats.**"

"GRR…Fine!" Croc stormed past the fear villain. "But if this goes to hell, I'm going to be feasting on some scarecrow."

"**Whatever you say…**"

* * *

><p>Phantom had his fair share of random fights. Some of them were personal, like with Skulker. Others were more annoying as with the Box Ghost. There were times, where people and ghosts attacked him for no reason other than that they didn't like his face.<p>

Phantom assumed that this was one of these times.

"Let go of me, pretty boy!" Phantom continuously punched his assailant in the face as he grabbed the halfa underneath his arms and began charging at a nearby boulder.

The guy that was attacking Phantom came crashing out of nowhere. For some reason, this guy that could pass off as Superman's son just yelled and began to swing wildly at both Phantom and Aqualad. The weakened Aqualad couldn't keep up, so Phantom decided to step up and take this guy down. One problem, though…

This guy was unbelievably tough.

Phantom had hit this guy hard enough to knock a normal man out ten times over. It was easy too. This guy left himself wide open to attacks and his offense was sloppy and animal like. Yet at the same time, he was a juggernaut. He didn't flinch, back down, feel pain, and his attacks seemed unstoppable.

'I've fought far worse, though…' Phantom thought to himself. Colossus, Torch, and Nocturne had provided a far bigger problems than this guy.

Realizing that he had not time to force the brute to release him, Phantom decided to stop his attacker in another way. The halfa quickly turned intangible. This turned the attacker intangible too, but it prevented Phantom from having his back slammed into the boulder.

After passing through the rock, the attacker halted in surprise and confusion. He didn't understand what happened. Phantom quickly took advantage. With a show of immense concentration, Phantom transformed himself into a green cloud. The gas passed around the beast man and appeared behind him.

In that moment, Phantom reformed. Now behind his assailant, Phantom used this opening to his advantage. He grabbed the man and slammed him into the bolder face first. With him trapped, Phantom could now interrogate the beast man.

"Who are you?"

"RA-gah!" The attacker tried to get out of the old, but stopped when Phantom slammed his knee into the attacker's spine.

"Why did you attack us?!"

"RA-ahhh!" Phantom kneed him once again.

"Do you know anything about why I'm here in Bialya?"

"Gack!" The beast man didn't even get the chance to struggle that time.

"Phantom!" Aqualad arrived to the halfa's location. He was sweating and panting. The desert's dryness and heat were taking their toll without Phantom constantly cooling him with the ice. "Stop! He obviously doesn't know anything."

"Right…But he did attack me, and I'm in a really bad mood." Phantom stated. "I think he deserves some punishment."

"RAW!" The beast man pushed off the boulder and sent them both rolling back.

"Stop!" Aqualad pulled out his Water Bearers and got ready to attack. Unfortunatley, the Atlantian couldn't keep up in his weakened state. Thus, he could do nothing when the attacker grabbed Phantom and lunged into the air.

This, however, was at Phantom's advantage. Unlike the man attacking him, the ghost could fly, turn intangible, and change the shape of his body. Phantom easily snaked himself free from the attacker. Now free, Phantom once again grabbed the man and tossed him hard to the ground.

Phantom then followed up on this through. He landed on top of the attacker with a crash. Sand and dust flew into the air as Phantom stood on the mindless man. The lack of vision didn't deter Phantom, though. He decided to make sure the man stayed down. Phantom sent a barrage of punches down at the beat man's face.

Each blow earned a loud smack or crack. The boy grunted in pain from each hit he took. Phantom didn't stop. He continued to beat the man below him. Punch after punch landed on the man's face. Each blow was harder than the last. Phantom only saw red as he continued to assault the downed man.

"Phantom?" A somewhat familiar voice caught Phantom's attention.

Pausing, Phantom turned to see two people looking at him questionably. One was a redhead wearing black spandex with the symbol of the Flash on his chest. The other was a blond girl that seemed to be way too into Green Arrow.

Phantom remembered the redhead. He was Kid Flash, the sidekick of the Flash. They had met once when Flash came to Amity Park to pick up equipment for Batman. If Phantom remembered correctly, the speedster was a loudmouth flirt…

"Kid Flash?" Phantom questioned. "Is that you? Because that is a new look…"

"Yeah, I know…" Kid Flash muttered. "Weird, huh?"

"You think that's the weird part?" The blond girl questioned. "We are stuck in the middle of nowhere, Bialyan soldiers are after us, and we just ran into freaking Danny Phantom who seems to be fighting a miniature Superman! What the hell is going?"

"That's what I'd like to know…" Phantom muttured.

"Raw!" The Superman lookalike suddenly threw the halfa off of him and into the two other teens. Phantom quickly righted himself, though, and prepared himself for what came next.

"Stay down, you Superman wanna be!" Phantom sent an ectoplasmic blast toward the black haired teen.

"RAW!" The teen roared as he shook off the blast and charged at the halfa.

Creating an ice broad sword, Phantom prepared himself. Phantom focused his ice powers to his sword and swung it. A wave of blue light swept over the black haired teen. He was frozen instantly.

"You did it!" The blond in green exclaimed.

"No," Phantom growled. The ice was already beginning to crack. "It won't hold him long…"

"Then we should get out of here!" Kid Flash shouted.

"You're not the boss of me!" Phantom snapped. "I have a lot of aggression that I need to get out. And he's the perfect punching bag!"

"We don't have time! Soldiers will be here soo-" The blond girl never got to finish that sentence.

BOOM! The sand around them exploded in a burst of flames. The force of the blast knocked everyone down and shattered the ice holding the beast man. Both Kid Flash and the blond were knocked unconscious, but the other two remained active.

Quickly standing, the two glared at the approaching tanks. Their fight now forgotten the two charged at the tanks and soldiers. Given the crazed man's incredible strength and endurance, and Phantom's powers and tricks, the two made quick work of the tanks and soldiers. All that was left in a minute were unconscious bodies and broken weapons.

After that was done, Phantom quickly turned his attention back to his first attacker. His back was still turned. Now that he had time to think, Phantom quickly thought of a way that would subdue the brainless brute. He overshadowed him briefly. This left the wild man dazed and weak when Phantom exited his body. The follow-up punch made sure that the attacker wasn't getting up any time soon.

"Well…that's done…" Phantom sighed. "I better find Aqualad and Kid Flash again. There's obviously something going on that involves the sidekicks here. Robin might be around, and that girl…maybe she's a replacement for Speedy. But…then what happened to him…"

'Don't worry, I'm almost there!'

"Holy crap!" Phantom looked around surprise. Was that a girl's voice in his head? Where did that come from? "Am I going nuts?!"

It turned out that he wasn't, but what turned out to be the truth was a lot more insane than anything Phantom could ever think of.

* * *

><p>"Ahg…." Dani moaned terribly. How could this day go so badly? Nothing seemed to go right. In fact, this was probably one of the worst days of her life.<p>

After being captured by the Gotham villains, Dani was hauled away. She didn't know where she was, because they blindfolded her, but considering the silence, it had to be somewhere isolated. This did not bode well for the young halfa or her potential escape.

Yeah, potential…As if there was any potential to get away at all. Dani was completely trapped.

While the effects of Scarecrow's famous fear gas was filtered out more quickly by her half ghost body, it was still hurting her. Everything still seemed warped and mutated. The sounds around her were scratchy, dark, and demonic. The ground beneath her was fleshy and wet.

Her fears was affecting her usually strong mind. She couldn't think straight. Each idea or thought was filled with self-doubt. Panic and despair were causing her to have a mental breakdown.

Luckily, Dani retained enough logic to know that she couldn't just go ghost. People were watching her. If she went ghost, then her secret would be out. So that option was out.

Unfortunately, her fatigue from the training and fear gas made all other options unavailable. While she usually had control over a small portion of her powers while in human form, there was no way she could focus them in her extremely weakened condition.

Thus, she was stuck as a human. So, Dani was trapped. This became especially clear when the blindfold was removed and she was dumped to the floor. All around her were what looked like hardened criminals. Each one of them were bulky, dirty, and had torn old clothes except for the armbands on their arms that had an image of a penguin on them…

"_You morons! You complete morons! Do you realized what you've done?!_" A scratchy voice came through the communicator in Scarecrow's hands.

"**We created a way to find Red X.**" Scarecrow stated. "**We'll use the girl to get information out of Fenton.**"

"_That's not the problem! You have Vladimir Masters' daughter! Do you realize how bad that is?!_" The man on the radio screeched.

"I tried to tell 'm." Croc argued. "But nobody listens to the crocodile."

"**Shut up! I've got this covered! The girl won't be hurt, Penguin.**" Scarecrow explained.

"_She better not! I may be a gambling man, but if Masters' daughter is hurt in any way…" _This Penguin guy explained._ "I've met the man. Did business with him once. He's not like Wayne. If you cross him, he'll not only kill you…No, he'll destroy you. Make you wish you were dead…"_

"**We get it! Don't worry. We'll get the information and let her go.**" Scarecrow agreed.

"_Good. You hear that boys? Don't hurt the girl. She needs to be in perfect condition, or I'll kill you myself!_" Penguin ordered his men.

"Got it boss." One of the goons spoke.

"_Right, get the information on that little red rat and get back to Gotham. Then I'll make that piece of trash pay for screwing me over…"_ Penguin stated.

"Get in line…" Croc growled.

"Now what?" One of the goons questioned.

"**We find Fenton. The carnival and mob we set up should help. He wasn't home, so he's most likely enjoying the festivities and chaos.**" Scarecrow stated.

"So go look for him…" Croc glared at the goons. "Well? WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!"

In a terrified scramble, the men began to rush around. Many of them left…wherever they were. Dani still didn't have a clue where she was. The gas made everything look so distorted and demonic. It was like a piece of hell.

"H-how….d-did…" Dani trembled as the drug took its toll.

"**How what? Did we get into Amity? Set up the distractions? Manage to sneak into your home without tripping any alarms?**" Scarecrow leaned over the girl. From Dani's perspective the straw of the costume was covered in blood. Worms were crawling out of the seams. Snakes appeared from the demon's mouth and hissed at her.

Dani merely trembled.

"**It's all quite simple really. You see, Red X angered a lot of people in Gotham. A lot of people that should not be messed with. Unfortunately, there is no one with knowledge about the mercenary. No one, but the man that hired him to go to Gotham. Daniel Fenton.**

"**While I have no clue why, Fenton obviously hired Red X and provided him with weapons to investigate the GIW. So, we have to get the information from him. Unfortunately, Fenton hasn't been seen in public for months. Getting him out of that mansion would be hard enough. Out of Amity Park? Impossible.**

"**So, we decided to come here and get the info ourselves. We used some of Croc and Joker's connections to get the fair here. Not only that I used a mild version of the Fear Toxin in order to rile up the locals. That would be a big enough distraction for the whole city and its heroes. Then, finding a weakling of a teen and getting the information out of him would be easy…If we could just find him… So I filled your home with a small bit of gas. Just enough to make you overlook some minor details. Unfortunately, Fenton wasn't there…**" Scarecrow trailed off.

"Would you shut your trap?!" Croc glared at the master of fear. "I swear! What is it with you and the other nuts in Gotham? All you do is talk, talk, talk…It's so annoying! Maybe if you actually did something for once, the Bat wouldn't beat your ass all the time."

"**You're one to talk!**" Scarecrow snapped. "**If I remember correctly, it was the Boy Blunder that beat you last time!**"

"You must have a death wish, little man." Croc glared down at the much smaller man. "Because I could tear you limb from limb with ease if I wanted to."

"**A dumb animal will easily succumb to fear…**" Scarecrow threatened.

"No, when pushed into a corner, animals fight to the death. Unlike scarecrows. All they do is scare a few birds." Killer Croc showed his sharp teeth. "I prefer to eat the birds."

"**Oh, that's such a great threat.**" Scarcrow mocked. "**I'm totally shivering in fear.**"

"Soon, your body won't be moving at all…" Croc cracked his knuckles. "Cause after I kill Red X, your next on my list Scarecrow. You're a little srawny, but I can still use your bones as tooth picks."

"**You can try, Croc. You can try…**"

* * *

><p>"Okay…" Phantom frowned as looked across the strange individuals around him. "Let me get this straight. You're saying that all seven of us are part of a…team? Really? Cause I'm not buying it."<p>

"It's true!" The Martian who called herself M'gann responded.

"Uh huh…and do you have proof?" Phantom questioned.

"I think I'm proof enough…" The guy…Superboy… stated. "I even told you how Young Justice was formed."

After finding the source of the mental voice, Phantom was surprised to find a female Martian Manhunter. She caught up with Kid Flash, the girl who said her name was Artemis, and Aqualad who had followed the destruction. Her first response was to check on Phantom's attacker. She rushed over and did…something…with his mind.

It was strange. A little bit ago, Superboy was acting like an animal. Now…he was angry, but at least he wasn't attacking.

Then after finding Robin (Yeah, Batman's sidekick) and defeating a bunch of soldiers, the teens took a moment to compare notes about what happened. They all had a good chunk of memories gone, but M'gann and Superboy seemed to regain a large portion of them through their…mental bonding. But what they said…Phantom couldn't believe it.

"It is strange seeing a younger version of the Big Guy like this, and a clone too…" Kid Flash muttered.

"A clone, though? Seemes a little cliché." Robin argued.

"Everything seems cliché right now." Artemis argued. "It's like some old movie plot."

"Yet I would be lying if I said that stranger things had not happened to me before." Aqualad noted. "The same could be said for most of us here."

"Yeah, a lot of weird crap happens to me." Phantom conceded. "This isn't my first memory loss, and it most likely won't be my last. But…for me to join a team? Ones filled with humans and aliens at that…"

"What's so strange about that?" M'gann questioned. "You were with the team from the beginning. You're our leader in fact."

"The only human hero that I willing work with on a regular basis is Red Huntress." Phantom mentioned. "And even that was a difficult alliance to make. Humans don't trust ghosts. Never have. Never will. Especially with what happened with Nocturne. So a team of humans…or human like aliens…trusting me with their lives like that…Doesn't seem likely."

"Geeze, you have such confident in us 'humans'." Artemis glared.

"But he does have a point." Robin rubbed his head in thought. "It would take a lot for Batman to let me go off like this with anyone other than him…Although, I do remember him ordering radio silence."

"Yeah, Batman assigns us missions." Superboy stated.

"What? And my mentor has nothing to do with it?" Kid Flash said while pointing to his chest. This caused his black uniform to change into its usual yellow and red. "Woah! This is so cool!"

"It might be because it is stealth oriented." Aqualad argued. "The Flash and King Orin aren't known for stealth."

"And he's the only one that gets special gear?" Artemis tried to switch her uniform as well. It didn't work. In irritation, she looked at Kid Flash. "Quite touching yourself!"

"This still doesn't make sense to me…" Phantom muttered.

"We need our memories back…"

"M'gann, you managed to give Superboy back his memories." Aqualad addressed the Martian. "Can you do the same for us?"

"I can, but…there's a chance that I'll accidentally see all your memories from the past six months…" M'gann mentioned. She appeared nervous about something. What it was, Phantom didn't know.

"Yet you didn't hesitate to restore Superboy's memories." Robin noted.

"I might have jumped the gun when I saw Superboy. I was just happy to see him safe…" M'gann blushed.

"It wasn't like I had a lot of memories to restore." Superboy argued. "I wasn't even active six months ago."

"Wait, are we actually thinking about this?" Artemis questioned. "Because I'm not sure I want anyone poking through my head."

"It's cool with me. Better than running around like a chicken without a head." Robin stated.

"I am fine with it as well." Aqualad stated.

"My brain's all yours. Just try not to let its brilliance overwhelm you." Kid Flash smiled.

"Or underwhelm you." Robin smirked. "Hey, why isn't anyone just whelmed?"

'Because that would be stupid…' Phantom grumbled to himself.

"…" Artemis thought for a moment. She was encouraged, however, when Kid Flash held her hand. "Fine, but just that last six months."

"Really?" Phantom frowned. "You guys are buying this?"

"And you are not?" Aqualad addressed the ghost. "This scenario makes sense."

"Yeah, well that last situation I trusted just because it made sense…" Phantom frowned when remembered his dream world. "It didn't end well."

"Then what do you think is going on?" Kid Flash questioned.

"I don't know…but not this." Phantom looked away. "One of my enemies could be messing with me. Someone new might be trying trying to get me out of Amity Park. Hell, it could be time travel for all I know."

"Usually the correct answer is the one that's most simple." Robin argued.

"You haven't lived my life and afterlife, then." Phantom snorted. "Nothing is ever simple."

"Even if you did lose your memories, this has to seem like the most likely option." Superboy frowned. "After all, M'gann did restore my memories."

"I tend not to listen to people who just picked a fight with me." Phantom glared. "And you weren't exactly all there back then. For all I know, she messed with your head to change you."

"I would never do that!" M'gann looked offended.

"Uh huh. Whatever you say." Phantom looked away. "All I know is that I'm not letting anyone into my brain…not again."

"Then what are you going to do?" Artemis questioned. "It's not like you have a lot of options."

"You could just go after us." Aqualad suggested.

"Then she will have the chance to mess with your heads, too." Phantom argued.

"Dude, you have a lot of trust issues." Kid Flash mentioned. "I doubt even Bats is this bad…"

Robin glanced at the speedster. "Now, let's not get crazy."

"Please." M'gann stepped forward. "I'm asking you as a friend and teammate to trust me. Have a little faith."

"…I'm sorry, but I'm not ready to do that right now." Phantom turned and began to walk away. "I'm going to handle this the only way I know how….I'm going to find the guy responsible for the mess and kick his ass."

"Alone?" Aqualad questioned.

"I'm not like you. I don't need help to survive in a desert."

"How will you even find the guy?!" Artemis questioned.

"I find the place with the most soldiers and blow everything up." Phantom explained.

"Geeze, fine then." Kid Flash frowned. "Who needs you…"

"Wait!" Superboy called. "What if I told you about a secret you shared with me that you never told anyone else?! Would you believe me then?"

"Secret?" Phantom shook his head. "There wouldn't be any secret that I would share with you."

"It's about Spirit." Superboy spoke.

Phantom stopped.

"A few weeks ago you told me about her origin. How she's like-" Superboy stopped when he felt like a wave of anger was crushing him. In fact, the entire team seemed to be under the pressure.

"Be careful what you say, because even if I told you about that, if you ever did anything to endanger my family, I'd make you wish you were dead." Phantom glared back. "Now leave me alone. I'm doing this my way. Alone."

And with that, he was gone.

* * *

><p>"We can't find him."<p>

"He's nowhere in this city."

"It's like he disappeared…"

"Fools!" Croc snarled. "Fenton never leaves this city! Did you check his old home? Axion Labs? Hell, did you check the surrounding area?!"

"…No…" One of the goons shrunk away.

"THEN GO LOOK THERE!" Croc yelled angrily.

"**If he's in Fenton Works or even Axion Labs, then it will be impossible to get him out.**" Scarecrow muttered. "**Ever since the Fenton Works was destroyed, Fenton's become incredibly paranoid. That buildings that he works in probably has more security systems and weaponry protecting it than Belle Reve.**"

"Hnn…" Croc didn't seemed pleased by that. "Then what do we do?"

"**We use bait.**" Scarecrow answered while he looked at Dani.

"No. No freaking way. We try that, and every hero in this city will go code red on our asses. There's Phanotm, Spirit, that dog, the wolf, knight, and every other ghost that seems to hang around this crazy city. Many of them can beat heroes from the Justice League." Croc frowned. "Mirror Master was damn lucky when he was here. He only had to fight the little girl, and he still lost. I don't like our odds if we poke the hornet's nest."

"**Then what do you suggest?**" Scarecrow was obviously irritated. This caused his demonic image to grow even more hellish in Dani's eyes.

"If getting Fenton out of those buildings is impossible, then we're out of options." Croc frowned. "By now people have figured out that the girl is gone. It might be smart to cut our losses and quit while we're ahead."

"**You…want to quit?!**"

"Yeah, I know when a mark's too much trouble. I may want to tear Red X a new one, but if I have to risk my damn life in the process…then it's not worth it." Croc reasoned.

"**Well, I refuse to leave.**" Scarecrow glowered at the girl. "**I know I can get this done. Then I can find Red X and find out how he did it. How he managed to use fear to make him stronger…**"

"And you're willing to risk everything for that? I thought the whole reason we didn't bring Joker was because we wanted to get this done quietly. If he was here, then twenty people would have died already..." Croc glared. "Guess what. The quiet options are gone."

"**But…**"

"NO! WE'RE DONE!" Croc glared at the goons across the room. "PACK UP! WE'RE HEADING BACK TO GOTHAM!"

"Penguine's not going to like that…" One of the men said.

"DOES IT LOOK LIKE I GIVE A DAMN?!"

"No…" The man whimpered.

"GOOD THEN…Is that a cat?" Croc stared at the black cat that was rubbing against Dani. "How the hell did a cat get in here without me smelling it…"

"**Are you changing the subject? Because-**"

"Shut up." Croc sniffed the air. "I don't smell any cats. That thing is not an animal…No, but it does smell like…death…"

"AH!" A group of goons yelled as a portal of swirling white and black energy appeared behind them. Birdlike claws extended from the portal and grabbed several of the men.

Boom! A explosion caused another group of men to be knocked away. At the edge of the crater was Youngblood. He was holding a sword and looked angry. In fact, he didn't even make a comment as he flew into the group of men and began to beat them.

"What's going on?!"

"I don't know!"

"What do we do?"

"Meow…"

The men looked and saw that the cat that had been by Dani was now in front of them. Now that it was close to them, the saw that the cat wasn't normal. Energy seemed to drifting off of it. Its eyes were pure red. It was almost like it was…

Poof! The men were left coughing when the cat exploded in could of shadow gas. The sudden burst had surprised them.

"I have an idea…" Nyx floated behind the coughing men. "You can have your teeth kicked in. You will have your arm broken. And you…I'll shove your head up your but just for the fun of it…"

"What the hell is going on!?" Croc growled. "Are we being attacked by children? I don't even recognize any of them. Where are the others? Is it just them?"

"No…not…just them…" A gruff voice spoke. "Me…too…"

Killer Croc turned. He saw a being that was like him. A being that had human characteristics, but appeared more beat than man. Unlike him, though, this being was not really human. No, this thing was something different.

"Hello…" Wulf smiled and showed his sharp teeth. "And goodbye."

The werewolf ghost grabbed Croc's arm. Then, in a show of inhuman strength, he threw Killer Croc. He threw the 11 foot, 600 pound wall of scale and muscle like he was a pillow. Croc crashed into a nearby wall, and with a roar, Wulf flung himself after the villain.

"**Damn!**" Scarecrow stepped towards Dani. "**They found us. I can't let them stop me. They won't hurt me if I hold you hosta-Gah!**" Scarecrow was blasted away by a non-lethal blast of ectoplasm. He was sent stumbling back from the girl.

"Don't touch her."

"Bark!" Cujo in attack mode seemed to agree. He had hurried by his master's side and was ready to protect her.

"**You…You're still alive?**" Scarecrow questioned.

"Yeah, I was just taking a little break…" This person stepped in front of Dani. The halfa's savior was obviously female considering her build and curves. Her black and red futuristic suit was glowing with power that fueled her weapons. On the woman's back was a red bad, and on her head was a black helmet that showed a vague image of her face. "But I decided to come back just recently."

"**And why's that, Red Huntress?**"

"Because you decided to not only hurt a little girl, but also use your damn fear gas on her." Red Huntress glared at the villain. "And while I may not be in the best mood for this sort of thing, I'd never leave her in your sick hands. Now get ready, I'm about to beat you within an inch of your life."

* * *

><p>"So…you came." A man with pale skin and dark clothes eyed Phantom. He didn't seem scared despite the fact that Phantom had quickly taken out the soldiers surrounding him. No, in fact, he seemed amused.<p>

"I did…freaky brain dude…" Phantom raised an eyebrow at the man. The man's brain was showing through his clear skull. "And judging from you're obvious telepathic appearance, that you're the dude that mess with my head and the others?"

"I am." The man smirked.

"Good, so could you tell me your name…" Phantom punched his right hand into his left palm. "Because I'd feel bad if I knocked your teeth out without knowing your name."

"You, young ghost, can call me Psimon." The now identified Psimon answered.

"Psimon, huh?" Phantom frowned. "Weird name, but I'm not one to talk."

"Indeed…" Psimon chuckled. "And you are here to…what was it again? Knock my teeth out?"

"Yeah, I'm sick of people messing with my head, so I'm going to fix thing my style. By knocking some answers out of you." Phantom threated.

"Really? Because obviously you had trouble with me before." Psimon walked around the tent. At the center was some weird sphere thing. When Phantom had arrived, it was being electrocuted. It was almost as if…the thing was alive. Maybe it was. Phantom would have to check after this is done.

"I don't know, but I think it had to do with something involving those sidekicks." Phantom glared. "Because, from I've heard, telepaths have a hard time with ghosts. There's too much raw emotion in our brain. It's like trying to move through a raging storm."

"From what I saw, your brain was far from a raging storm." Psimon noted. "There wasn't even a dull roar."

"Uh huh, like I'm going to listen to you." Phantom readied himself. "Why don't you try it now, brain boy?"

"I think I shall." Psimon place a hand on his head. "Psimon say, 'Open your mind'."

"You wish…" Phantom flinched as he felt a minor ache hit his head. It was like someone was trying to stab at it.

"Well…you certainly are stronger…" Psimon smirked as he continued to force his way into Phantom's brain. "But this isn't close to the power you were talking about."

"That might be because I created a duplicate before coming in here."

"What?-ACK!" Psimon leaned forward and gasped out as an invisible hand rammed into his stomach.

"I may be a brash person, but I'm not completely stupid." The invisible Phantom duplicate turned visible. "I've been forced to do some homework on different powers. Telepaths and Telekenetics both need incredible concentration, and can usually concentrate on only a few things at a time. A duplicate is all I need to make sure you can't hurt me."

"I can still-Gah!" Psimon was stopped from using his telekenisis by the Phantom duplicate punching him in the face.

"No, you can't." The real Phantom muttered as he approached the telepath. "I won't let you focus enough to fight back."

"That's…rather brutal of the ghost that refused to go for the kill." Psimon gritted out as the duplicate held him in an arm bar.

"Nocturne wasn't worth killing."

Psimon snorted. "That's not what I meant. The bad part of losing your memory. You're always left out of the conversations and jokes."

"I'm about to get caught up." Phantom knelt down and looked Psimon in the eyes. "So Phantom says, 'Open your mind'…"

Using the connection that Psimon established, Phantom tried to force himself into the telepath's mind. Usually, this would be impossible for anyone who did not have mental powers. Phantom, however, was an S-rank ghost. He had experience with forcing his will and emotions on other people.

Just like using his Haunting Aura, Phantom let all his emotions out. The emotions forced their way into Psimon's mind, and began to overpower the telepath. Usually, Psimon could fight off the attack, even if the ghost was S-rank. Unfortunately for him, the physical attack on his body made focusing very difficult. Thus, he was left vulnerable to the attack.

"AHH!" Psimon yelled. For a moment, there was nothing. The, Phantom saw everything. The past six months of his life came flooding back. The details of the mission were all returned. Why they were in Bialya and how Miss Martian's mental link left them vulnerable to mental attack after they went to seach the camps invisibly. But that was not all he saw…

"_Never turn your back on Phantom." Batman instructed Robin._

"_We don't a trashy white Martian around here! Get out of here, filth."_

"_Remember, the neck is always one of the most vulnerable part of the body. One quick slash and its over." Sportsmaster stared down as the little blond girl._

"_I don't know about Phantom, though." Wally noted to his parents. "He seems a little…unfocused at times."_

"_He'll mess up at some point." Red Arrow frowned at Aqualad. "Then you'll see that I'm right."_

_Superboy stood over the broken body of Superman. He was victorious. The Man of Steel was defeated by the clone's hands…_

"Gah…" Phantom stumbled back. The visions were so vivid. They were memories, but not his memories. They belonged to…his team. It turned out they were telling the truth, but…how much was really kept hidden from him?

"H-how…" The slumping Psimon stared up at the halfa after the duplicate disappeared. "Not even I could discern all those…"

Bam! Phantom punted the telepath in the head. "Shut up…"

Looking around, Phantom sighed tiredly. In an instant, the old anger had disappeared. In its place was the usual numbness and fatigue. In the sphere's shining metal, Phantom saw his reflection. His eyes were so much duller than before.

"…These guys were obviously mistreating you…" Phantom placed his hand on the large sphere. "That means you're not friend of theirs. If I release you will you attack me?"

The sphere beeped again. It almost sound like a no.

"Good enough for me…" Phantom stated. "I'll take you back to base with the others. You can trust them…"

But the real question was…could Phantom trust them now, and would they trust him after this fiasco?

Only time would tell…

* * *

><p>"<strong>St<strong>an**d s**til**l!**" Scarecrow yelled as he swung a knife at Red Huntress.

"You wish…" Red Huntress smirked as she grabbed the wrist holding the knife. With a twist, the knife was disarmed. Then is a single motion, she swept the villain's legs out from under him. Scarecrow hit the concrete with a loud groan.

Dani could tell that the fear gas was finally wearing off. The feelings of panic and absolute fear were quickly fading. This allowed Dani to concentrate on watching the fight, and she was completely enjoying it. Scarecrow was getting beaten to a pulp.

Pinning the villain to the floor, Red Huntress questioned, "Do you yield?"

"Never!" Scarecrow desperately struggled. He seemed to break some of his fear gas containers and smoke bombs. The gas spread around them. Scarecrow was safe because of his mask, but Red Huntress…

Was also safe because of her mask.

"Really? Do you not see the suit and helmet?" Red Huntress chuckled to herself. "And here I thought villains from Gotham were smart, but I guess you prove that assumption wrong."

"Damn, you-Gah!" Scarecrow yelled in pain as he felt his arm pop and buckle under the preasure of Red Huntress's hold.

"Watch your tongue, straw head." Red Huntress warned. "It might get you into trouble."

"Grr…"

Red Huntress sighed. "I should have taken the big guy. He would have been more fun."

"Too…late…" Wulf luged over the barely conscious Killer Croc and tossed him to the ground. "He done."

"Ah…ruin my fun." Red Huntress sighed. "Well at least, there might be the henchmen."

"Nope!" Nyx shouted from her pile of unconscious goons. "We already beat them."

"Arg…These landlubbers have gone to Davy Jone's locker." Youngblood grunted.

"That…was actually close." His parrot seemed surprised. "But no, the men are still alive."

"For now…" Youngblood frowned. "I don't like people messing with my friends."

"And the great and fearsome pirate has a soft side." Raven noted as she floated above them.

"You're one to talk!" Youngblood snapped. "You were the one who wanted to save Dani the most."

"I was just bored."

"But you were freaking out and everything." Nyx noted.

"I was bored."

"But-"

"I. Was. Bored."

"Okay! Okay! Jeeze…"

"Alright then…" Red Huntress glared down at the Scarecrow. "That's everyone here. Do you have any more in the city?"

"Why would I tell you something like-Arg! Ow! That hurts so badly! Okay! Okay! There's a few more of Penguin's henchmen around town, but by now they've heard about the fight and got the hell out of the city!" Scarecrow screamed as his arm was being dislocated.

"Thank you so much." Red Huntress smiled. "And now I have one more thing to tell you."

"Stupid little girl. If I weren't hurt, I'd rip your skin from your bones-Grah!" Killer Croc felt Wulf's foot press down on his face.

"Silent."

"Tell every villain, bad guy, crook, thief, and monster." Valerie glared down at the villains. "Amity Park is off limits. Anyone that comes here for trouble won't be forgiven."

Then, the Red Huntress and Wulf proceeded to knock out the villains.

Dani groaned as the large Cujo helped her to her feet. "Thanks for the assist. I really need it."

"No kiddin-Ow!" Nyx was interrupted when Raven elbowed her in the ribs.

"It was no problem, Dani." Valerie knelt down and smiled at the girl. "I couldn't just leave a friend who was in trouble, could I?"

"But…how did you even know I was in trouble?" Dani asked tiredly.

"I came over for your training…although, I was told later that you were too sore to do anything and forgot to call me…" Red Huntress noted.

"Blabbermouth." Nyx looked at Youngblood.

"What? But you're the one that-Ow!"

"Hush."

"After I saw the mess and you missing, I knew something was up. It's never simple when it involves you after all." Red Huntress smiled. "Luckily, I knew where my old equipment was. After that, finding your friends and tracking this place down was easy. These goons aren't exactly discrete. Your dad wanted to come too, but with considering the fact that these are Gotham villains, he thought it would be best to alert Batman and let us handle it."

"So…you put the suit back on just for this…" Dani frowned. "Does that mean, it was a onetime thing?"

"I…promised that I would come back when I was needed." Red Huntress stated. "I don't know if I'll be needed after this."

"You will." Wulf grunted. "Weird stuff… always… happen."

"He's not wrong…" Raven sighed.

"But…" Valerie looked away.

"Either way…thank you." Dani smiled. "I know you didn't want to put the suit back on. I'm glad that you were willing to do this for me, but if you don't want to be Red Huntress…no one will force you."

Valerie was silent for a moment. "That means a lot to me. But they're right. Amity Park always seems to find trouble. I might be needed after all. Even if I feel a little…unworthy, this isn't about pride. It's about making sure that the people I care about are safe. I might stick around just to make sure you and Danny don't get yourselves too hurt."

"You mean?"

Valerie smiled. "The Red Huntress is officially unretired."

* * *

><p>At night, there was only the fatigue and ache. The glaring and terrible trembling of his body as it tried to recover from a day of experimentation was all he knew when the sun set. Everything hurt. It was not nearly as bad as during the day, but it was also worse at the same time.<p>

He now had the ability to concentrate. Joel could now use his brain to focus enough to realize how hurt his body really was. He now had the brain capacity to understand just what was done to him during the day. The adrenaline and stress had worn off, and now all that was left was the memories and ache as a reminder of his torture.

That and the scars…

Each day, he was left completely drained and exhausted. His body was basically a husk. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't barely move his body. The most he ever got was a little bit of arm movement. That wasn't very encouraging.

The very worst part of night, however, was the loss of the ability to recharge for the next day. No matter what happened, Joel couldn't relax enough to sleep. Despite the absolute fatigue and exhaustion he felt, Joel was stuck in the land on consciousness. His aching body refused to let his mind relax, and the affects were starting to show.

Each day proved a harder struggle than the last to continue to fight. Joel became more and more tired every second. The will to stay alive was quickly fading. Soon, there would be nothing left.

If only he could sleep…He needed to rest. Joel was almost willing to give anything just to have peace. All he wanted to do was let go…

No…he couldn't do that…Not yet…

He would keep fighting. His body may not be able to move or rest well, but Joel wasn't willing to give up. Life was all that he had. It was too precious to give up on. But…the fight was becoming too hard.

"Please…" Joel whispered to anyone or anything willing to listen. "I need something. If I'm to stay alive, I need something. **Anything.** To help me stay sane. I need something to let me sleep…"

"Urk?" Joel stiffened. Something weird was happening. If felt like…his insides were shifting. You would expect that to feel incredibly painful, but it wasn't. No, it wasn't painful, just…awkward and unnerving. It was like worms were crawling under his skin.

But then it stopped. Not just the shifting and awkwardness were gone, though. No, everything was gone. The pain, the trembling, and the terrible aches and burning were all gone. In their place was nothing. It wasn't a good feeling. It wasn't a bad feeling. It was just…nothing.

And that was all that Joel needed.

Exhaustion quickly caught up to the caged boy. Without his aching body to keep him awake, sleep could finally take its hold. In moments, the boy was off to the land of dreams.

Yet, as he slipped into unconsciousness, Joel's tired mind managed to register something. It wasn't enough to keep him awake, but when he awoke, Joel would surely be troubled by this new development. After all, such changes would gain the attention of people of importance because…

His body was emitting green energy.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Artemis<strong>

Phantom stayed low in the bushes as he moved through the forest. This had to be his greatest challenge yet. He was forced to use all his cunning and intelligence just to survive. One mistake and he was dead.

Silently as possible, Phantom creeped through the trees and shrubbery. He had to find his target without making a noise. Any noise would alert the enemy to his presence. He had not dedicated an hour of his life moving slowly just to fail now. He had to finish this!

Seeing a flash of yellow nearby, Phantom knew he had finally found his target. Getting low, Phantom almost crawled to the yellow in the green thickness. All he had do was get close enough to strike. With that, he could end this death match.

When Phantom got close enough, he readied his weapon. With a twitch of his finger, the gun sent a barrage of bullets into the thick forest. Bullets spread everywhere and tore the yellow patch into pieces. After a few moments, Phantom stopped and approached the now red covered patch of yellow.

When he got close, though, Phantom noticed something. The yellow wasn't what he originally thought it was. No…it was a simple long yellow ribbon. But it couldn't be. If that wasn't the real deal, then that would mean…

"It's a trap!"

As soon as Phantom uttered those words, the first bullet hit him. It struck him the shoulder. A spray of green blasted across his clothes and the ground. But it didn't stop there. More bullets followed. Each one struck across Phantom's torso. In an instant, Phantom's clothes were leaking green liquid.

Freezing, Phantom took a moment to recognize what happened. His body was in shock. It couldn't process the fact that he had been hit by dozens of bullets. Then, in the next moment, reality caught up to him. Phantom fell back and landed on the ground with a thud.

He was dead.

…

…

…

"Are you just going to lie there all day?"

"I'm dead."

"Yeah, but it's just paintball. You don't have to take is so seriously." Artemis noted as she removed her protective goggles.

Phantom sat up and looked down at his drenched paintball gear. "But that's half the fun."

Artemis snorted and helped her friend up. "If you say so."

"I do, I take my paintball very seriously." Phantom noted. "It's a way of life."

"Has anyone ever told you that you're a dork?" Artemis questioned.

"Every girl that I have ever spoken to." Phantom stated.

"Okay, I just wanted to check and make sure." Artemis smirked. "You actually did pretty well. Your stealth has improved by leaps and bounds."

"Just imagine if I could turn invilsible and fly…"

"No. No powers. You have to play fair." Artemis glared.

"You're no fun…" Phantom looked away. "Maybe we should invite some of the others. You know, just to give me a fighting chance?"

"I don't think that would be the best idea." Artemis noted.

"Why's that?"

"Okay, let's just take a minute to evaluate our friends." Artemis explained. "A clone with anger management issues, an alien that can barely hold a gun, a fishman that takes everything too seriously, a speedster that can't stop talking, and the ultimate ninja boy."

"Wow…" Phantom frowned. "I have weird friends…and this is coming from the dead guy."

"And do you think any of them would make our paintball game better?" Artemis questioned. "This would turn into an all-out war in five minutes."

"Less than that…" Phantom sighed. "You make excellent arguments."

"Of course I do." Artemis smirked and put her goggles back on. "Now get ready for round two."

"You know, I do realize that you don't want them here because you enjoy beating me…" Phantom stated dryly.

"And your point is?"

"Nothing. I'm just pointing out how dismal my life is…"

"Don't be sad. I might even let you get a free shot in."

"Really?!"

"No."

* * *

><p><strong>I hate finals. I hate them so much. But you know what I hate more? Group projects. They are terrible sometimes…<strong>

**And that's it for the individual bonding moments for Danny…for right now that is…Hope you enjoyed them. Don't worry, though, I have other ideas.**

**Did you really think that the Gotham villains would just let Red X go after what he did? I sure didn't. When I think of Gotham city, I think about a bunch of people who can't let go of the past. No offence, Batman. Oh, and speaking of Batman…Son of Batman. It's nice to see Damian Wayne get an animated role where his character is intact.**

**Look forward to next chapter. What many of you have been asking for shall finally come true. What is it? You'll just have to wait and see.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	10. X

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"We understand how dangerous a mask can be. We all become what we pretend to be."

Patrick Rothfuss (The Name of the Wind)

* * *

><p>Chapter 10: "X"<p>

(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)

"Have you thought about accepting any of the proposals?" Harriet Chin's voice sounded in Danny's ears. "There's a lot of them piling up."

"Actually, I was just looking across them last night." Danny acknowledged. "I'm surprised that so many people want to work with me on such complicated projects. I don't know if I'd be able to keep up with these people."

"You're gaining a reputation." Harriet stated. "The Phoenix. A genius with unlimited potential. Who wouldn't want to work with you?"

"Uh huh, so you've been coining that name?" Danny questioned as he moved through the crowd of people around him."

"Why not? It's my job to make sure good information and publicity gets out there." Harriet sounded pleased. "Just look how popular you are. Everyone wants Fenton tech."

"You know, when we first went over the job description, I was more interested in you helping my…other half." Danny reached into the black and red hoody he was wearing and pulled out a pair of red sunglasses.

"Well that half doesn't need my help. Even cynics like G. Gordon are praising the ghost boy of Amity Park." Harriet mentioned. "It's a big change, but they're probably just trying ride the wave of popularity. It's how journalism works."

"That I do know." Danny activated the sunglasses. As the halfa looked around, the glasses scanned the people surrounding him. "But as for the regular side, you can tell Dr. Roquette, Dr. Strange, and Mr. Fox that I'm interested. They're the only ones that don't want to develop weapons."

"And the others?" Harriet questioned.

"Let them down gently." Danny stated. Beep! The glasses found one. "But I think some of the offers will be retracted soon after this whole North and South Rhelasia thing gets resolved."

"You think this mystery guy is going to be able to stop them from going to war?" Harriet questioned.

"Don't know, but I'm going to give him a fighting chance at least." Danny smirked. Beep! Another one was found. That makes two. "Sorry, Harri, but I have to go take care of something."

"Alright, but you do know that you might have to meet these guys in person right?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Danny snorted as he began to move. "Bye."

"Talk to you later."

Seeing the two pictures in front of his eyes, Danny instantly knew that this wouldn't be easy. One of these two people would be hard enough to stop. Stopping both of them on his own would be a challenge that Danny didn't know if he could accomplish. Luckily, his glasses spotted someone else in the crowd that would give him some back up.

Deciding that he would go to the more dangerous of the two, Danny took off his glasses and pulled up his hood. This wasn't to disguise his appearance, though. The Fenton Disguise Belt he was wearing already made people seem him as a blond with a normal face. No, he wanted to hide something else…

His new battle suit.

'Activate.' Danny thought. While not gaining much progress on mentally controlled tech, this suit was an exception. He managed to have it activate and deactivate with a mere thought. It helped so that no one saw anything unusual as he moved to his target.

Despite no one seeing, though, Danny felt the suit under his hoody and baggy jeans activate. The first thing that happened was the pain. He felt the needles cut into his spine. For anyone other than a person with rapid regeneration, this would have been an instant death sentence. Fortunately, Danny did have regeneration.

Before, the activation of his suit was a loud process. Luckily, he improved the suit to do this silently. So no one noticed as the suit activated and began expand. Most of his suit was already set, but Danny decided before that a mask wouldn't be enough protection. Thus, he made it so that the suit would send a mental helmet up his neck to his head.

Danny felt the metal slide around his chin and up the back of his head. When this was finished, a tinted visor slid down from the top of his helmet to his chin. With his face completely covered, Danny smirked as the visor activated. The front of the unbreakable glass showed a simple smiling skull design with a red x on the forehead.

This wouldn't bother Danny, though. He couldn't see the skull. What Danny saw was an enhanced vision of what was around him. Data and information ran down the side. It told Danny everything he needed to know about the assassins.

It was then that Danny arrived next to his target. She was looking at the car that was approaching the area. The dark haired girl was smirking as her eyes and flingers flashed pink.

Just as the girl was about to attack, Danny intervened. He knocked her arm into the air. This caused the pink energy she was gathering to be sent into the sky. The energy was intercepted by a rocket that was most likely sent by the other assassin.

As the crowd dropped to the ground because of the large explosion, Danny began to attack the assassin he had intercepted. He punched her in the face, but she didn't take the full blow. With a show of absolute grace and flexibility, the girl leaned back to lessen the blow. This led to a cartwheel in order to avoid further damage from close range fighting. In a swirl of pink energy, the girl changed into the dangerous Jinx.

At this point, the guards had taken notice of them. These men had no chance, however. Jinx sent them flying with a wave of bad luck energy. Danny disabled a few of the other guards that were attacking by using his duel ectoplasmic pistols that were strapped to his belt.

Turning the pistols to the side, Danny tried to blast the other assassin who was dressed in a green kimono and smiling cat mask. The assassin dodged the blasts, but this left her open to another attack from a redheaded man is a suit.

Jinx tried to attack her assailant, but Danny's reaction speeds and fighting abilities were greatly boosted by the suit. He flipped through the air and dodged the blast. His hoody and jeans, however, was grazed by the energy. In an instant, his disguise was destroyed. Now, in full view of everyone, Danny stood in a red and black metal combat suit.

The suit was futuristic and had a dull red glow that showed the amount of energy it contained. Danny's red and black Disguise Belt contained different slots and pouches along with his pistol holsters. His gauntlet gloves and boots were thick and contained dangerous weapons of their own. On his chest, gloves, and helmet, Danny had an insignia that had a bit of notoriety with it.

Red X.

Jinx froze. She recognized him instantly. She was one of the few people outside the Phantom Family that knew the secret of Red X. "You…"

"Hello, Jen." Red X stated. He made sure to talk in a darker to tone in order to hide his real voice and identity.

"Tch…" Jinx looked around at the destruction and chaos. "We'll finish this later." In a swirl of pink energy, she disappeared.

"I bet, but it seems like…" Red X looked over to the man that would be the key to peace between two nations. It was Lex Luthor. "Things have gotten a whole lot more complicated."

* * *

><p>Dani was not a morning person. No, sir, she was definitely not even close to be a morning person. Her usual cheerfulness was saved for the times between noon and the time she went to sleep. It was 7:30 in the morning, and she was hating it.<p>

Despite this, Dani decided to walk to school today. Part of it involved the desire to enjoy the nice weather. The larger and more significant motivation, however, was the desire to stay away from her school for as long as possible.

"I hate life right now…" Dani muttered as she walked down the street.

"And why's that?" Rachel questioned from Dani's side.

"School…" Dani sighed.

"You sound like Nyx." Rachel noted. "You two are a lot alike."

"That is the worst insult you have ever given me…"

"But really, I thought it had to do with the kidnapping thing." Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Meh, I'm over that." Dani shrugged. "Dad's going to make those guys' lives miserable, and we got back Red Huntress, so it wasn't all bad."

"Excellent arguments." Rachel nodded, and decided to change the subject. "Do you think Nyx and Youngblood are flying there?"

"I don't know about Nyx, but I thought walking would be alright for today." Youngblood's voice spoke behind them.

"Ah, so you…" Rachel paused when she saw Youngblood.

Dani stared as well.

"What?" Like they expected, Youngblood's regular appearance was disguised by a Fenton Disguise Ring. What really surprised them was the simple t-shirt and jeans he was wearing.

"I don't think I've ever seen you dressed normally before." Dani stated.

"Oh, this? Well, I can't to school looking like a pirate, cowboy, or astronaut…Trust me, I wanted to, but I was told not to…" Youngblood sighed.

"And your parrot is gone. Although, I don't think a pet would be allowed in school, anyway." Rachel mentioned.

"Yeah, Polly couldn't come." Youngblood gained a sad look.

"He'll meet us after school." Dani smiled supportively.

"Yeah…" Youngblood nodded as they continued their walk to school. "Oh, speaking of school…"

"Yes?" Rachel asked carefully.

"Well, you can't call me Youngblood in the school, so I'm going by Charlie." Youngblood explained.

"Charlie?" Dani raised an eyebrow. "Where did you get that name?"

"It was my name before I died." Youngblood stated neutrally.

"Oh…" Rachel seemed surprised.

"What? You thought Youngblood was always my name?" Youngblood chuckled. "Most ghosts change their names when they die. New life, new name."

"But I thought…You were a ghost crafted from an idea?" Dani frowned. "You know, humanity's desire to remain young?"

"Well…I did say that, but it's only a little true." Youngblood blushed a little. "Actually, when I was alive, I read all these stories about staying a kid forever. Peter Pan, Fountain of Youth, and imaginary planes of existence. That's what I meant before. Must have got caught up in the moment before…"

"Oh…Um…" Rachel seemed uncomfortable.

"I know what you're thinking, but no, I won't tell you what's my life was like before. That was a long time ago." Youngblood stated. "What happened when I was alive died with me. What matters is my life now, right Dani?"

"…"

"Dani?" Youngblood and Rachel stopped a looked back at Dani. She had stopped and was looking at something.

"Huh? Oh, sorry…" Dani turned to her friends. "I always get distracted when I come by here…"

Dani had been staring across the street at the place that once contained the Nasty Burger. The remains of the building had been torn down, and the location of the fast food restaurant had moved. In its place was a statue that had been put up shortly after the GIW were run out of the city. As a general principle, most of the Phantom Family avoided this place, especially Danny. Too many memories.

The statue in the area was one of several people. It was in honor of the several individuals that died nearly a year ago. They were the only human casualties Amity Park ever had from ghosts, super villains, and GIW attacks. It was Danny's friends and family.

_Gone, but not forgotten._

"Yeah…" Rachel nodded in understanding.

"I get it…" Youngblood agreed.

Dani may have never known these people, but her adopted brother did. These were the people Danny cared about most…before. While Dani had no feelings for them personally, Danny did. And that was all that mattered to Dani.

"Come on." Dani began to walk away. "We don't want to be late on our first day."

"Yeah…"

* * *

><p>"So…" Lex Luthor eyed the mercenary in front of him. "Red X. The mystery of Gotham. To what do I owe the pleasure?"<p>

"Pleasure? If this were a pleasure then these men wouldn't be pointing guns at me." Red X eyed the men around him. They weren't willing to attack or get close to the mercenary yet, but Red X could see the fear in their eyes.

Luthor waved them down. "Relax, gentlemen. This man obviously means no harm right now. If he did, he would have already went on his rampage."

"Very astute…" Red X eyed the hero that Luthor had freed before Red X. "And Red Arrow is it? No offense, but it's not the most original name. I feel like you're ripping off both me and Green Arrow."

"No one cares what you think." Red Arrow glared.

"Oh, someone's panties are in a twist." Red X chuckled as he followed Luthor into the building. "Relax, arrow boy. We're all on the same side here."

"Same side?" Red Arrow glared. The building interior were filled with reporters and armed men. Oddly enough, Red X trusted the armed men more out of the two. "Both of you are in this for personal gain. In fact, you both might be trying to profit out of starting a war."

"I take offense to that." Luthor watched as the reporters commentated on the growing tensions from the leaders of the feuding countries. "Lex Corp is a company founded on peaceful enterprise for all humanity."

"Of course, that hasn't stopped you from selling weapons to both sides of Rhelasia." Red X noted. "But if you personally stop the conflict, you can still sell them weapons while gaining profits from trading other goods as well. Keeping them from going to war is a lot more profitable than letting them fight it out."

"Ah, someone that can actually think at the margin." Luthor smiled.

"I'm a mercenary. The only reason I care about this is because my client has an invested interest in peace as well." Red X stated. "But my job is only to make sure there isn't war. It has nothing to do with keeping you safe, Mr. Luthor. If your death means peace, then so be it. But…I might be persuaded to try and find a different method if I find the proper motivation…"

Luthor actually seemed amused by this. "One job, double the profit. Smart. Very well, we'll talk about your payment after the meeting."

"Disgusting." Red Arrow frowned. "Taking Luthor's blood money. A real man, a real hero would do this for free."

"I ain't no hero, Speedy." Red X mocked. "I'm just the guy getting paid to find out who's behind this and put a stop to him."

"Ah, the actual question here." Luthor noted. "Who hired the Shadow's, and why?"

Red Arrow frowned. "And…were you the real target, or was your death a convenient way to sabotage the summit."

"Well, I'll leave you two to find out. A mercenary that thrived in Gotham City, and a new hero that works for free." Luthor smiled as he walked away. "I feel that I'm in capable hands."

"I don't want or need your help, X." Red Arrow glared. "I can handle this on my own."

Red X snorted. "You have no clue, do you, hero? The Shadows aren't going to be stopped by one man armed with only arrows. If you're going to come out victorious, you're either going to need to let go of your pride or break some rules."

"You're wrong." Red Arrow argued.

"No, I'm not." Red X's form began to blur as he began to teleport out of the area. "But you'll see that soon enough."

It was then that Red X appeared on top of a nearby roof. He stood and watched as the people below him moved. Red Arrow would most likely go interrogate Cheshire. That was fine with Red X. He had a different person to deal with…

"What are you doing here, liar?" Jinx glared at Red X as she appeared on the roof as well.

"You know, this and that…" Rex X mentioned.

Jinx's glare intensified.

"Not in the mood for jokes, eh?" Red X's visor slid up to reveal his disguised face. "Then what are you in the mood for, Jen?"

"The truth." Jinx glared.

"There's many different forms of truth. Do you mean the truth of Red X, Fenton, or Phantom?" Red X questioned.

"They're all the same." Jinx snapped.

"In a physical body sense, yes." Red X noted. "But if one person acts in different ways, then he or she is wearing a mask. The only question is that which one is a mask?"

"That a jab at me too?" Jinx sighed.

"It's a jab at everyone in this game." Red X nodded. "I don't know what you want me to tell you, Jen. Do you want to know why I never told you that I was a ghost? Do you want to know how I died? Do you want to know if I was ever really the person you thought I was?"

"Yes." Jinx nodded.

"Okay, then…" Red X began. "I never told you that I was a ghost, because it would have put everyone I knew and loved at risk. I already lost my family and friends once because of this life. I didn't want it to happen again."

Jinx was silent.

"I died when I messed with my parent's ghost portal. The ectoplasmic radiation caused me to mutate. I became what is known as a half-ghost. Half human, half ghost, all power." Red X explained. "I can change between the planes of life and death at will. You can imagine how…unnerving that is at times."

Jinx once again didn't say anything.

"And about that last one…I was always genuine with you, Jen." Red X deactivated the Disguise Belt. Phantom's face appeared before the girl. "You were my friend, and I cared about you. You knew more about my like than anyone outside of my family and comrades ever did… Because no matter what side you see, I'm still Danny.

That's why both Fenton and Phantom have the same first name. They're both Danny. Both of them are…two sides of the same coin. In the middle, they're the same. They just have different appearances." Danny finished.

"…Damn it…" Jinx scoffed and looked up into the sky. "Why is it so hard to stay mad at you?"

"Because I'm lovable and cute?"

"Don't push your luck." Nevertheless, Jinx smirked. Then, she sighed. "Alright. I believe you, and…I understand. I kept my fair share of secretes from you. Heck, I even destroyed your home. Yet you forgave me. I'd be a pretty bad friend if I couldn't do the same for a lesser offense."

"Thank you." Danny smiled.

"But…this leads to the complicated part." Jinx noted. "Jennifer and Fenton are friends. Jinx and Phantom are enemies. So, what is Red X to me?"

"A kindred spirit." Red X stated as his visor slid down. "And one that has a proposition."

"Oh?"

"I need you to take me to your boss." Red X explained. "I need to talk to him about this assassination contract. I know that the Shadows are all about bettering mankind, but this war will accomplish nothing. It will lead to only useless bloodshed and loss for everyone. No one will gain from it."

"And you think the Great One will listen to you?" Jinx questioned.

"If I is use reason and money, then, yes I do." Red X stated.

"…Okay, Danny. I'll do this for you, but I'm warning you. This might end with my having to fight you." Jinx warned.

"Then you should know…I won't go for the kill. Not with you."

"Yeah…same here."

* * *

><p>"…History is made every day." Dani's history teacher instructed from the front of the classroom. "Events that we witness will be talked about for years to come. For example, the summit for North and South Rhelasia."<p>

While not a history major, Dani did find this topic interesting. Usually, her teachers were dull, but this Jason Blood seemed to really know his stuff. He made the topic interesting. It was almost like he lived through it.

"The events that occur today will be remembered. Whether Mr. Luthor fails or succeeds at his task. Either the people in the future will look back and learn from the events that occur." Mr. Blood spoke. He was a middle aged man with streaks of grey in his crimson hair. "Because if we forget our past, we continue to make the same mistakes as before."

The class looked on silently.

"Now, let's discuss the different things that will occur from this summit." Jason Blood stated. "Who has an idea?"

Rachel raised her hand from her desk.

"Yes?"

"Well, the most obvious thing is war." Rachel stated.

"Wow, way to be optimistic…" Victor frowned at the girl from his seat next to her.

"No! It's splendid that she thinks about this possibility. Miss Roth is a realist." Mr. Blood encouraged. "War is a likely outcome. But what would be the consequences of said war?"

Nyx raised her hand. "A lot of chaos, bloodshed, and death."

"Exactly." Jason Blood nodded his head. "War is never pretty. That's why we try to avoid it."

"But there was a war not too long ago." Youngblood noted. "And people didn't seem to try and avoid that."

"And thus there was the mistake." Mr. Blood gained a solemn look. "The Guys in White were too trigger happy and it led to their undoing. It might be for this reason that the leaders of Rhelasias are willing to try and cooperate. The outcome of war is never certain. In fact, it might be one soldier that can be the undoing for the entire army."

"Like Phantom?" Dani asked.

"Yes, like Phantom." Jason Blood nodded.

"And…Luthor is in a similar position now?" Dani questioned.

"Very astute, Miss Masters." Mr. Blood smiled.

"Does that worry you, Mr. Blood?" One of Dani's many classmates inquired.

"Hmm…What do you mean?" Jason Blood questioned. "There's a lot I'm worried about in this situation."

"Well…" Victor started. "Well, there's a reason my dad doesn't work for Lex Corp after all. Lex Luthor isn't known to be a saint. If war would benefit him, then most people would think that he would be the first one to say to go to war. And now, that he has to power to control this…"

"I tend not to judge a man unless I have met him myself, but…" Mr. Blood sighed. "These preconceptions have some merit to them. We will just have to wait and see."

"Then…It will be history…" Dani noted.

"Exactly."

* * *

><p>"The infamous Red X…" A man who appeared to be middle aged spoke. He had black hair with streaks of grey, long black mustache, and long black eyebrows. The man wore a regal green cloak with black clothing underneath. Despite appearing somewhat young, Red X knew that this man was well over 600 years old. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"<p>

"I need to speak with you, Master Ra's Al Ghul." Red X bowed lightly to the master assassin. If he wanted this to work, he needed to be respectful.

"And you know of me…You are certainly a surprise, Mister X." Ra's Al Ghul noted. "Alright then, what do you wish to speak about?"

"Your contract to sabotage the summit." Red X answered.

"I see…and you were one of the two people that interfered with the initial attempt." Ra's stated.

"Yes, Great One." Red X nodded. "But that was only because of my contract."

"So we have different goals, then?" Ra's turned to the girl kneeling before him. "Tell me, Jinx, why did you bring him here?"

"He is very skilled master." Jinx explained. "I thought that this might be an excellent opportunity for you."

"You make an excellent point, child." Ra's acknowledged. "Despite only appearing once, you made quite the impression Red X. I would like for you to be on my side."

"Thank you, Great One, but I have to decline that offer." Red X explained. "I'm…too free of spirit to be held down. I move with the wind. I only take jobs that interest me."

"And this interests you? You don't seem the type to enjoy peace." Ra's noted.

"And you don't seem like the type to uselessly go to war." Red X retorted. "But a contract is a contract. I suppose that's why we both have an interest in this."

"You know this, yet you still ask us to abandon our mission." Lady Shiva walked out from the shadows of the building behind Ra's and walked around the mercenary. The compound that they were in was quite large, so she could give him a large gap of distance between them. "Obviously, you know that we will refuse your request."

"Quite right, Lady Shiva." Ra's noted. "You must have known that this request for peace was doomed to failure."

"Perhaps, but it was the best option for me." Silently, Red X gasped. Blue smoke appeared behind his helmet.

"Best option?" Walker appeared behind the mercenary. The ghost glared at the man in red and black. "Sounds to me you were trying to get yourself killed, punk."

"Or, I was trying to scope out the enemy while at least trying to be civil." Red X argued.

"Then I guess that means that the parley is over." Ra's frowned. "Jinx, Shiva, Walker, dispose of him."

"Oh, this is going to be good…" Red X mumbled as he reached for his guns.

* * *

><p>"Well…" Victor noted as they walked out of their school. "That wasn't the worst experience ever…"<p>

"Speak for yourself!" Nyx looked close to crying. "I've never sat still that long in my life!"

"What? Were you homeschooled or something?" Victor questioned.

"Or something." Rachel interjected. "She's a rather spoiled child."

"Can it, gloom and doom!" Nyx glared.

"Make me, cat girl." Rachel rolled her eyes.

"I'm ready to do something fun. Let's go on an adventure or something. I bet there's a scary building to explore or a buried treasure to find somewhere…" Youngblood ignored the bickering girls (really only Nyx) out of raw experience.

"Er…Okay…" Victor frowned. "I thought you guys would want to play basketball or something…"

"Sounds fun." Dani agreed. "We can look for buried treasure later."

"Aw…" Youngblood's shoulders drooped in disappointment.

"No thanks." Rachel frowned. "I don't feel like doing physical activity today. I'd prefer reading."

"Count me out too. I need some chaos. I say we spar." Nyx suggested.

"You guys know martial arts?" Victor questioned.

"Naw, we just fly around and-Mmmhhh…" Youngblood was interrupted when Dani covered his mouth with her hand.

"It's just a game. You know, pretend fighting and all that." Dani chuckled. "I wouldn't be caught dead fighting."

Three pairs of eyes turned to her in unison. Each one said, 'The only time you actually do fight is when you're dead.' Dani just glared at them.

"Oh, that's too bad." Victor sighed. "I always wanted to try MMA stuff. But my dad…He wants me to 'use my mind instead of focusing on useless sports'."

"Well…" Dani shrugged her shoulders. "Danny has talked about him. He seems totally dedicated to science. It would make sense that he would think that way."

"Yeah…" Victor agreed, but didn't look pleased by it.

"It's alright." Nyx noted. "You're not the only one with differing goals from your parents."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Youngblood smiled. "Nyx's mom wants her to be a police officer. Rachel's mom would prefer if she stayed inside all the time. And Dani's dad really wants her to get into business, but I can't imagine that. Dani would go crazy."

"You got that right…" Dani muttered.

"Well…at least I'm not alone in that department…" Victor gave a small smile.

"Speaking of that…If you're so into sports, why hang out with us? We're not that sporty…" Rachel stated.

'Except for fighting all the time…' Dani thought.

"Hey, that's pretty rude, Gloom and Doom. And this is coming from me, so it's pretty bad." Nyx stated.

"Yeah, you're the girl that will insult someone. Kick them while they're down. Then insult them again-Ow!" Youngblood stopped when an elbow was rammed into his ribs.

"Don't agree with me." Nyx glared.

"I think it's a valid question." Rachel stated. "None us are athletes. Don't jocks usually spend time with other jocks?"

"Yeah, I guess, but I like hanging around you guys." Victor smiled. "You're funny and know how to have a good time. And while you do make fun of each other, it's as friends. Most of the jocks in this city seem to be bullies."

"It used to be a lot worse from what Danny tells me." Dani admitted. "But after everything that happened in this city…Well, it cooled down a lot. Emergencies and tragedies tend to bring the best out of people."

"Or the worst…" Rachel argued. "But for this city…Yeah, people are good under pressure."

"Good." Victor mentioned. "Because this place seems to have a lot of them-"

**ROAR!**

All five of the children had to steady themselves as the ground shook. It was obvious, though, that the source wasn't on the ground. No, what roared and caused the ground to shake was up in the sky.

"Is that…a dragon?" Victor paled.

"Yep." Nyx nodded.

"And is it spitting out fire?" Victor questioned.

"Yep." Youngblood nodded.

"Okay…Is that new?" Victor asked.

"Nope." Dani shook her head. "We've had dragon problems before…"

"Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaat…" Victor noted.

"Welcome to Amity Park." Rachel sighed.

* * *

><p>Red X flipped out of the way of the blast of pink energy. He would have attacked the source of the energy, but if he stopped moving, he would get caught. As soon as Red X landed, he was forced to continue moving. Shiva had sent several punches and kicks at the Red X's suit.<p>

The mercenary managed the dodge and block all the blows, but didn't have the chance to use any of his suit's functions to counter attack or move away. Shiva's skill and ferocity made sure that Red X could only defend.

"Gah…" Red X grunted as a blast of green energy hit his side and sent him sprawling. Walker smirked as he watched the mercenary roll away after taking the hit.

Once again, Red X had not chance to think. He was forced to keep moving when a blade was sent sailing at his head. The x's on the back of Red X's gloves extended into blades. He brought his hands up and blocked the blade. The woman in the smiling cat mask tried to follow up with this attack, but wasn't allowed to.

Bam!

Red X was sent flying back by Sportsmaster. He had kicked the mercenary in the head. Cheshire didn't seem happy that he interrupted their confrontation, but said nothing. She had a job to do.

"Well…" Red X grunted as he stood up. "This isn't going well."

It wasn't. Defeating one of the first three opponents would be difficult enough on their own. Having the three of them work together somewhat efficiently made his chances of victory shrink drastically. Then Cheshire and Sportsmaster appeared. Things went downhill from there. Fighting five on one with four of the opponents being deadly assassins and one deadly ghost was not a good thing for the mercenary.

"And you thought it would, kid?" Sportsmaster seemed amused.

"He obviously didn't plan for all of us." Shiva noted.

"No he didn't even plan at all." Cheshire noted. "He was doomed to die the moment he came into this compound."

"Why isn't he running, though?" Walker questioned. "A cornered rat always runs."

"You are quite right, Walker…" Shiva looked a Jinx. "Do you have an input?"

"…" Jinx eyed Red X. "He did something."

"What?" Sportsmaster laughed. "What could he do?"

"I don't know, but I can feel him grinning." Jinx glared.

"Grinning? All I can see is his suit being torn to pieces." It was true. The Red X suit had taken quite a bit of damage in the fight. Chunks of metal were torn from it. It had several deep scratches and dents.

"It…might be the explosives that are all around the courtyard…" Cheshire noted.

"Explosives…" They all looked around. There were giant red x's and glowing pieces of metal all around them.

"You shouldn't have chased all around this place…" Red X explained. "See, from my experience, when people have the upper hand, they never think that the person getting their ass kicked is actually planning for it to happen. Not until they blow up at least."

"Hmm…" Ra's Al Ghul was still at his original spot. The blast wouldn't get to him so he just stood and watched. "Quite impressive. Your right glove leaves explosive x's on the ground as you move around the courtyard and you subtly dropped explosives as your armor tore off. In the heat of battle, none of them recognized this."

The five attackers were all silent. It was a rookie mistake. They became overconfident with their numbers and underestimated their opponent. Now they were all trapped.

Granted, they never thought that Red X would use such a roundabout tactic. In fact, very few would have the guts or skill to stay alive long enough to pull this off. It showed just how impressive the Red X suit was. The main purpose of the suit was to instill great skill into the user. The suit installed itself into the spine and sent pulses through the nervous system that allowed Phantom's body to move as a master of combat and martial arts.

There was a problem for Red X, however. His suit only had enough power to teleport three times every couple of hours. The explosion would hurt him too. But that wasn't the point. His plan had worked.

"So what now, boy?" Sportsmaster questioned. "We all blow up?"

"No…" Red X shook his head. "We all stay here…"

"I see. You never planned to win. You just wanted to take out the main players…" Shiva noted. Despite everything, she was impressed. This young man showed potential. "Impressive tactic."

"With us here, Red Arrow and whatever security Luthor has will keep him safe." Cheshire stated.

"Smart…" Jinx had to fight to hold back a smirk.

"An explosion won't hurt me." Walker glared. "I can turn intangible before the explosion can come close to hurting me. Then, you're dead."

"But your life will still be forfeit." Red X mentioned. "The Shadows won't take your willingness to sacrifice four of their best assassins lightly. I bet the Great One himself will kill you."

"Indeed." Ra's agreed from his spot.

"Then…None of us can move…" Walker gritted his teeth.

"That was the plan. I only need to stall for a few hours. After all, sometimes victory doesn't actually need to involve winning the fight. I think long term. The war is more important."

"There is a flaw in your plan, though… It involves trusting a hero." Jinx explained.

"Red Arrow…meh, I'll just call him Speedy, wants to prove himself." Red X mentioned. "He won't let Luthor die just out of pride. This has nothing to do with pride."

"Hmm…" Shiva eyed the masked man. "Who exactly are you? Very few people would think this way."

"Me?" Red X's visor slid up to reveal his false face. "I'm just a memory…"

"So willing to reveal your face?" Walker questioned. "That's odd."

"That's the thing about memories they change as times passes." The visor slid back down. "You never know what it will look like next…"

"Hmm…" Cheshire eyed the mercenary. "You do know that we'll figure a way out of this, right?"

"As I said, I buying time-ah!" Under Red X's visor, blue smoke escaped his mouth. At the same time, his suit began to beep. Just like it had before his meeting with Ra's. He had known that Walker was there but now…It appeared another ghost was here.

Uh oh…

"Do…do you have another ghost in the Shadows?" Red X questioned.

"No…"

"That's what I was afraid of…"

Then, all hell broke loose.

* * *

><p>Getting Victor to leave was a difficult task. He had a lot of chivalrous ideals. He didn't want to leave three girls when there was an obvious disaster going on. One quick distraction (an empty car blowing up) was all that was necessary to become separated from him.<p>

After that, the other children quickly suited up (Going ghost!) and flew up to the dragon. That, however, was the easy part. Fighting the dragon…that wasn't easy. No, this thing was tougher than Spirit thought it would be. It didn't seem to get hurt at all.

The black and purple dragon wearing a black power ring snarled at them. "Stupid, children! You think you can actually hurt me!?"

"Obviously!" Nyx created several different spikes made out of her shadow ectoplasmic energy. The spikes were sent at Aragon's back. Usually, these spikes could tear into concrete. Each spike, however, bounced off the dragon's scales like rubber. "What?"

"Fool!" Aragon swiped at Nyx. The claw was covered with the black energy of the power ring. Spirit's Premonition screamed at her that the attack would destroy Nyx. So, with speed that she didn't know she had, Spirit pushed Nyx out of the way of the claw.

While Aragon was distracted, Youngblood in his usual pirate outfit pointed his peg leg at the dragon ghost. A cannon appeared out of the leg. It fired several balls of energy at the dragon. This, however, wasn't even a mind annoyance to the dragon. He didn't even seem to feel it.

"Azaroth Metrion Zinthos!" Raven called as she sent a wave of black and white energy at the dragon's head. Usually, magic was incredibly effective against ghosts. The conflicting energy caused great pain to the ghosts.

This wasn't the case this time, though.

"Little bug…do you think you can hurt the beast of death?" Aragon grinned at the girl. "Burn."

Dark black fire began so seep from the dragon's mouth. Even from her position, Spirit could feel the heat from there. That fire…it was different than anything Spirit had ever felt before. If that fire hit Raven then she would be ashes instantly.

In a desperate move to save the girl, Nyx and Spirit flew at the dragon's head at full speed. They rammed into the dragon's head with great force. Usually, this kind of force would break a normal man. It would hurt a normal ghost. The most it did this time was barely alter the path of the fire.

This was just enough. Raven was barely able to dodge the force of the flames. Black fire nearly hit the girl. She managed to dodge it by a hair. Despite this, Raven felt the heat of the fire. Sweat poured down her body. Her skin tingled and crackled under the heat.

"Move!" Youngblood yelled. He was now on the dragon's back. He was trying to cut the dragon with his sword. None of the slashes did any damage, however. The black energy covering the scales made cutting the dragon near impossible.

"Was there a light breeze on my back?" Aragon questioned as he quickly grabbed Youngblood.

"Let him go!" Spirit demanded as she tried to assist her friend. This, however, got her captured as well.

"Ah…the little ghost girl." Aragon's sharp teeth showed. He ignored as Nyx and Raven hammered him with attacks. With a swipe of the tail, the girls were forced to scurry away like flies. "If I remember correctly, Phantom cares a great deal about you. He once took the thing that matter most to me. Perhaps I should return the favor…"

Aragon's plan was to crush her like a grape. His giant claws could break her with ease. Spirit knew this just based on her Premonition. Fortunately, he never got the chance.

**ROAR!**

"Sister?" Aragon questioned as a light blue and white dragon grabbed onto him.

"Brother!" Dora the dragon ghost demanded. "Stop this!"

"Silence, wench!" Aragon glared. "After I deal with the worms, I'll kill you trator-Ah!"

Two blasts of energy hit the dragon's class. One was magenta. The other was green. It did very little damage to the dragon, but it loosened Aragon's hold on the two children. This gave Plasmius and Red Huntress the opportunity to grab the kids and fly down into the city.

"Dad! RH!" Spirit yelled as the heroes released them. Plasmius did not respond, however. He flew back to Aragon without a second thought. "Wait!"

"Don't follow him!" Fright Knight warned as he passed by and flew to Aragon. "You must stay out of this battle!"

"Why?"

"Because we need you elsewhere." Vision approached Spirit, Youngblood, and Red Huntress. She was leading Nyx and Raven in their direction.

"What do you mean?" Youngblood questioned.

"Nocturne has also been spotted in the city at the museum. Luckily, I sensed the black power ring energy long before they acted. I managed to get help from the Ghost Zone to stop them." Vision stated. "I have already sent Pandora, Wulf, and Cujo to stop him, but he is strong…"

"So we get to help my mom? Awesome!" Nyx cheered.

"Yes, but don't fight Nocturne. He is too powerful." Vision explained. "You four will need to deal with the Sleep Walkers that Nocturne had undoubtedly created. Red Huntress, you need to work on both sides. Protect them all from a distance. Be wary of the black power ring's power. It is immense."

"But…" Spirit was interrupted by Raven.

"What will you be doing?"

"Lady Vision and Torch shall be protecting the city form the flames!" Torch yelled as he stopped Aragon's latest blast of fire from hitting the city below. Despite his affinity with fire, he still looked hard pressed the stop all the flames. "This black fire is incredibly hot! If it hits the city, then it will burn!"

"He's right." Vision noted. "The two of us will be need to keep the fight from harming the city. I wish I could have more of the Council here, but I need a few ghosts to be ready to guard the Ghost Zone. And with Colossus asleep and Spectre refusing to assist…"

"Don't worry!" Youngblood saluted. "We can handle this."

"Good. Now go."

* * *

><p>Red X groaned as he pushed himself off the hard ground. "What happened?"<p>

"I did, Mr. Mercenary." Freakshow spoke behind the disguised halfa.

Red X froze and stared at the ex-ringmaster. "You…You're the man that escaped from Guys in White custody."

"I am." Freakshow spoke. "And I wish to employ you."

"What?" Red X paused when a briefcase full of money was thrown at the mercenary.

"This is your payment. I'm sure it is enough." Freakshow waved his hand dismissively. "Just keep doing what you're doing. Fight the assassins, and allow me to go after Ra's Ah Ghul."

"…I prefer not to accept stolen money." Red X mentioned. "It can lead to trouble, but fine. I won't argue. I'd hurry, though. The Great One is not a person who will dwindle."

"Oh, I'm well aware." Freakshow grinned as he walked into the large building of the compound. "But I'm sure Lydia, the little arrow, and those two assassins that went after them will cause him to delay."

"I'm sure…" Red X watched as the smoke and dust fell. He could now see Lady Shiva, Walker, and Jinx were ready again. "I'm surprised you didn't go after Freakshow."

"We have already been given our orders." Shiva glared. "We will kill you first."

"Until, Ra's…the Master…can hold off." Walker reasoned threw gritted teeth. He obviously didn't like calling Ra's by Master.

"I wish to hurry, though." Jinx spoke. "The Reality Gauntlet is a dangerous tool."

"Yes…it is…" Red X pulled out his pistols. It seems that Freakshow either deactivated or set off the explosives. "And he wants to check Ra's to see if he can find the access code…"

"You know a lot about him it seems." Shiva noted.

"He has a bounty on his head by multiple parties." Red X mentioned. "Good money. But I have a couple of jobs to finish first."

"I'm sure!" Walker lunged at the mercenary.

Once again, Red X was in a battle against three powerful opponents. This time was different. Red X's armor had protected him from the blast, but the others had taken some damage. They were moving more slowly. He was in a better position that before, at least.

As he dogged the various attacks from his opponents, Red X dropped smoke pellets. This wouldn't hinder Shiva and Jinx, but they weren't his target. Unable to see, Walker was momentarily helpless.

The ex-warden tried to turn intangible, but Red X's suit was based off ectoplasmic power. He was able to grab the ghost even if he was intangible. Activating his gauntlets, Red X then began to surge electricity through the ghost. Walker yelled in pain. He tried to struggle, but it was no use. In a moment, he was unconscious.

Boom!

…What was that? Red X couldn't see through the smoke. Wait…Shiva was in the air. She seemed off balanced.

Acting before he could think, Red X extended his left hand. Red goo shaped in an x shot out of the x of his palm and rapped around the assassin in the air. After using his pistol to shoot a non-lethal shot at the assassin, she landed unconsciously on the ground.

"You're lucky." Jinx noted as the smoke faded. "If I hadn't had the chance to blast her into the air without anyone knowing, she would have got you from behind."

"Thanks…" Red X sighed. "I owe you."

"You're damn right you do." Jinx sighed. "I stuck my neck out for you and look where it got me."

"It looked like you were trying to bring a potential recruit to the Shadows. They won't get mad at you." Red X mentioned.

"Like I care. I have immunity from anyone in the Shadows besides the Master." Jinx shrugged. "Even then, he couldn't do just what he wants…"

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing. Look, we need to stop Freakshow from getting to the Master." Jinx glared. "I can make an excuse that I reasoned with you after Shiva and Walker were knocked unconscious. No one wants Freakshow to win. It will be simple."

"You're right, but…" Red X eyed Walker.

"No. I can't let you take him." Jinx glared. "Even if he is your enemy and a fugitive of the Ghost Zone…He is still a member of the Shadows. If I let you take him, then there is no way for me to avoid punishment."

"…"

"Please…"

"…Okay. Let's stop Freakshow."

* * *

><p>"This museum has gotten hit twice in the past couple of months…" Spirit muttered as her Spectral Claws tore through a Sleep Walker.<p>

"And you have been involved in both of them." Raven admitted as she used her magic to keep the Sleep Walkers at bay. "Maybe it's you that's the problem."

"Or it's the city!" Youngblood argued. He was cutting through the Sleep Walkers by using his sword. "A lot of crap happens at this city."

Like Vision had said, the museum was coved in Sleep Walkers. They were covered in black energy and were a lot tougher than when Spirit first fought them. Luckily, Spirit had improved a lot since the Nocturne Crisis. She and her friends could hold their own.

"Yeah, but that's why I love it here!" Nyx grinned. "It's always so lively-Ack!"

Well…for a while at least…

"Nyx!" Spirit cried as her friend was talked by the hoarded of Sleep Walkers. She finally noticed that a lot of the Sleep Walkers had positioned themselves around the shadow ghost. It seems their goal was always to capture Nyx.

All three of the other children froze as the Sleep Walkers threatened to kill Nyx. They could see on their faces. 'You move. She dies.' Despite not saying anything, the message was loud and clear.

Without hesitation, the children surrendered. They didn't want their friend to be hurt because they did something stupid. The Sleep Walkers subdued them and began to march them into the museum.

"Why haven't they put us to sleep?" Raven questioned.

"Nocturne must have ordered them to bring us in conscious." Spirit frowned. "I don't know why…"

"He would only do that to gain power. He has power. Now…he wants an audience not a power source." Youngblood reasoned. "I know the feeling. It's nice to have an audience."

"Why didn't you curb stomp these guys!" Nyx hissed.

"Because we didn't want you hurt." Spirit reasoned.

"I would have been fine!"

"No, you wouldn't." Raven glared. "Don't lie to yourself."

"Shut it! Giving up wasn't the option."

"It was when the only other option was someone dying." Youngblood argued.

"There's always another option. I'll just break-Gack!" A sleep Walker grabbed her neck and stopped her from doing anything.

"See?"

"Nyx!" Pandora froze as she saw the children get dragged into the Egyptian section of the museum.

Spirit could tell that the fight had been intense. The room was halfway destroyed. Wulf and Cujo were covered in scratches. Pandora looked better, but was obviously frustrated. And Red Huntress…

"Let them go, spook." Red Huntress growled.

Spirit had to wonder. Would they be in this position if they hadn't sent Red Huntress ahead? They were confident in their ability to fight the Sleep Walkers, but in retrospect, RH's help might have been useful. Of course, that was a 'what if' situation. She might not have made a difference at all.

Despite the fact that she loathed to admit it, Spirit knew that she was no match for Nocturne with the black power ring right now. That's why she settled for fighting the Sleep Walkers. If only this happened a little later into her training with Vision…

"I think not." Nocturne grinned. "Now, I would suggest standing down. Otherwise, their blood will be on your hands.

Each of Nocturne's opponents quickly surrendered. None of them wanted the children harmed. Spirit could tell that none of them were exactly happy, but none of them would try anything. Not yet at least…

"Now…where was I? Oh yes…" Nocturne turned to a large picture of an Egyptian pharaoh.

Spirit watched as Nocturne examined the set and began to walk to a scepter that was being held in a glass case. Wait…that pharaoh…He looked familiar. Spirit recognized him. She saw him in Danny's old pictures.

"Tucker?" Spirit questioned.

"Ah…" Nocturne turned after he retrieved the scepter. "You noticed the resemblance."

"Tucker?" Raven raised an eyebrow.

"Aye, that be the tech nerd that was Phantom's friend." Youngblood noted. "I remember him…"

"Strange, isn't it?" Nocturne eyed the picture. "Coincidence? Reincarnation? Who knows? Doesn't matter now, I suppose."

"What do you want, fiend?" Pandora snarled. The Sleep Walkers restrained her movements. "What is the purpose of all this? You wanted a scepter?"

"The Scarab Scepter is a powerful artifact." Nocturne noted. "It is my mission to find, retrieve, and destroy it."

"Why?" Red Huntress questioned. "Is it a threat?"

Nocturne laughed. "Of course not! I just want to release the energy of it."

"What?"

"But I need to activate it first…" Nocturne stood in front of Spirit. "To do that, I need to open that sarcophagus. Unfortunately, only the image of King Duulaman can do that. I could have used the boy, but…he's dead now."

"Ha! You fail!" Nyx smirked.

"Be silent child, before I order my Sleep Walker to rip out your throat." Nocturne snapped.

Nyx decided to bite her lip.

"But…my ring might be able to make an image of the boy…" Nocturne glared down at the halfa. "I just need a memory...many dreams involve memories after all."

"I never met the guy." Spirit glared.

"Yes, but the memory is in your DNA." Nocturne grinned. "And that's enough."

* * *

><p>"Damn…" Red X muttered as he landed on the roof. Today was not going well.<p>

He glared up at his opponent. Lydia had zeroed him and Jinx out as soon as they arrived. While not the strongest ghost in the world, she had one of the most…confusing powers. Her living tattoos were not strong, but the raw amount of numbers of them could easily disorientate Lydia's opponents.

"Who the heck is this chick?" Jinx questioned from behind Red X.

They duo had arrived in the center of the building to see the chaos that Freakshow had brought. The entire room seemed to be alive as he and Lydia fought off Cheshire, Sportsmaster, and a bald muscular man that Red X recognized as Ubu while they protected Ra's. Red Arrow seemed to trying to hit both sides while just trying to stay alive.

Lydia quickly stopped Red X and Jinx from interfering. She used her living tattoos to carry them up through the roof. She obviously knew that she didn't stand a chance between their combined forces. That meant…

"She's stalling." Red X noted. "Red Arrow will be a distraction, and the Reality Gauntlet can make anything an ally for Freakshow. All she wants to do is guy time for Freakshow to get to Ra's."

"He'll be surprised. The Master is quite skilled." Jinx didn't take her eyes of Lydia.

"You don't understand the power of the Reality Gauntlet." Red X grunted. "Skill is meaningless against an all-powerful force. Even the most skilled man in the world can't defeated a hurricane with his bare hands."

"A hurricane?" Jinx grinned. "You think too highly of that freak."

"…Shut up…" Lydia spoke lightly.

"…What?" Jinx blinked.

"Don't insult him…" Lydia glared. "He's not a freak…"

"…We don't have time for this." Jinx fired hex bolts at the ghost.

Lydia blocked the blast with her tattoos. Red X, who quickly got over his shock of Lydia actually speaking up, quickly acted. He lunged into the air. The blades extend from the back of his gloves and began spinning. The blades quickly cut through the wall of tattoos.

Lydia seemed to suspect that this would happen, however. She met Red X and quickly kicked him back down. This left her open to another one of Jinx's hex bolts, however. The pink energy slammed into her and knocked her off balance.

Red X quickly took advantage. After he landed, he pulled out his pistols and fired at the green woman. Lydia used the force of Jinx's blast to continue flying back to avoid the pistol blasts. She then circled over and flew to Red X. She intended to take out the guy with no apparent powers.

Big mistake.

Red X extended his left hand. A sticky red x made of goo shot out of his left palm. Lydia managed to dodge this, but failed to dodge Red X's follow up attack. A pistol blast hit Lydia in the stomach. Lydia thought ahead, however, and managed to surprise both her opponents.

Her tattoos swirled all around the two assailants. They seemed to appear from below them. Jinx was momentarily trapped by this. Red X was not.

A red energy shield appeared around Red X. This stopped the tattoos from getting to the mercenary. Running forward, Red X pushed through the wall of tattoo ghosts to Lydia. Once free, Red X did a rapid combination of punches and kicks at the woman with spikes on her head.

Jinx had just freed herself and dispelled the tattoos. She sent a hex bolt at the two. Ducking, Red X then allow the pink energy blast to hit the ghost. With Lydia now weakened, Red X tackled Lydia to the ground and held her there by pointing the blades on the back of his right hand at her throat.

"Don't move." Red X ordered.

"You should just kill her. She's the enemy." Jinx suggested.

"No. That's not what I do." Red X grunted.

"…" Lydia stared up at Red X.

"Why are you working with Freakshow?" Red X questioned. "He has no love for ghosts. He used and abused the ones under his control. You have no reason to protect him like you do."

Lydia gave him a dark glare.

"It's stupid. He'll get you killed. If you help us stop Freakshow and go back to the Ghost Zone, I'm sure they'll allow you to stay free." Red X tried to reason.

Lydia's look said it all. The answer was no.

"Fine. I'll just have to capture you." Red X sighed as he reached to his belt to grab a black and red Fenton Thermos. "I can't believe you work with that man."

"Fool. I will always be by his side…" Lydia whispered.

"Why's that?"

"Because I love him."

"Gah!" Red X was blasted back as Lydia's tatoo's. Red X managed to land on his feet, but by the time he looked up, Lydia was gone. By extension, that meant that Freakshow had probably left too.

"Well, crap. That was a waste. Right, Jinx?"

Silence.

"Jinx?"

She was gone.

"Damn, I'm having an off day."

* * *

><p>"Gah!" Spirit cried in pain as the black energy of the power ring seeped into her head. It was terrible. She felt like thousands of needles were stabbing her brain.<p>

"Spirit!" Youngblood yelled, but could do nothing. The Sleep Walkers were holding their hostages with their sharp claws. One wrong move, and people would die.

"And…there." Nocturne stopped his ring scan.

"Ha ha ha…pant…ha…" Spirit trembled.

"And here we go…" Nocturne pointed the ring at the mirror on the sarcophagus. An image appeared in front of the mirror. The boy was an Affrican American wearing a barrette and thick glasses.

The affect was instantaneous. In a flash, the sarcophagus opened. Wind blasted out in great force, but everyone was held where they were. Out from the sarcophagus stepped a mummy with ancient Egyptian clothing a long…really long goatee. He had greyish skin and green eyes.

"I have risen!" The mummy shouted.

"Only for a moment, Hotep Ra…" Nocturne blasted the mummy with green dust. The drowsy mummy was put back to sleep before he could even gain his bearings. Hotep was caught by Sleep Walkers before he could hit the ground. "Only for a moment."

Everyone glared at the sleep ghost. He had gotten what he wanted. Now…What would he do?

"Don't fret." Nocturne smiled evilly. "You all will still have your uses. Even you little halfa girl. Despite my desire to eradicate you, I cannot. Not now at least. If I do so now…It will be my own end. Someday, though, you will outlive any usefulness you might have."

Spirit glared weakly.

"Until next time." With a blast of black energy, Nocturne and his Sleep Walkers were gone. The mummy…Hotep Ra…was gone as well. With that, the captives were free…

"Raw!" Spirit punched the ground.

But this was a complete defeat.

* * *

><p>"I see…" Luthor noted as he eyed the mercenary standing in front of his desk. They were currently in Luthor's office. It was quite spacious and was decorated expensively and tastefully. Like always, his assistant Mercy was standing by him. She was a cute woman with brown hair and wore a suit with a skirt. "Quite a lot happened behind the scenes."<p>

After leaving the Shadows' compound, Red X returned to help Luthor. Apparently, Red Arrow had a similar idea, but had called for help in the form of Aqualad. With their help, Red X defeated all the assassins and saved Luthor's life and the summit by giving Luthor all the credit. So, it was mission accomplished.

But…there was a problem. Red X overheard Sportsmaster talking about a mole on Young Justice. And…that was not good. Someone on the team could possibly be leaking information to the enemy. That meant…he couldn't completely trust anyone on his team.

…He would have to deal with that later…Because he had to get through this meeting.

"Yes." Red X answered simply. He was exhausted. It had been a long day. "But you're alive, and the summit worked. Mission complete."

"And a job well done." Luthor nodded as he placed a pile of money on the table. "I have to thank you. Your giving me all the credit did wonders for settler the two nation's differences."

"I don't do this fame. I do this for payment." Red X responded.

"But you have gained fame. The right kind of fame." Luthor smiled. "The kind of fame that can earn a lot of money. Tell me, how would you like to work with me again?"

"I don't want to be held down with one employer. If you have a job that interests me, I'll contact you." Red X answered as he put the money into the portable Fenton Crammer on his belt.

"Very well." Luthor mentioned. "But I have a friends that are interested in you as well."

"Really?"

"Indeed, Mister X."

Red X froze. That was…

"Surprised, Mr. X?" Ra's questioned as he entered the room.

"…A little, but it makes sense." Red X noted. "You wanted to stop the war as well. Like I said, in this situation, peace is more profitable than war. This explains why you would do all this. It was all for show."

"But you helped this cause, too, Mister X." Luthor stated. "You made it look like I was 100% dedicated to the summit. Besides, I don't like relying on the heroes."

"I…see…" Red X shifted slowly. If need be, he could teleport. His suit had been given enough time to recharge. "And what will you do now that I know that you worked together? Kill me? Threaten me? Bribe me?"

"No," Ra's shook his head. "Like Mr. Luthor stated. There are quite a few people interested in you. You could help the world, while making an excellent profit."

"…I'll think about it." Red X stated. "But no promises."

"Fair enough." Luthor nodded. "Now, if you'll excuse us, I need to talk with Mr. Al Ghul."

"Of course." And with that, Red X teleported away.

* * *

><p>Dani…was not happy. Things had not gone well today. She and her friends had been totally defeated. Nocturne and Aragon got what they came her for. It was a total loss of a day.<p>

And that wasn't even counting the fact that she had to go to school…

"You missed a whole lot." Dani frowned as she spoke into her phone.

"_I know._" Danny sighed. "_But I had a lot to deal with today. I had to stop a war, deal with some personal stuff, and try to capture Walker, Freakshow, and Lydia."_

"What?" Dani questioned.

"_Ah…I'll explain it later._" Danny grunted.

"Fine, I'll wait till you're here. That way you can tell everyone at once." Dani mumbled. "Vision will want to hear about at least a little good news."

"_Thanks…how is everyone?_"

"Hurt. Depressed. Tired." Dani answered. "Vision and Dad are frustrated too. The Green Lanterns just showed up. They wanted to know why they weren't contacted about the appearance of the black power rings."

"_I see…_"

"I did wonder why no one contacted the League during the crisis, but…" Dani sighed. "I guess tensions are still high and trust is low…"

"_Yeah…"_

"We really wish you had been here." Dani noted. "You could have made a big difference."

"_I…I know. But I told you that this morning what I was going to do._"

"You did, but…" Dani frowned as she petted Cujo. He was sitting on her lap and was wrapped in bandages. They were currently in her room resting. "Nocturne and Aragon…They never seem to show up when you're here."

"_Yeah…"_ Danny murmured. "_I noticed that. Maybe they're watching the city. Or…it could be a coincidence."_

"Who knows? We won't know for sure until they're caught." Dani frowned. "When do you think that we'll actually catch some of the missing ghosts?"

"_Soon…Soon."_ Danny stated. "_Look, I have to go. I'll talk to you when I get home._"

"Fine."

* * *

><p>"Okay, I get that you wanted to be the big hero." Jinx noted as they sat on top of a tall building. "But…why didn't you come as Phantom?"<p>

"Phantom's a ghost. His actions could get the Ghost Zone in trouble if he interfered with an international summit. But Red X…" Red X noted. "He won't get anyone in trouble. That's the reason why I went to Gotham like this in the first place."

"And here I thought that it was because you wanted to hide your ectoplasmic signature." Jinx mentioned. "By the way…does this have anything to do with what happened with the Gotham villains in Amity Park?"

"…A little." Red X acknowledged. "I wanted to make a false trail so that no one would go to Amity Park to look for me."

"Ah…I don't think you have to worry about that." Jinx chuckled. "After all, it seems like only an idiot would attack Amity Park now."

"You obviously haven't watched the news."

"What?"

"Let's just say that the Green Lanterns are there now looking over the place." Red X sighed.

"Okay…" Jinx stood.

"So…What do we do now?" Red X questioned. "We both know each other's secrets, and if Phantom and Jinx meet up again…We'll have to fight."

"Like we said earlier, we'll just have to avoid hurting each other too much." Jinx stated. "Until…we figure something out at least."

"Fair enough." Red X nodded and stood as well. "It was good seeing you again, Jen. Stay safe."

"You too." Jinx smiled at the boy. "Call me sometime. We can hang out like before…but, you know, incognito."

"You got it."

In a swirl of pink, she was gone. Red X decided that it was time to leave as well. Just as he was about to teleport away, Red X heard a small voice.

"Hello?"

Red X froze and turned. "You're…Shiva's daughter. Cassandra, right?."

"Yes." Cassandra's eyes examined Red X.

"And…you managed to hide from Jinx and me?" Red X tensed.

"Yes. I have been trained to be the ultimate assassin since I was born. I can even hide from my mother if I really want to." Cassandra explained. "It helps being quiet and observant."

"And…what did you hear?" Red X questioned.

"Enough." Cassandra answered. "But do not worry. I will not tell anyone."

"Really…" Red X pulled out a pistol and pointed it at her. "And what's stopping me from making sure that you never have the opportunity."

"Because you are a good person." Cassandra answered. "You would never hurt a child. Even one that knew your secrets."

Red X slowly put his gun away. "You're right…"

"I…" Was the girl…blushing? "I have really admired you. You have fought my mother and won. Plus…you showed mercy to that man that started the GIW war. I never knew that a person could be that forgiving…"

"O…kay…" Red X was confused. "Then…what do you want?"

"Well…at first, I just wanted to give you this." Cassandra stated as she pulled out a folder. "I knew that you could get this to Amity Park and that you would with Fenton, but now… I want to say thank you too."

"For what?"

"Giving me hope." Cassandra handed him the folder. "Thank you."

"What's this?"

Cassandra began to walk away. "Something that you'll want to know about."

Red X looked at the folder. On the top of it were two simple bold words. What they meant…he had no idea.

"What's the…Ghoul Project?"

* * *

><p>"The Ghoul Project is a success." One of the scientist spoke.<p>

"Is it?"

"Yes, sir!" Another scientist smiled. "Well…It is a step in the right direction, but that's a good sign."

Joel watched from his spot in the chair. His hands were handcuffed to keep him from doing anything. The weird thing was that cuffs were green and glowing. It had not effect on him, but he hoped it wasn't radioactive.

"His body has actually accepted the ectoplasm. It's being ingrained in him." The first scientist explained. "It's so strange compared to the other cases. Everyone else has either died from Ecto-acne or dissolved. We don't really understand why he survived…"

"Especially because of his low compatibility level." The other scientist reasoned. "His body shouldn't be able to accept the ectoplasm, but here he is. Alive and perfectly intact…well, for now at least. We don't know if he'll stay this stable for long."

"Hmm…" The tall muscular man with three scars running down his face examined Joel. He looked the boy right in the eyes and smirked. "It's something that science cannot take into account."

"Er…what is it , sir?"

"Force of will." Vandal Savage answered. "It was makes humans so much different. We preserver. We survive. We evolve. It is why we are destined to be great."

"…Y-yes, sir…" The first scientist nodded.

"What do you want us to do, sir?" The other scientist asked. "There are a lot of paths that we can take from here."

"Can you replicate this result?" Savage questioned.

"We would have to run some tests, but if you really want results, we can perform a…" The scientist grinned. "A dissection."

Joel had to force himself not to flinch. That did not sound good.

"No." Savage glared. "You do not throw away a possible asset uselessly."

"Then…what do you want us to do?" The first scientist questioned.

"We need to test to prove how strong he is." Savage responded.

"Well, his ectoplasmic levels are-"

"Not like that." Savage stated. "Those readings lie. The only way for results to be truly accurate to by battle."

"Battle, sir?"

"Yes." Savage nodded. "It is the best way to prove yourself. And I have the perfect candidate that will arrive soon. You remember Solomon Grundy?"

"Er…Yes, sir. He almost destroyed half the facility. That's why we asked to have him removed."

"Yes, but now we have the means to contain him." Savage grinned. "He will be the perfect test for young Joel."

"Yes, sir. Do you want us to wait for Grundy to arrive?"

"No. Make him fight the rejects. They'll be dead soon anyway." Savage explained.

"Yes, sir."

Joel frowned. That did not sound good. Despite what they said, he did not feel stronger. Granted, he didn't really feel that much at all. Everything seemed…numb. Nothing hurt anymore at least.

Numbness, however, would not help him win a fight. Especially with those…things. The failed experiments had powers, but dissolved quickly. If he was put in a fight with them, he might be able to outlast them, but…

They had sharp teeth, claws, and blasts of energy coming out of their hands.

He really needed help now…

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Raven<strong>

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No."

"Pretty please with whip cream, sugar, sprinkles, fudge, candy and chocolate syrup on top?"

"Oh! In that case I'll have to change my mind."

"Really?"

"Of course not." Rachel rolled her eyes. "Now go away."

"Aw! But why?" Dani pouted.

"Because you're annoying, and I don't want to train today." Rachel explained. "I'm tired and sore."

"But Nyx and Youngblood already went back to the Ghost Zone today, Valerie has homework, I don't know where Wulf is, and Dad and Vision are…er…um…"

"Say no more."

"Ah, you understand."

"No. Literally say no more. I think I'm going to throw up." Rachel muttered dryly.

"But you understand my problem." Dani sighed dramatically. "I'm boooooooooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed!"

"Not my problem." Rachel stated.

"It will be soon." Dani flopped down on the ground. "Remember? I break stuff when I'm bored, and we're in your room…"

"You wouldn't."

"That lamp sure looks expensive." Dani noted.

Rachel sighed. "Look I don't want to spar or train."

"Then we can do something else."

"…Do you like to do anything that's quiet?" Rachel questioned.

"No."

"Really?"

"Well…" Dani thought. "I have gotten into art lately."

"There. That's something to do." Rachel went back to reading. "Draw something."

"Ah…okay."

(Fifteen minutes later…)

Rachel looked up from her book. "Dani? Are you alive?"

"What? Of course!" Dani frowned as she continued to draw. "Why would you ask that?"

"Because I haven't ever heard you be quiet for more than 5 minutes." Rachel stated.

"Well, you're the one that told me to be quiet." Dani argued.

"I didn't think you would actually listen…" Rachel muttered.

"Well, I did. And look at what I drew!" Dani showed her the picture.

"Is…that me?"

"Yep."

"Wow…This is actually really good." Rachel complimented. "I'm surprised."

"Really? Because I'm not even done yet..." Dani shrugged.

"What more is there to do?"

"I still need to do the surroundings. I was going to have you sit on a pile of dynamite. Then I was going to have an anvil hang over your head with a rope that looked ready to snap." Dani explained. "Finally, I was going to point a canon at the back of your head."

"…"

"…I was going to call it 'Overkill'…"

"…"

"What do you think?"

"I think that the moment is ruined."

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah, I bet none of you saw that coming. I was waiting to get to this chapter. It was one of my favorites from when I was planning out the story. Oh, and for anyone that didn't get it. The thing that 'many of you have been asking for' from my last AN was Red X returning…Just wanted to clarify.<strong>

**Watch Dogs is coming out soon. Or, as my circle of friends like to call it, 'Please don't suck!' So…my next update might not be as fast. I'd like to update in two weeks, but…I'm probably going to be busy playing one of my most anticipated games of 2014. FORGIVE ME!**

**On a side note, the movies that have come out lately...have disappointed me. Amazing Spiderman 2 and Godzilla 2014 did not live up to the hype. They should have been named "The Amazing build up movie for Sinister Six and Venom" and "Boring soldiers try and fail to nuke Godzilla." They weren't really bad, but they just weren't as good as they should have been. Let's hope Xmen: Days of Future Past and Guardians of the Galaxy makes up for it...**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	11. Trust

*If anyone is interested at a sneak peak at the novel I'm writing, then the first chapter is published on my Fiction Press account. The link to the story is at the top of my profile.*

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none." William Shakespeare

* * *

><p>Chapter 11: "Trust"<p>

(Wednesday-September 15, 2010)

"You will need to watch your backs while you're in there." Phantom instructed.

Young Justice's newest mission was simple but dangerous. Superboy and Miss Martian would impersonate the Terror Twins and infiltrate Belle Reve as inmates. There, they would try and discover the reason so many ice villains attacked on July fourth. Both of Phantom's alien teammates were disguised as blonds.

Luckily for the mission, Superboy matched Tommy Terror's build. Plus, M'gann's shape shifting ability allowed her to look like Tuppence Terror. This would allow them to live in the prison without anyone knowing. As long as they didn't blow their covers at least.

Unfortunately, there was a problem…Phantom couldn't assist them on this mission.

"I have something I need to take care of tomorrow, so I can't help you if you get in trouble. Aqualad and Red Tornado will be outside, but they can't turn intangible." Phantom explained.

"What's up?" Superboy (now dubbed Conner as his secret identity) questioned. He was already in custody, so Phantom had to be invisible while talking to them.

"Let's just say it's a family issue and leave it at that." The invisible Phantom stated.

"It should be fine." M'gann noted. "This mission shouldn't turn violent anyway."

"Please, when do our missions ever go as planned?" Superboy snorted.

"Well…I was just trying to be optimistic…" M'gann deflated.

"Sorry, Miss M, but Conner's right." Phantom stated. "Things could turn south fast. Both of you need to stay low and keep your ears to the ground. Remember, these criminals will kill you."

"Noted." Conner grunted.

"M'gann, you will still be able to use telepathy. Use that to find out what they're planning. Be careful, though. You never know who can detect infiltration to their minds." Phantom ordered.

"Of course." M'gann nodded.

"Conner." Phantom began. "You'll be the only person around Icicle Jr.'s age. Trying to be his friend will make sense, especially considering who his dad is. I read Jr.'s file. He's quick to brag. Getting him to talk about any sort of plans will be easy."

"Yeah, yeah, I know…" Superboy looked away.

"Okay…" Phantom sighed. "Just…stay safe."

"We will." M'gann gave a small smile.

With that, Phantom began to leave. They had been like that for a while. Ever since the Bialyan mission, Superboy and Miss Martian seemed to be distant from Phantom. While most of the team quickly forgave Phantom for his mistrust, the aliens of the team…were going at a little slower pace.

Logically, no one could be really mad at Phantom for his mistrust. That Phantom existed long before they knew him, and was fresh from the Nocturne Crisis. That's why the others dismissed it. Conner and M'gann, however, couldn't.

It wasn't that they were outright angry. They were just distant. The two of them felt personally betrayed. While it may not have been the Danny Phantom they knew that didn't believe them, it was still some form of Danny. It must have hurt them. Phantom realized that. But there was nothing he could do about it.

What was he supposed to say? 'Hey, I'm sorry that my past self was an idiot for not knowing you.' That sounded stupid. So the halfa would have to wait. Eventually, the feelings would fade.

Yet, at the same time, Phantom couldn't just move on himself. He had found out that there was a possible mole on the team. It could be anybody. Well…Aqualad was unlikely. He had informed Phantom of the mole himself, and had been Aquaman's partner for years.. Robin was probably out as well. It would be impossible to be a mole while working directly with Batman.

Then Kid Flash…Probably not. The guy had family relations to the League. Plus, he couldn't keep his mouth shut long enough to be the mole.

That left three. Superboy. Miss Martian. Artemis. If there was a mole, it was one of them. But…Phantom couldn't accept that. He knew them. He trusted them…to an extent…more than he trusted anyone outside his close circle of family and friends at least.

But…Superboy might have some secret coding in his DNA. Miss Martian didn't really like to talk about her life before the Team. And Artemis…she had relations to the enemy. Phantom knew from his glimpse at her memories that Sportsmaster was her father. But…Danny didn't judge people passed on their genetics. Plus Artemis seemed to hate her father from what Danny observed.

Hopefully, this mole thing was just a play. With luck, there was no mole, and everything would go back to normal soon.

Yeah…With luck…Like Phantom had ever been lucky before in his life…

* * *

><p>"So…You won't be able to hang out tomorrow?" Victor questioned as he dribbled the basketball. They were currently at the public basketball court and were shooting hoops. Well…Rachel wasn't. She was reading, but that was no surprise.<p>

"Yeah." Dani nodded. "My brother and I are going to spend some time together. You know, sibling bonding."

"Hmm…" Rachel eyed her friend from her spot at the bench. "And what are you doing?"

"I don't know yet." Dani lied. "But I'm sure it's going to be fun."

"Yeah, I bet." Nyx smirked. "Whenever you and your brother hang out, it gets destructive."

"…Sometimes…" Dani admitted.

"Does it have anything to do with…family business?" Youngblood questioned.

"Family business?" Victor asked.

"Er…yes." Dani shifted uncomfortably. "He means that it might have to do with an invention or one of my Dad's investments."

"Oh…"

That wasn't true. By 'family business,' Youngblood obviously meant secret ghost business. Stuff that no one except the halfas could be involved with. It was true. No full ghost was allowed to go. Not to where they were going at least. If people got word that a group of ghosts were searching Metropolis…

Bad things would happen.

Of course, that didn't mean that Dani and Danny couldn't bring a human ally. That left room open for the Red Huntress at least.

"Will you leave school early?" Youngblood inquired.

"Yeah, about an hour."

"Lucky…" Nyx huffed jealously.

"By the way, Dani…" Rachel questioned from the bench. "Aren't you supposed to be home early today?"

"Ack! That's right!" Dani's eyes widened. "Vi…Dad wanted me home early today. I better go, or he'll get mad."

With a few goodbyes, Dani began to walk away. She wasn't actually going home. No, she was going to Lake Eerie. She had training today.

After what happened with Nocturne and Aragon, Dani was ready to get stronger. It proved that she wasn't ready for this league of combat yet. She had to get stronger to deal with threats like that.

Training with Vision was harsh, but Dani was already seeing results. She was already a little faster, stronger, and had better control of her ectoplasm. It wasn't a large amount of improvement, it was enough.

"Alright, I need to get there before Vision gets mad…" Dani ducked into an ally. "I'm going ghost!"

* * *

><p>Joel was used to training. When he had been with the Shadows, he had been forced to train for almost entire days. That training, however, was different from this, however. What Joel had been going through lately wasn't training. No, what he was experiencing was death matches.<p>

Each day, he was thrown into a metal room with one of the 'rejects.' Then, these so-called failed experiments would attack him, and he would be forced to fight for his life. If you could call that fighting. It was more like a desperate struggle to avoid dying.

While he did, in fact, feel stronger, Joel still was hard pressed to keep up with the monsters in the arena with him. He was a young child, and while he was quite skilled for his age, he lacked the ability to fight off monster that could fly, turn invisible, and pass through physical attacks. Thus, he merely was forced to dodge and run in order to avoid certain death.

For some reason, though, the scientists seemed to think that Joel should be doing more. They thought that he should be able to fight them off. Were they insane? How could he do that? According to them, he should be showing signs of powers, but there was nothing. All that he gained was a little boosted speed and strength.

And that was not nearly enough…

If he wanted to continue to survive, he would need to use these powers that they said he had. The only problem was how. It wasn't instinctual yet, otherwise he would have already used them. No…he needed practice, but that would only be helpful if someone was here to instruct him.

"Gah…" Joal groaned a he laid down in his cage. The fights had taken their toll. Each day he would be hurt. Some days were worse than others, but he was always sore and tired. "My luck is going to run out soon…"

It was then that Joel noticed something odd. He could no longer feel the cage floor. That wasn't too odd. Sometimes, Joel couldn't feel anything at all. No, the strange part was the fact that the ceiling of the cage was now closer than before.

Joel looked down and blinked. He was flying…

Wait…HE. WAS. FLYING.

"…Well…It's a start." Joel muttured calmly. He tried to right himself, and with a bit of concentration, he landed his feet on the floor. "No if only some of the other powers would show up…"

Ask and ye shall receive, because a new power decided to surface at this point. It was then that Joel turned intangible. Unfortunately, the cage he was in prevented escape through intangibility. So, that wouldn't help him get out of the facility.

Not that it would matter. Only his legs turned intangible anyway, and, of course, his clothes didn't turn intangible with him. As such, his pants fell to the ground.

"…" Joel eyed the rags he called pants as they lie around his ankles. "Okay then. I officially hate these powers."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-September 16, 2010)<p>

After obtaining the folder from Cassandra, Phantom had been troubled to find out the truth about the thing called the Ghoul Project. From what the folder stated, a large portion of ectoplasmic energy had been obtained after the GIW War. Apparently, there was an idea to use this ectoplasm to create special weapons.

That was all the folder said, though. The exact details of what types of weapons were not described. In addition, the folder never mentioned the purpose of creating the weapons or the details of how the weapons were going to be made. So, Phantom only had a minimum amount of info on this Ghoul Project.

There wasn't a whole lot more mentioned in the folder. A key lead, however, gave Phantom a location to go investigate. According to the info from Cassandra, Lex Corp had something to do with this Ghoul Project. That meant that Metropolis was the best place to look considering that was where the huge company was based.

Cassandra hadn't mentioned anything else about the Ghoul Project when they spoke, so this must be all she knew about it. Phantom was thankful for the information even if he didn't exactly know what Cassandra wanted. After all, knowing about this attempt to make extremely dangerous and unstable ectoplasmic weaponry was better than being ignorant about it.

So, Phantom decided he needed to go to Metropolis to search, but considering how badly he would have failed in the Rhelasia incident without help, Phantom decided he would need help. Unfortunately, he couldn't just bring anybody with him. Taking any ghosts with him could lead to trouble for the Ghost Zone if they were caught, and let's face it there would be a good chance that someone would find out. Yet at the same time, Phantom didn't feel that he could trust all his teammates from Young Justice with this just yet.

Thus, Phantom decided he would have to settle with a small team of being that could pass off as normal humans, that wouldn't bring bad attention to the Ghost Zone, and that he could trust completely. Two people met all those criteria…Well, three including Vlad, but Phantom didn't want Vlad be directly involved with this considering Vlad's business relationship with Luthor. So, Phantom decided to ask Valerie and Dani to go with him to Metropolis.

They accepted immediately.

As such, the three of them had been discretely searching through Lex Corp's many different locations in Metropolis. Their search ranged from the main building to some of the most hidden storehouses. It was fortunate for them that Vlad agreed to assist their search by providing this information on Lex Corp. If he hadn't, this search would be fruitless.

…Well, more fruitless than it was now at least, because they had found jack diddly squat.

They found nothing. There was no trace of this Ghoul Project. It was like it didn't exist, and Phantom was beginning to think it didn't. Maybe Cassandra was trying to trick him or get attention? Possibly, but…Why would she lie to do that? She seemed like a straight forward type of person. Plus, Phantom's gut was telling him that something about this Ghoul Project was true.

There only a few more places to search. Truth be told, Phantom didn't really want to find anything. He had enough painful reminders of the war. For example…what was right in front of him…

_In honor of Skulker the Ghost Zone's Greatest Hunter_

"I didn't know that Superman did this…" Phantom muttered. Despite being in ghost form, the halfa wore regular clothes. He wore a simple red shirt and jeans. A black toboggan hat and sunglasses hid his most unusual features from view. To many, he would look like a normal human. It would have been easier to just stay human, but Phantom wanted to travel fast and silently. He could use the Red X suit, but he wanted to leave that option available in the future to get in with Luthor and the Shadows. Thus, this was the best option.

While moving through the park to get to his next destination, Phantom spotted this simple and small memorial stone in the Metropolis park. Despite his hurry, Phantom stopped when he saw this. Like the other ghosts that had a personal relationship (friend or foe) with Phantom, Skulker had a similar stone set in the Masters Mansion. But this…It was different.

It showed that at least someone was saddened by Skulker's death other than Phantom.

"Danny?" Valerie questioned as she walked up behind Phantom. Like Phantom, she was dressed in disguise. Her red and black hoody, black trucker's hat, and shades hid most of her head. "Are you okay? We've been trying to text for twenty minutes."

"Oh…" Phantom gave her a small sad smile. "Sorry, I got distracted."

"Obviously…" Valerie walked beside the halfa and saw the stone. "Oh…I see."

"Yeah…" Phantom turned back to the stone. "I just…I guess that I still think it's still hard imagine him being…gone. He never gave up. He was always a constant rival. Someone that would always find a way to push me."

"He was trying to kill you, you know." Valerie noted.

"At first, yes, but…" Phantom frowned. "I don't know if he would have gone through with it if he had a chance in those last few months."

"What do you mean?"

"Respect." Phantom answered simply. "We earned each other's respect. I think that eventually, he came to think that killing me would be a waste. Even up to the last time we talked to each other…He talked big, but I could see the truth. He wouldn't kill me. To him, the thrill of the hunt was better than the actual kill. Skulker wasn't about to give that up."

"But what about his obsession?" Valerie questioned.

"I think beating me without trying to kill would have been more than enough to justify his claims of being the Ghost Zone's Greatest Hunter." Phantom mentioned. "In his mind at least…"

"…Okay…" Valerie nodded. "I think I can understand what you're saying. You're relationship with your enemy changed over time. That sounds familiar…"

Phantom snorted. "Yeah…"

"Anyway…" Valerie sighed. "Spirit and I think we found something. We thought you might want to look with us."

"Alright…" Phantom took one last glance at the stone and began to follow after Valeire. "Hey…Val?"

"Yeah?" Valerie looked at her friend.

"I never said thanks…You know, for everything you've done for me as Red Huntress." Phantom noted. "It means a lot to me that you've had my back through everything."

"I haven't had your back through everything…" Valerie muttured.

"Don't be like that." Phantom rolled his eyes. "After all, I was the one that talked you out of helping in the war. So that's my fault."

"Danny…"

"The war…it wasn't yours to fight." Phantom argued. "It was ours, and if you got hurt…I never would have forgiven myself. Besides, you're here now, and that says a lot. After all, you're an important part of Team Phantom."

"Team Phantom?" Valeire smirked at that. "You always were self-centered."

"This coming from you?" Phantom grinned. "If I remember correctly, you're the one that had Kwan chase me because I accidentally made you spill coffee on yourself."

"You're never going to let that go, huh?"

"Nope."

As they left, Valerie never noticed as a duplicate of Phantom appeared next to Skulker's memorial. He placed a bouquet of flowers next to the stone, and said, "I'm sorry we never got the chance to fight again, Skulker. And I'm sorry that you never got to fulfill your obsession…"

'I'm so sorry…'

* * *

><p>"I wonder if this is what Roman gladiators felt like…" Joel voiced his thoughts.<p>

"Shut up." One of the soldiers around Joel grunted. They were currently leading Joel to the battle area. Each one had an ectoplasmic rifle and were pointing them at Joel.

Joel eyed the soldier. He was always good at reading other people and discerning their thoughts. Although he wore a mask, Joel could see the fear in his eyes. These soldiers were afraid of him. Why? He had not shown any significant ability yet, and they had guns.

Was it what the scientists said? No. These soldiers were too hardened to believe the scientist without visual proof. That meant he must know something about him. Was it his training? Was it his potential? Was it a past experience with a ghost? Joel wasn't sure.

"Why do your eyes show fear?" Joel questioned.

"I said shut up!" The soldier hit Joel with the butt of the gun. Joel didn't flinch. He felt nothing. Although…there seemed to be blood running down his face now. Oh well…

The soldier flinched as Joel's eyes bore into him. While the eyes didn't show anger at the soldier, the eyes didn't show any fear either. The kid had guns pointed at his face and wasn't even fazed. That was the way he had been since he got there. It was terrifying to see. Fully grown men had been screaming in fear in minutes, but this boy…He didn't even blink. It was like he could stare into Hell itself and not flinch.

The soldier quickly looked away uncomfortably.

Joel sighed as they continued to their walk to the arena. It was always like that. Joel's natural talent and ability to always remain calm was why the Shadows kept onto him for so long even though he refused to kill. After all, who else could be in this situation and not even make a whimper?

"Ah! You're here!" One of the scientist grinned as Joel walked in. "That's good. Now listen, today someone important is going to show up…Wait! What happened?! Why is your face covered in blood?!"

"I bumped my head on my way of my cage." Joel responded immediately. His answer caused the soldiers to glance at him.

"Is that so…" The second scientist frowned. "Because I don't think that you would do that. You could never be described as clumsy Joel."

"I guess I'm having an off day." Joel responded.

"Hmm…" The first scientist eyed the soldiers. "You know that Joel can't be harmed today. Not before the match. If this affects his performance today, you all will pay. Not just the one that hit Joel."

The soldiers squirmed.

"Today has to be perfect." The second scientist turned to Joel. "This means that you have to fight. None of this running around like a frightened animal routine you like to do."

Joel's only response of the instruction was to blink once.

"If this goes bad…We won't be the only ones hurt because of this, Joel." The first scientist snarled. "I'll make sure you'll be dissected alive.

Joel didn't flinch. He didn't frown. He didn't even blink at this threat. His response was only, "I am unable to do anything else against these monsters other than run."

"Just do it!" The second scientist looked like he wanted to smack Joel. "You have the potential and power! Just use your powers."

"I am unable to so at this time."

"Fine then!" The first scientist roared. "Savage apparently thinks that you'll grow stronger under the pressure. So be it. This time we'll let you face the most violent and dangerous of all the failed experiments."

"So you better learn to use your powers quickly boy." The second scientist sneered. "Otherwise you'll be eaten alive."

"…Whatever happens, happens."

* * *

><p>"Damn…" Phantom muttered as he looked through a large crate in the warehouse. "I thought you said you found something?"<p>

"We did." Red Huntress nodded. "The scanners you got said that high levels of ectoplasmic energy was in here."

"But nothings here!" Spirit kicked over one of the crates. Like the other two heroes, she was dressed in shades and a hoody to hide her appearance. "Nothing but some stupid computer parts."

"Well…if the scanners showed something, then this warehouse must have some sort of secret…" Phantom muttered.

"We better find it quickly, then. Because someone will probably come by soon." Red Huntress mentioned.

"Most of the crates have been checked." Phantom sighed. "Maybe there's something we're missing, like a-"

"Secret passage under the warehouse?" Spirit cut him off.

"Yeah, exactly." Phantom turned to his sister.

"You're in luck then. Cause there seems to be one here." Spirit pointed to the hatch that was hidden below the crate she kicked.

"…That works…" Red Huntress noted as they examined the hidden hatch. "But I doubt that whatever's down there will be unguarded."

"Then we knock out the guards." Phantom responded. "It won't be too hard. Besides, I need to know if this Ghoul Project thing is real."

"I can understand. I'm just saying that it's reckless to jump in without a plan." Red Huntress reasoned. "We should scope the place out first. Send a duplicate to get a layout of the place."

"Okay that sounds good." Phantom agreed.

"Er…" Spirit addressed the older teens as she fazed back through the hatch. "I kind of already looked. There's no guards."

"…Well, way to make us look stupid." Red Huntress ginned.

"You get used to it." Phantom noted. "Alright, let's go."

* * *

><p>"Ah!"<p>

"Hurry, hurry!"

"Hush, hush, it will be alright."

"What if things don't go right?"

"They will!"

Joel watched the people in the observation center behind the impenetrable glass. They were all scurrying around in fear. From what Joel understood, the person who provided the space for the Ghoul Project was coming to view the project. This person must be a close acquaintance or friend of Master Al Ghul and Vandal Savage if they would trust this project in his hands. Not only that, he must have a lot of power and money at his disposal.

Part of Joel felt incredibly curious about this benefactor. After all, who could earn such trust from two immortals? It could be Lex Luthor. The bald businessman had been to the project before…after hours at least. That made the most sense, and if that was the case, then he was likely in Metropolis…

That was an interesting thought. Joel didn't exactly know where he was. He had been blindfolded when he was moved here. This ignorance would not help any possible escape attempts. If he eventually wanted to free himself, Joel would have to at least know where he was.

As luck would have it, Joel quickly received his answer. It was hard not to recognize the individual that was now in the observation room. She was a tall, beautiful woman with silky black hair and sun kissed skin. Her unusual clothing was rather revealing, but it also gave her a regal appearance.

Crap…what was her name? He could easily recognize faces,but was so bad with names…Was it Wasp? No…Sting? No…Wait…Bee? Yes, it was Bee.

This person was Queen Bee the queen of Bialya and well know seductress with her enthrallment ability. As such, she wasn't welcome in most countries…That meant…he was probably in Bialya, and that was not a good thing.

"Damn it…" Joel whispered. Escape had gotten a lot more difficult.

* * *

><p>"I don't know about you, but I expected something different." Spirit noted as she held the simple ecto-pistol. "Yeah, there are ectoplasmic weapons, they're so weak! Even if a ghost got hit by this, it wouldn't be hurt that badly."<p>

"I know…" Phantom grunted as he examined all the weapons that were packed into the crates. "I thought Lex Luthor would think bigger than this."

"Well, I was rather low on resources, but I figured that these would do." Luthor's voice rung through the room.

The three heroes froze as a large screen activated on the far side of the dark room. It showed Luthor's face. He didn't seem angry at all. No, he was more amused than anything else.

"That's…not good." Valerie noted.

No it wasn't…

"Don't fret, children. I'm not going to call the Justice League on you or anything." Luthor smiled. "I just thought that it was amusing that my employees kept reporting that young teens were snooping around my various buildings and warehouses. After I found out it was you, however, I knew there wasn't any real trouble."

"You seem pretty confident of that considering your storing weapons." Spirit glared.

"These weapons aren't illegal." Phantom responded to his sister. "The power grade is way too low. These are non-lethal stuff. If the power was higher, then yeah, he might have a problem, but as it is now, he isn't doing anything wrong with this stuff."

"Ah, you know your stuff, Danny Phantom." Luthor nodded. "Indeed, all these weapons are perfectly legal for me to own and sell. I even have the paperwork for it. It was ungodly to sign everything…"

"If this stuff is all legal…" Red Huntress pondered. "Why did you hide?"

"To avoid theft and damage, of course." Luthor retorted. "Wouldn't some random teenagers coming into a warehouse with weapons within reach. And I think that you three have proven that case for me."

They were silent.

"I take it that there is a reason for your intrusion on my property." Luthor raised an eyebrow.

"…I heard a rumor that you were mass producing weapons here in Metropolis." Phantom gave a half truth. "I didn't know how much I could trust the rumor, but my gut told me that something was up. I guess you do have weapons, but…Please, Mr. Luthor, forgive us for the intrusion. We didn't mean any harm."

"Hmm…" Luthor frowned. "I do suppose that nothing was really hurt by your endeavor, and I don't really want any bad publicity from getting Danny Phantom in trouble. You have a lot of high level reporters that seem to like you after all."

"Yeah, that's a new thing." Despite the situation, Spirit grinned at Phantom. He and reporters had a really bad history.

"I'll let this slide out of good faith, Danny Phantom." Luthor smiled. "But please don't do this again."

"Don't worry. We won't." Red Huntress elbowed Phantom. "I did tell you that this was a bad idea."

"…Yeah…"

"Er…thanks, Mr. Luthor…" Spirit tried to show her appreciation.

"Think nothing of it. Like I said, there was no harm done…"

* * *

><p>"I expect an impressive show." Queen Bee stated to the scientist. Despite this, she didn't turn to the scientists. Her attention was focused solely on Joel.<p>

The young boy felt very unnerved by this. This woman had the ability to control most men and some woman. Joel didn't think that he would be able to resist her control. There was a good thirty meters and thick impenetrable class between him and her, and he could still feel some sort of pull. And that…was unnerving.

Her beauty was that of a goddess. Joel could easily see how people would give up their free will to this woman. Even now, Joel felt the need to want to please this woman. For someone who prided himself on his willpower, Joel was greatly troubled by the aspect. He could feel it. If she was in the same room as he was, then Queen Bee could order him to do anything, and he would comply with great joy.

"You'll get one…" Joel answered. Wait? Did he actually say that? That's not what he meant to say.

"Good." Queen Bee gave him a small smile. Joel instantly felt his heart began to beat faster.

A load groan drew the boy's attention away from Queen Bee. Across the arena, the large metal door was opening. As the metal door shifted to the side, Joel caught a view of what was behind it. It was another one of the 'failed experiments.'

Like the other people in the Ghoul Project, Joel's future opponent was human. Now, however, that was hard to tell. The man was now completely green. His skin, hair, and even clothes had an eerie green glow to it. The only part of him that wasn't green was his red eyes.

"Grah!" The creature growled at Joel. His sharp fangs and teeth were like razors. The man's once normal hands were now claws the length of machetes.

Despite his rather monstrous appearance, the creature looked like he wasn't feeling good. Sweat was pouring down the monster's skin. His skin seemed to ripple and twitch as if it was about to fall apart. Joel recognized this look. It meant that the man was now unstable. He would be lucky to live more than fifteen minutes.

"AHHH!" The being that was once a man now screeched. He was foaming at the mouth and looked ready to kill.

That was the worst part of the instability. The victims all quickly lost their minds as their bodies fell apart. Joel had seen that more than once while fighting the failed experiments. When they become like this, they quickly acted like wild animals that could only think about killing.

The creature….the failed ghoul was ready to kill, and Joel was the only one in the room…

"You want me?" Joel questioned as he slid into a self-defense stance. "Then come get me."

* * *

><p>"Well…That was a waste of time." Red Huntress noted as they were flying home. Unfortunately, Spirit and Red Huntress were not keyed into the Zeta-beam system, so they were forced to take the long way home. It wouldn't be too long, though. Their top speed was rather fast.<p>

Phantom, however, had to hide the fatigue he felt from both the day and his usual problems of fluctuating powers. Fortunately, he hadn't been in a situation since the Tower of Fate mission that showed his weakened abilities, but Phantom could still feel it. The mission in Bialya had shown just how big of a power gap there was from his past self and the current Phantom.

It was…unnerving to say the least.

"Yeah…" Phantom muttered. "I thought there would be more."

"Well, I don't like it!" Spirit pouted. "I don't trust Luthor. I think there's more to the Ghoul Project thing you found out about."

"You mentioned your source, though…" Red Huntress reasoned. "How reliable is the daughter of a trained assassin that's your enemy."

"She is Shiva's daughter…" Spirit conceded. "And she did try to interfere with my fight with Shiva, but still…Why would she just make this up? I don't think anyone in the Shadows would do this for just for kicks…"

"Maybe she was trying to get us away from the city?" Red Huntress suggested.

"That would make sense..." Phantom mentioned. "If there weren't several other ghosts ready to fight if we aren't there. The only people of interest in Amity Park are the ghosts and…Fenton and the Masters."

"But they already kidnapped you, and the last time someone tried to hurt me, they were beat up, sent to jail, and torn apart in the underground community by Dad." Spirit put in her two cents. "It would be stupid to try anything against our family now."

"And we haven't heard about any attacks in Amity Park…" Red Huntress agreed. "So, this was either some sort of prank…or we're missing something."

"We're missing something." Phantom said with certainty. "Luthor must be hiding something. The Ghoul Project…it's bigger than what Cassandra knows. I can feel it in my gut. Something bad is going on."

"Then what do we do?" Spirit questioned. "It's not like we can go snooping around Lex Corp anymore, and we have no more leads."

"We keep our ears to the ground. More people must know about this ghoul thing." Phantom noted.

"Yeah, Mr. Masters has a lot of connections. And you have access to the Justice League data base." Red Huntress agreed. "If anything pops up about the Ghoul Project, you'll know of it."

"But Luthor knows we know about something." Spirit interjected.

"…What?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"I believe that Lex Corp is involved." Spirit explained. "And now Luthor knows that we're investigating weapons. He could make sure that there are no more info leaks."

"…Then what will happen to Cassandra?" Red Huntress questioned. "If this project is real, and she gave the enemy information on it, then…"

"She's been trained as a ninja." Phantom reasoned. "I don't think she would have helped me without covering her tracks."

"She's what, though? Nine? Ten?" Red Huntress pointed out.

"Compared to our own badass eleven year old?" Phantom smirked.

"Thank you." Spirit beamed.

"Okay, but do you think that you can get her to help us again?" Red Huntress questioned.

"Probably not." Phantom sighed. "I have no way to contact her."

But he did have contact with the Shadows in other ways. There was always Jinx and the Shadows' interest in Red X. Mabye he could use that…

The only problems were that Jinx would never give any info away and Danny's reluctance to use the Red X suit. The first problem with the Red X suit was that Phantom didn't enjoy the way it made him act. Phantom was always more brutal while wearing the suit. He ignored a lot of his base principles and code of honor.

Another other problem was…what if his healing failed while wearing the suit? His powers rarely just failed, in fact, Phantom's regeneration ability was the only power that seemed to remain constant, but he couldn't help but worry. If his powers failed while wearing the suit…he'd be helpless.

The final problem with using the Red X suit was…the Shadows would want Red X to kill for them. They were an assassin group after all. Phantom was sure that he wouldn't allow himself to do that. So, he'd leave the Red X option alone for now…

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Phantom looked at his phone and groaned. This couldn't be good. "Hey, was there a problem with the mission?"

"_No, the mission was mostly a success._" Batman's voice sounded through Phantom's Fenton Phones.

"Ah…then what do you need?"

"_We need to talk._" Batman responded. "_And…I think you should send someone from your Amity Park group to Belle Reve. The new Warden, Hugo Strange, has some information that you will want to hear about from him._"

"Okay, I'm with Red Huntress and Spirit now. If you key them into the Zeta-system, then they can get there quickly." Phantom reasoned. He looked at the two girls with him. "Er…you two don't mind going to Bell Reve for a chat with the warden, right?"

"Nope."

"Fine with me."

"They said yes." Phantom addressed Batman.

"_I'll key them in for temporary use. Just make sure to get here quickly. We have a lot to talk about._"

"Er…Okay."

* * *

><p>"Rah!" The creature roared as brought its machete claws down onto Joel.<p>

In a desperate move for survival, Joel rolled to the side. He managed to dodge the attack at the last second. The metal floor beneath them tore like wet clothing as the claws swept across it. Despite this, the creature moaned in pain. It obviously was having a hard time dealing with the pain of deterioration.

Joel was breathing hard. It was difficult trying to keep up with this monster. This being could fly at incredibly fast speeds, and Joel couldn't. After last night, Joel couldn't get his powers to activate for a second time. It seemed like the first time was merely a fluke.

"I could use another fluke, then…" Joel muttered. The monster lunged forward and tried to bite Joel. Luckily, the young boy managed to dodge the various attacks. Unfortunately while he wasn't hurt, the monster managed to bite into his ragged, torn shirt.

Joel thought that the monster would just tear his shirt apart, but he was surprised. Instead, the monster kept its hold onto Joel's shirt. With a whip of its head, the monster flung Joel into the air. In that instant of weightlessness, Joel realized that he was now defenseless. There was nothing he could do to dodge the next attack.

"GRAH!" The monster smiled in glee. It brought its claws up and held them below Joel. The intention was clear. It wanted to impale Joel.

"Crap!" Joel hissed as gravity took its hold, and he began to fall. He needed to float again. Come on, powers! Work!

And it did….

Joel sighed in relief as he stopped right above the monster's claws. He was a single second away from death. It seems that his powers reacted to the stress he felt. That was good, because this wasn't over.

"Ah?" The monster was confused for a single second before it regained its bearings. "Ah!"

Joel then realized that he was going to have to move. The creature was raising its claws for another attack. He had to move back. If he didn't, he would be torn to pieces. Come on! Move!

"Eh?" Joel blinked as he rocketed backwards at speeds no normal human could ever dream about going without a machine to help. Despite himself, Joel smirked. He did it.

Thud! Bang! Crack!

"Ah…kay…" Joel mumbled as his back hit the wall. He was suddenly glad for the numbness that seemed to come whenever he was in pain, because if it didn't, then he would be in a lot of agony right now.

"RAW!" The creature that Joel was fighting roared. It had been following Joel as he flew back. The creature had its mouth wide open and was planning to bite into Joe's neck.

In desperation, Joel brought his foot up and kicked the creature in the side of the head. His leg kept the sharp teeth from getting to him, but the monster's claws were ready to attack him as well. Using ever reflex and reaction speed he had, Joel managed to grab the monster's wrists before the claws could get to him.

It was then that Joel realized that he was in trouble. While he was holding the failed ghoul's claws and teeth away from his person, he was trapped. He was using all his strength to keep the monster away from him. If he tried to move, then he would be killed. If he tried to focus on turning intangible, he would be killed. In fact, if he tried to do anything other than fight off the creatures, he would be killed.

Even then…there was a good chance that he would be killed. The failed ghoul was quickly overpowering him. It was forcing its head against his foot and inching closer to his neck. Its claws were creeping to the boy's sides. Soon, he would be torn to pieces.

'I have to do something…' Joel realized. But what could he do? The only option he had that wouldn't get him killed was to somehow overpower the ghoul. He had to force it off of him. How could he do that, though? This creature was once a fully grown man, and now he had the powers of a ghost.

"Ah…" Joel whimpered as the sharp claws inched closer to his skin. He had to focus. Maybe if he concentrate like before, he could strengthen his body somehow. Thus, Joel began to focus solely on gaining strength. He forced energy through his body. Slowly his limbs began to glow green.

Yes! It was working…

A blinding light appeared in the room. The failed ghoul, the scientists, and even Queen Bee were shocked to see the light emitting from Joel. A white ring of light appeared around Joel's waste. It quickly separated and traveled up and down the boy's body.

In an instant, the boy was changed. His normally pale skin was now a tanner and darker hue. The shaggy, unwashed dark hair that was normally on the boy's head was now green with several streaks of white through it. The long scar that stretched from his right eyebrow up into his hair was now moved to down to right below his left eye from his cheek to his jaw.

The largest change, however, was his eyes. His once cool blue eyes were now a neon green. His eyes glared at the creature in front of him. Unlike before, Joel now had the look of pure anger on his face.

"Get off!" Joel roared. With a show of inhuman strength, Joel threw the failed ghoul off of him. The creature was flung across the room. With a loud thud and bang, it landed on the opposite wall.

Not letting up, Joel flew through the air with ease. It was instinctual, almost as if he had been practicing for months. He rammed into the creature fist first. His fist rammed into the monster's stomach. The failed ghoul gasped out and spit out green blood.

Joel didn't stop with that. He brought his fists down onto the creature's face and midsection multiple times. The failed ghoul cried in agony at the blows hit him like a sledgehammer.

In desperation, the failed ghoul swiped its claws at Joel. This time, the blow hit. Five deep gashes appeared on Joel's chest. The boy, however, was completely unbothered by this. The gashes didn't hurt and the blood had quickly stopped flowing. The wounds healed at an incredibly rapid pace.

Feeling afraid, the failed ghoul decided to try and escape from the new threat. It slipped away from Joel. It was then that the two ghouls began their chase around the room. Joel could quickly catch up to the creature, but the thing was slippery. It would flail wildly and gain more distance. If Joel wanted to hit the thing, he could have to do it at a distance.

Suddenly, Joel's hands began to twitch and tingle. His hands began to gain a green glow. With an instinct that was almost as if he'd done it hundreds of times, Joel extended his hands forward. A blast of green ectoplasmic energy shot out of his palms and hit the creature in the back.

With a roar, the failed ghoul retaliated. Opening his mouth widely, the creature sent a wave of ectoplasm at the boy. The light of the blast caused the observers to cover their eyes. For a few more seconds, the blast continued. When it finally faded down, Joel was nowhere to be seen.

The creature slumped in relief. It was over. The threat was gone. That's what it, until an invisible foot rammed into the back of the monster's head. It was sent crashing into the ground.

Joel turned himself visible again as he stood in front of the failed ghoul. He then grabbed the creature's claws and jammed them into the metal floor. The claws sunk deeply into the metal. Desperately, the failed ghoul tried to pull out his claws. Unfortunately, he was stuck and couldn't manage to free himself from the metal.

Realizing his situation, the creature looked up in fear. Joel glared down at it with anger filled eyes. Holding his hands out, Joel gathered a ball of ectoplasmic energy in front of him. With a shout, Joel brought the ball forward and slammed it into the creatures face.

The failed ghoul was sent blasting back. Unfortunately, his claws hadn't gone with him. The blast had forced the claws to break off. Thus, they were still stabbed into the floor. The creature, however, once again hit the wall. This time, however, when it slid to the floor, it didn't get back up. It was defeated.

Joel had won.

Approaching the failed ghoul, Joel quickly turned the creature on its back. Despite its defeat and pain, the creature was still conscious. It couldn't' move, however.

"Ahh…" It moaned in agony. The degradation seemed to be taking its tole. Its body could no longer hold out any longer, especially after the fight.

In an instant, the anger faded. Joel looked down in pity at the creature. It was not his enemy. The people that did this to them were to blame. But…where did the anger come from? Granted, he had the right to be mad, but Joel was never one to…feel or act based on emotions.

No…the anger he felt…It belonged to someone else. Joel could feel it. Whose anger was it, though?

"What are you waiting for?" Queen Bee questioned through the intercom. "Finish him."

Joel then realized something. The compulsive feeling to obey this woman was gone. It must have something to do with this new form. This…ghoul form made it so the woman couldn't control him. Perhaps it was because of this new form's physiology. Because for one, his heart wasn't beating, and two, he didn't need to breath. Who knew what else had changed...

For some reason, Joel wasn't troubled by that in the least.

Joel turned to Queen Bee. "No."

"…Excuse me?"

"I refuse to be what causes this pore soul to die." Joel stated evenly. "It…he has suffered enough. He doesn't deserve to be murdered."

"It will only die anyway in a few minutes." Queen Bee reasoned. "You'll only be putting it out of its misery."

"A few more minutes of life is more precious than you can understand." Joel glared. "I would rather suffer than to give up completely."

"How foolish." Queen Bee seemed annoyed.

"Well, I don't care what-gack!" Joel flinched as he spit out green blood. In shock, he fell to the ground. Like before, the rings of light appeared around him. This time, however, he was changed back into his normal appearance. "Ahn…"

What happened? Was it because of the injury? No, that wasn't the cause. It was more that his body just…gave out. He used too much power at one time. He still needed time to practice.

"Go. Take Joel back to his cage. He will need to rest for his next fight. Oh, and end that pathetic failed ghoul's life. We no longer have a need for it." Queen Bee ordered the guards.

"Yes, your majesty."

* * *

><p>"What you did was foolish and irresponsible." Batman glared at Phantom. "You should have told me about this information you had."<p>

Phantom scowled. He did not like being reprimanded like this. In fact…when was the last time he got reprimanded like this? Vlad and Vision advised him. Pandora chided him at times. Heck, he's even been yelled out at a lot, but reprimanded?

Hell no. The only people he took that from silently was his parents…

"This has nothing to do with you." Phantom stated. "This was my investigation."

"And look what happened. Now Luthor knows about your interest in his weapons. If anything was going on, he'll make sure that there will be no more information leaks." Batman stated.

"So I should go to you for all my problems now?" Phantom frowned.

"It wasn't your problem only." Batman got right in Phantom's face. "The League has a responsibility to monitor all ectoplasmic problems."

"You mean ghost problems? Then tell me this, where the hell were you when all the crap that happened in Amity Park for the past couple of months?" Phantom retorted.

"It's your friends that restrict our movements there." Batman answered.

"Maybe it's because you're so uncooperative." Phantom mumbled.

"Regardless, you restricted precious information from the League. If we knew about the Ghoul Project, then we could have put a stop to it." Batman explained. "Now, we will have to search for more information."

"You would have searched Metropolis too. Plus, you would have sent my Team to look for it. The end result would have been the same." Phantom argued.

"That's a hypothetical situation." Batman noted.

"Are you kidding me? You're all about hypothetical situations." Phantom glared.

"For future events, what's done is done. And because of you, we won't be able to investigate the Ghoul Project covertly." Batman explained. "You're on thin ice now. Don't mess up again, or you're off the Team."

"Whatever…" Phantom grunted. "Wait? How did you even know about this? No way Luthor contacted you…Have you been monitoring me?"

"No, I haven't." Batman answered immediately. "But I will be now."

"Then that means…" Phantom felt the eyes staring at his back. He turned and saw Robin, Wally, and Artemis all starring at him.

"You've got to be kidding me…"

* * *

><p>"What do you mean they're gone?!" Spirit yelled at the new warden of Belle Reve.<p>

"Like I said…" Hugo Strange stated calmly. He was a bald, middle-aged man with a small grey beard and tinted glasses. "George Zempell and Solomon Grundy managed to escape during the chaos earlier. In addition, Edward Nigma escaped as well, but I doubt that you care about that…"

"Of course I don't care about the Riddler!" Spirit glared as the warden that sat across her at the desk of his office. "I care about the fact that the only two people in this prison that are connected to my family at all managed to escape."

"Spirit, stay calm." Red Huntress placed a hand on her shoulder. "We can figure this out and hunt them down."

"With what? From what I heard, they basically disappeared into thin freaking air!" Spirit glowered.

"I can understand your frustration." Strange gave a small supportive smile. "Agent Z has done a lot of damage to the ghosts, and Grundy has ectoplasmic energy. It must be incredibly stressful to hear that they disappeared. Unfortunately, I didn't have the authority to oversee them before the attempted mass break out. All I can promise is that this will never happen again after they are recaptured."

"Thank you, Mr. Strange." Red Huntress smiled at the warden.

"I…I'm sorry I snapped at you." Spirit apologized. "I know this wasn't your fault. This has just been a disappointing day…"

"One of many it seems like…" Red Huntress agreed. It was obvious that she was thinking of their previous encounter with Nocturne and Aragon.

"It's quite alright." Strange nodded. "And you have my apologizes as well. I wish that there was something I could do to help."

"Well, you were the prison's psychiatrist. Did the two of them ever tell you anything that might help us find them?" Red Huntress questioned.

"I can't reveal anything they spoke about." Strange looked regretful. "All our sessions were about rehabilitation. I swore I would keep what they said confidential. Besides, they didn't really open up to me. I doubt I know anything that you don't."

Spirit sighed. "Thanks anyway."

"No problem." Strange eyed Spirit. "By the way, I have a… facination with ghosts. Perhaps you would be willing to speak with me on the concept of obsessions sometime."

"Er…no thanks." Spirit frowned. "I'd prefer not to."

"Alright, then. I'm sure that I'll have a chance to speak with a ghost sometime in the future…"

* * *

><p>"…So…" Phantom eyed his friends. "What happened?"<p>

"Er…" Wally shifted uncomfortably under Phantom's gaze. "It's kind of complicated."

"We didn't mean to get you in trouble." Artemis quickly interjected. "We were just worried."

"So…we…" Robin flinched under the other two's gaze. "Well, technically, I hacked your phone and found out what you were hiding about. But I wasn't the only one that wanted to do it. They supported it."

"…What did you hear and see?" Phantom questioned.

"We kind of caught that conversation you had with Luthor and all the data on the Ghoul Project that you collected." Wally looked away ashamed.

"And you gave it to Batman?"

"No! We didn't mean for him to get it, but…he's Batman." Artemis shrugged. "He caught us while we were hacking your phone, and… you know."

"Yeah…I do know." Phantom glared at them. "I was there as he tore me a new one and threatened to take me off of Young Justice."

"We know." Robin frowned. "And we're not feeling the aster on this one all right? It was our bad."

"You're damn right it was your bad." Phantom couldn't help but feel insulted. While he might be having some trust issues, he never even thought about invading their privacy like this. "What did you think gave you the right to invade my privacy like that? I mean, I trusted you with some access to my phone, and you completely abuse it!"

"Bro, we are sorry." Wally gave a weak smile. "We were just worried. You've been acting weird lately. Wouldn't you do the same thing?"

"No, I wouldn't have done that." Phantom stated with certainty. "I would never invade your privacy like that. And I can't believe that any of you would think that this was okay. What would you say if I did this to you?"

They were silent.

"I thought so…" Phantom muttered.

"Hey, guys!" M'gann flew up to all of them cheerily. "You'll be happy to know that the mission was a complete success…What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Phantom mumbled.

"Really?" Conner questioned as he eyed his teammates. "Because I heard you guys talking about invading someone's privacy."

Ah…the famous Kryptonian hearing…

"We…messed up." Robin admitted. "We hacked Danny's phone and accidentally got him in trouble with Batman."

"What?" Kaldur gained a surprised look. "Why would you do that?"

"Because he's been acting strange." Artemis tried to defend herself. "Come on, you guys have to admit that he's been off ever since the mission to Bialya."

"For the love of god…" Phantom glared. "You want to know why I've been a little space lately? Because Ember and I broke up."

"You did?" M'gann questioned.

"Yeah, it wasn't like we could make it work while she's on tour…" Phantom scowled.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Wally questioned.

"Because I didn't think any of you wanted to hear about my love life after what happened when you met Ember." Phantom retorted.

All at once, everyone in Young Justice blushed and looked away.

"That's what I thought…" Phantom muttered.

"What…What did Batman find out?" Kaldur questioned. It was obvious he was concerned about the mole issue.

"Phantom was investigating weapons in Metropolis." Wally noted. "Ow!"

Artemis elbowed him in the side. She hissed. "Wally!"

"What? It's not a secret anymore is it?" Wally inquired.

"You were in Metropolis?" Superboy looked at Phantom.

Phantom sighed. "Yes. My info said that Lex Corp had…investments into illegal ectoplasmic weaponry. Nothing I found broke any laws, though."

"Why didn't you tell any of us?" M'gann questioned.

"Because it involved ghosts, and that makes it my problem." Phantom explained.

"But we're your friends. We could have helped." M'gann noted.

"It wasn't about that." Phantom explained. "It was the fact that was my responsibility. This Ghoul Project thing involved ghosts. It didn't involve this team. So, I took some of my friends from home, and-"

"So you trust them with all this." Conner frowned. "You trust them, but you don't trust us."

"You're twisting my words." Phantom sighed. "All I'm saying is that they're already invested."

"Invested?" Robin questioned. "What does that mean?"

"None of you were there." Phantom frowned. "At the war…you can't even begin to imagine what we all went through. It was hard. We lost friends to the last super weapon based on ectoplasm. The Necromancers…they took a lot."

They were all staring at you.

"No matter what you may think, none of you understand." Phantom explained. "The people in Amity Park…We've been through hell together. They're my family. And this involved them. I don't want them to have to go through that again. I would do anything for them."

Silence was their response.

"None of this was about trust. This was about protecting them." Phantom turned away and began to walk to the Zeta-tubes. "But now…now it involves trust. Because if you guys don't trust me enough to respect the privacy of me and my family, how can I trust any of you?"

* * *

><p>(Friday-September 17, 2014)<p>

"What the hell is going on here!? I thought I was supposed to lead something called the Ghoul Project. Why are you pointing guns at me?! Gah!"

"Shut up!" One of the soldiers yelled as he struck the man.

Joel looked up from his cage. He had yet to be taken to the arena today, and he could see why. There were new arrivals. Well, one of them was new at least. The other guy had been here before.

"Let Grundy go-AHH!" Grundy fell to his knees in pain as the color around his neck shocked him.

"Don't think that you can mess around here anymore. Before, we didn't have a way to control your strenght, but now there are inhibiter collars to deal you're your mix of magic and ectoplasm." One of the scientists noted. "So be good, Grundy."

"Grr…"

"As for you, Agent Z…" The scientist turned to the former GIW agent. "You did agree to be part of the Ghoul Project, but you won't be leading it. No, you're going to be a part of the experiments."

"What? I never agreed to that! I demand to speak to the person in charge!" The tall and bulky bald man with a grey mustache glared at the scientist.

"I apologize, but the bosses won't speak to you." The scientist noted. "You're of no consequence to them. After all you're just a sacrificial tool."

"What? No I'm not! I refuse to be a part of this!" Agent Z gritted his teeth.

"You no longer have a choice."

Joel frowned as he watched the two new participants be marched away. He recognized the man from news. That was the guy that Phantom fought in the middle of Manhattan. Not that such a thing would matter now. Agent Z was as good as dead in the Ghoul Project.

It was the other guy that Joel was really interested in. Savage had mentioned that he would be fighting that monster at some point. It might be tomorrow, or it might be weeks from now; but it would happen.

Grundy was in every right and aspect a monster. He was a walking tank. At his current state, Joel couldn't' take Grundy down. That meant only on thing…

He needed to get stronger.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Youngblood<strong>

"Okay…run this by me again…" Spirit stated to the child ghost.

"It's simple." Youngblood was now dressed in a leather jumpsuit and a helmet with stars on it. "We're going to do the greatest stunt ever done in either the human world or the Ghost Zone."

The two of them were currently in the Ghost Zone. Youngblood was on a motorcycle that was connected to a slingshot. He was prepped and ready to go. Spirit had to question his sanity, though. The stunt that he set up was a deathtrap.

"I get that much…" Spirit commented. "What I don't get is the little details."

"Oh…okay!" Youngblood beamed. "First off, I attached this motocycle to this sling shot."

"I can see that…" Spirit eyed the motorcycle. "Yeah, isn't that Johnny 13's motorcycle?"

"…No…"

"Okay then."

"Next!" Youngblood quickly changed the topic. "I set up a trampoline in the middle of that volcano. This sling shot is going to shoot me into the middle of the volcano so I can bounce off it."

"Makes sense…"

"From there, I'll be sent flying through that field of flying rocks." Youngblood stated.

"You mean the Field of Eminent Death?" Spirit questioned.

"Yep."

"Alrighty then…Then what?" Spirit asked.

"After that, I land on that giant spider. It will wake up and throw us into that huge mine field over there." Younblood pointed to what he was talking about.

"Why is there a mine field over there?" Spirit questioned.

"I put it there."

"And why would you do that?"

"Because if I didn't, I would land in the Portal of Infinite Pain, duh!" Youngblood explained. "The mine field will explode when I get there, and the force of the explosion will cause me to go crashing into the Land of the Far Frozen. There, I'll land in a pile of soft snow."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I'm going to video tape it, put it on Youtube, and become an internet sensation." Youngblood said as if it were obvious.

"And why don't you just make a cat video?" Spirit inquired.

"That would be boring." Youngblood rolled his eyes.

"Well, it sounds like you have this all planed out. Why am I here?"

"I was hoping you'd come along for the ride." Youngblood stated. "I would have asked the others, but Rachel said I was stupid and Nyx's mom forbid her from doing this….Even Polly left me. He went screaming in the opposite direction."

"Well, of course!" Spirit glared at Youngblood. "This is the dumbest, most reckless thing I have ever heard. There is a nearly 100% chance that you will be horribly maimed and die. Only the most stupid, inconsiderate, and immature people would even consider contemplating about thinking about this."

"And?"

"I love everything about it." Spirit grinned. "I'm in!"

"Awesome! I'll get you a helmet."

"What are you, a wuss?"

"…Good point…" Youngblood threw his helmet away.

(Ten minutes later…)

Spirit blinked as she laid on the freshly fallen pile of snow. "How did we get through that without any injuries?"

"I dunno."

"And how did Johnny 13's bike come out without a scratch?"

"I dunno."

"Well, what do you do know?"

"That was awesome!" Younblood smiled.

"Yeah…it was…" Spirit smiled as well. "You do realize that we'd never be able to pull that off again."

"We don't need to!" Youngblood smiled. "I just uploaded the video. I got 1000 views in like a minute!"

"…The comments say that you're the biggest idiot to ever live…ever…"

"Well of course I am! How else do you think we actually pulled that off!?"

* * *

><p><strong>I am surprised with myself. I actually managed to get this done in about two weeks. Even with Watch Dogs taking up most of my life. Happy June by the way.<strong>

**So…XMen: Days of Future Past was awesome. There were some pretty big plot holes, but after watching I just didn't really care. Yeah, it was good enough for me to blanlty ignore some pretty big unanswered questions like they didn't matter. It wasn't flawless, but I have to say that I really felt moved by the movie. Not to mention the action was awesome!**

**Watch Dogs was really great too. I love almost every part of it. Does it really justify a whole new generation of consoles? No. The loading still takes too long in my opinion, and the PC version is buggy as hell from what I've heard and seen (I got a PS4 version, though). Is it still amazing and one of my favorite games of 2014 so far? Yes.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	12. Confronted

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Direct confrontation, direct conversation is real respect. And it's amazing how many people get that." Penn Jillette

* * *

><p>Chapter 12: "Confronted"<p>

(Wednesday-September 22, 2010)

"You…have taken on a lot of projects on lately." Silas Stone noted as Danny was examining the engine of the improved Specter Speeder.

Danny grunted. "They're all for good causes."

"That I know, but…" Silas frowned. "Don't you think that all this is a bit much for yourself to take on? After all, all of Axion Labs could be working on these things instead of all the other less serious projects."

"I never wanted the scientists to work on my own special projects. They can handle the small stuff." Danny gave a small smile. "What would be the fun in any of this if I allowed other people to take control of my personal projects?"

"And this has nothing to what happened with Technus?" Silas questioned. "His…breakdown did leave leave some tension in the air."

"I'll admit that I might have made a mistake with hiring Technus, but he was a genius. I didn't look at his species. I looked at his mind. I mean, look at how much he helped us improve the Specter Speeder." Danny sighed. "But yeah, his…problems did lead to some…complaints and discontent…"

"No one is angry, but a lot of projects were delayed."

"Even better reason to have them focus on the other things." Danny noted. "They can handle the public things while I handle these other things. I like it that way."

"I can understand that." Silas chuckled at that. "But…this isn't really your career yet. You're still fifteen, yet you work like this is your career. I've heard from Mr. Masters that you have personal tutors helping you instead of going to school. It seems like a lot to take on for a teenager."

"I like being busy. Free time and I don't mix…not anymore at least." Danny noted as he closed the hood of the hover craft. "It may be a lot, but I can handle it."

Back before the war and even after it, there was always something to do in Amity Park. After all, the threat of ghost attacks and sometimes super criminals were always a constant. Now, though, there were long spans of time where there was nothing to do. For someone who spent nearly a year always having something to do, it felt weird to do nothing.

Danny felt the impulse to always keep moving. There always had to be something more to do. It was an instinct that came from spending weeks on end constantly rushed around without much sleep.

Right now, though…There were no ghost attacks. Super criminals were too afraid to set foot in Amity Park. Duplicates made finishing Danny's school work easy. He no longer had a girlfriend to spend time with. And also…Danny had begun to limit his time spent with Young Justice.

That was everything that was a mandatory part of Danny's life. Thus, he had a lot of free time now. Danny had grown to hate free time. It felt unnatural now and was a reminder of how much things had changed. It was a reminder of how much was gone now…

Granted, Danny had other outlets besides inventing. Training was always a constant, but training his powers never really seemed to accomplish much anymore. He could hang out with friends, but…Dani had friends of her own now, Wulf never liked to stay in the same place for more than a few hours, and Valerie…

Well, it was pointed out to Danny that Valerie might want…something more than friendship, and Danny wasn't ready for anything more than friendship right now.

Thus, Danny spent a lot of time in his labs. And with his joint projects with Wayne Tech, Dr. Roquette, and Adam Strange, he had plenty to do.

"I have never questioned your ability." Silas noted. "I'm just saying that it's rare for someone so young to take this seriously."

"Is this coming from experience with your son? Dani told me that you're not the biggest supporter of Victor's goals." Danny stepped back and examined the Specter Speeder. He and Silas had managed to upgrade the hovercraft with weapons, shields, and a more environmental friendly power source.

The 'green' power source was a part of his work with Wayne Tech. Lucius Fox, and by extension Bruce Wayne, was very interested in creating clean safe energy for the world. That was why Danny had been working on more stable ectoplasmic power cores. Basically, he was trying to find a way to take away the threat of explosions.

This work had proven to be slower than his work with Dr. Roquette and Dr. Strange. Dr. Strange's work was simple. He wanted Danny Fenton's help in advancing the Zeta system for the Justice League. Thus, Danny began to gain a far better understanding of the teleportation the League and YJ used every day.

In what could be described as either pure coincidence or even fate, Dr. Roguette was interested in creating nanobots that could be controlled mentally. Together, the two inventors managed to come up with a plan to make attachable limbs that could be controlled by brain impulses. The limbs could attach to the skin and move as if it was a natural limb.

It could be described as the opposite of the Red X suit. Instead of the tech sending signals to the body, the body would send signals to the tech. The nanobots would act like nerves and and move the limb as if it were a natural part of the body. Heck, the two scientists thought that they might even eventually find a way to simulate the feeling of touch.

Imagine what that could do for amputees…

Silas sighed. He turned to Danny and adjusted his glasses. "I just don't understand Victor. He has a brilliant mind, yet all he cares about is sports."

"You can't force someone to be passionate about something. I've never had a real affinity with sports." Danny noted. Granted, he knew enough about sports to carry on a conversation about them, but that was about it.

Silas frowned. It was hard to believe that Danny wasn't part of any sports. After all, he was no longer the scrawny kid from Casper High. Constant training and fighting had increased the teen's build and muscles. He was still not bulky like Superboy, but it was easy to see the muscle definition. "Really?"

"Naw, although I have taken up some self-defense after the whole kidnapping thing."

"Ah…" Silas seemed satisfied with that answer. "But still…you have to admit that sports are a lot less important than this. We are changing the world, after all."

"But sports gives people happiness and passion." Danny argued. "It's easy to see why people like them. They're fun, and if they're what Victor wants to do, then I say go for it. After all, Vlad wants Dani and me to get into business, but neither of us really want that. It kind of bores us, even if we both have potential for it."

"I suppose you're right…" Silas still didn't seem happy. "But you can't blame a father for hoping his son will follow in his footsteps. I guess…I just wish he was into science like you."

"I don't think you want him to be interested in it like me."

"What do you mean?"

"I only got into inventing after the Nasty Burger incident. My motivation for beginning to invent was because of tragedy, and I would never wish that motivation on anyone else."

* * *

><p>Vision was not a ghost that relied on raw power. Despite being an S-rank ghost, Vision could be considered the physically weakest of the entire Council of the Elite. It would be impossible for her to defeat any other S-rank ghost through raw power. This was a fact that she accepted long ago.<p>

There was a reason, however, that she was called the most dangerous ghost in the Ghost Zone. Vision was, without a doubt, one of the most difficult ghosts to fight. Her only rivals were ones with raw power that was almost untouchable. Even then, she would have a fighting chance.

The reason for this is that Vision's weapons and strengths are control, strategy, and intelligence. Vision's control over her ectoplasm was absolute. Even when her ectoplasmic attacks were released into the atmosphere, Vision could still control it. As such, even if her attack didn't land, she could still use the energy to her advantage.

Her other greatest strength came from raw intelligence that could create nearly infallible plans. This was shown greatly during the GIW war. Without Vision's plans, the war would have ended badly for the ghosts, that much was certain. In fact, her strategies were so great that she would defeat multiple members of the Justice League at once with ease.

Yes, Vision's absolute control over ectoplasm and absolute strategies were what made her so dangerous. Thus, it would make sense that she would try and teach these skills to her apprentice. That was the purpose of her newest training exercise.

Ectoplasmic chess.

"The form of your pawns are fading." Vision instructed.

"Gah…" Spirit muttered. Sweat poured down her face and body. For the exercise, Spirit had to form the various chess pieces with her ectoplasm and maintain their shape as she played against Vision. The strategist was shaping her own chess pieces. While Spirit's pieces were green, Vision's pieces were a deep purple. "I know."

"Then fix it." Vision stated. Unlike Spirit, Vision didn't seem bothered in the least, even though they having playing chess for hours.

"O-okay…" Spirit extended her hands to the pieces one the board. The pawns returned to their original shape.

"Good." Vision nodded. "It's your turn."

"R-right…" Spirit focused and moved her bishop across the board.

Without moving physically, Vision nonchalantly moved her pawn next to Spirit's king. "Check."

"Crap…" Spirit was trembling from exhaustion. With great difficulty, she moved her knight to intercept. "T-there…"

Vision's queen took the knight. "Check."

"C-crap…" Spirit moved her king to the side.

Vision's bishop appeared on the other side of the king. "Check."

"…" Spirit eyed the pieces before her. She had lost. Anything she could do would prove fruitless. The only logical thing to do was forfeit.

Thus, she moved her knight to take down the queen.

Vision moved her pawn to the king. "Checkmate."

"Ah!" Spirit let go over he control over the chess pieces. She slumped backward onto the ground. "Ack…"

Vision eyed her apprentice. They were on Vision's usual meditation spot in her domain. The sakura tree over them provided a beautiful spot for their games. "You did well."

"T-thanks…"

"Please explain your last move." Vision had done this with each game they played. She forced Spirit to explain her strategy.

"I…knew I was going to lose. I was trapped." Spirit sat up and wiped the sweat from her brow. "There were different things that I could do, but none of it would matter for the game."

"Yet you didn't just quit? Why?" Vision asked expectantly.

"Because I wanted to at least wound you. I took out your most powerful piece. It left you weak…Even if I still lost." Spirit explained.

Vision let out a soft chuckle. "Well done, Dani. I am impressed."

"…Impressed with what?" Spirit raised an eyebrow.

"You realized the flaw in this game. Each battle both opponents start out at full strength with all the pieces." Vision's purple eyes lit up. "But in real life, it wouldn't be that cut and dry. What you did would allow any possible back up or future help to easily defeat me…or at least have an easier time."

"Oh…Thanks…" Spirit smiled.

"But…" Vision stated. "There are also other conditions that could make such a plan fail. I would assume that you had help coming. Also, would your opponent kill you or not if you surrendered? These are the types of things that you must observe. Think about every possible factor and use them to your advantage."

"I bet there's more than you mentioned." Spirit sighed.

"Of course." Vision chuckled. "But by realizing that, it means you're learning."

"Not fast enough…" Spirit muttered. "I lose every time."

"But each time you improve and last longer before I defeat you." Vision smiled through her veil. "That is the purpose. One day, you'll defeat me."

"A long time from now." Spirit sighed.

"Of course, you didn't think it would be easy, did you?" Vision's eyes showed amusement. "If it were easy, anyone could do it."

"Good point." Spirit sighed.

"I would suggest that you go get cleaned up." Vision stood and helped Spirit do the same. "The meeting will start soon."

"Ah…that's why we met here…" Spirit snorted. "So you could torture me until the very last possible minute."

"Glad to see that you understand." Vision nodded. "Now go, you will need to be ready when the Council meets."

"Why? I'll just be in the waiting room?"

"Oh, you'd be surprised…"

* * *

><p>Joel had quickly found that combat was a lot easier in his ghoul form. He moved faster and was stronger than he thought that he would ever be. His ghoul form was fundamentally more powerful than his normal form in every way. Granted, it had its fair share of weaknesses, but Joel could easily live with those.<p>

"Rack!" The latest of Joel's failed ghoul opponents roared as it attacked. This ghoul had no hair and was so pale that it was almost translucent. It was rail thin and looked terribly weak. Looks were deceiving, however.

This ghoul's power was move its arms like they were whips. While that might not sound all that strong, it was quite deadly. The whip like arms kept Joel at a distance. To the naked eye, the whips moved like a blur of motion. The crack of the whip easily made slash marks on the metal arena.

To Joel, however, this was nothing. Even though he couldn't see the whip arms completely, he could tell where they were going to strike. With the minimum amount of movement, Joel dodged each of the blows. Each strike came close to the ghoul, but none of them did any damage.

This was a fundamental part of Joel's training. He had been forced to spend hours upon hours working on dodging and using the least amount of energy as possible. In a battle, an assassin could neither afford to take damage or become tired. No, the assassins of the Shadows always had to keep moving. This had been drilled into Joel, and now he was thankful for it.

Seeing his chance, Joel grabbed one of the the whip arms when one of the whips curve extended too far. The same fate occurred to the creatures other arm. Joel now had the failed ghoul completely trapped and at the boy's mercy.

Without a second thought, Joel swung the failed ghoul into the nearby wall. It crashed into the metal wall with a loud thud. Joel didn't stop there, though. He then swung the up into the arena's metal ceiling and then back down onto the ground.

With one final pull, Joel brought the ghoul flying towards him. The creature thought that Joel was going to finish it. This was far from the truth, though. Instead, Joel wrapped the failed creature's arms around it and pinned it to the floor.

As it thrashed on the ground, Joel tried to reason with it. "Please stop. We don't have to fight. You are not a monster. You are a person. We can act rationally."

"RAW!" It didn't listen.

Joel had tried this with almost all the failed ghouls he fought. Despite his talent for combat, Joel did not take any joy in fighting. There was nothing about battle that appealed to Joel. No, Joel would rather avoid fighting at all costs. Unfortunately, Joel's life was that of constant battles. There was no room to be a pacifist.

"Please stop, you're going to wear yourself out…" Joel warned. "If you don't stop then…"

It was too late. The being began to dissolve. Its skin melted into green goo. With a look of absolute terror, the failed ghoul turned to Joel for help. Joel could do nothing to help, though. He could only watch as the being that was once a man quickly turned into a pile of ectoplasm.

There was a single high pitch scream, and then it was over. The creature was gone.

"You didn't deserve that…" Joel closed his eyes and bowed his head in respect. "None of you do…"

* * *

><p>"Have to admit…Vision place is nice." Wulf noted. He, Phantom, and Plasmius were all traveling down one of the many corridors in Vision's domain.<p>

The inside of the Vision's compound was beautiful. Each room was lavish and expensive. The furniture looked as if they were imported from all over the human world. Beautiful chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Runes were spread across the rooms.

"You didn't notice that before?" Plasmius questioned.

"Atmosphere is calmer now." Wulf grunted. "Can appreciate now."

"Without the threat of war…I agree." Phantom stated. "You can definitely appreciate this place more."

"Perhaps it's just that neither of you stop and enjoy the little things in life." Plasmius smirked. "Always being on the move causes you to miss the small details that make life great."

"Oh, like you weren't stressed out the last couple of times that the Council met here." Phantom rolled his eyes.

"Of course not, Daniel. What would possibly give you that idea?" Plasmius chuckled. "When have I ever lost my cool after all?"

"I would never call you cool, Vlad." Phantom retorted.

Wulf snorted.

"The disrespect I receive these days…" Plasmius grumbled. "Is this the thanks I get for everything I do for you?"

"He makes an excellent point. What do you say, Wulf?" Phantom turned to his longtime friend.

Wulf did a thumbs down motion and made a crash and burn noise.

Despite himself, Plasmius laughed. "Brats. Fine then I know when I'm not wanted. I'm going to go ahead."

"Want to see your girlfriend before the meeting?" Phantom questioned.

"Yes." Plasmius confirmed. "But I also think that other people want to see you."

"Huh?" Phantom blinked as Plasmius flew ahead of them.

"Hello, Danny." A feminine voice sounded behind Phantom and Wulf.

They turned and saw a green skinned woman wearing a light blue dress and an amulet with long blond hair pulled into a braid. "Dora?"

"It's good to see you, Danny and Wulf." Dora the dragon ghost smiled gently at them. "How have you been?"

"Good." Wulf grinned.

"Alright." Phantom answered. "And you?"

"Fine, although I have been troubled by the topic of this meeting." Dora noted. Despite not being an S-rank ghost, Dora was allowed to be on the Council of the Elite because of her dragon powers and leadership skills.

"Isn't everyone?" Wulf suggested.

"This does involve her brother, Wulf." Phantom mentioned. "It has to be difficult."

Wulf grunted. "Very true…"

"I heard you were in Amity Park when he attacked." Phantom turned to Dora. "Thank you."

"No problem. I just wish I could have convinced him to mend his ways." Dora frowned.

"Black ring means beyond redemption." Wulf stated.

"Wulf…" Phantom gave his friend a sideways glance. "Play nice."

Wulf let out a loud breath. "Not wrong…"

"It is fine. I am well aware of the… negative effects of the black power ring." Dora looked away. "I could see it when I met my brother. He has changed, and not for the better."

"Vision told me that the black power rings brings out the worst qualities in a person and makes them stronger." Phantom crossed his arms. "Although, I haven't witnessed this for myself yet. I think that they may be purposely avoiding me."

"Possibly. I don't know why, though. But I don't think anyone does. What do you think about, Sir Wulf." Dora blind. Wulf was gone. "Sir Wulf?"

"Sorry, he does that sometimes. He's a free spirit. You can't keep him in one place for too long." Phantom rubbed the back of his head. "Don't worry, he won't get into trouble."

"I see…Well, I wanted to talk with you alone anyway." Dora gave a small smile.

"About what?" Phantom questioned.

"I…heard about what happened with Ember." Dora noted. "I wish to say…It was sweet of you to let her go like that. It must have been hard."

"It was…" Phantom didn't really want to talk about that. "Wait…how did you even hear about that?"

"Torch told me." Dora noted. "He seemed really interested in it."

"Never considered him a gossip…"

"Oh, I just asked him how you were doing. Torch is surprisingly well informed about what happens to the ghosts."

"Well… Torch has been surprising me lately. He gave me some really weird advice before." Phantom shrugged. "It was about treating your lover right. He said it was because you turned him down."

"…Excuse me?" Dora raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, he just mentioned to me how you rejected him." Phantom waved her off.

"Rejected him?" Dora was surprised. "He was the one that rejected me at first."

"What?"

"Yes, he was surprising shy about it. I was interested in him, I mean he's a good leader, caring, and really passionate, but he seemed…worried about getting close to a woman." Dora explained. "I think that it might have to do with his life before he died. But I eventually wore him down. After all, I am a woman of the current era now, and now it is acceptable for women to pursue men now."

"You're enjoying the woman's rights movement, huh?"

"Of course." Dora beamed in pride. "After so many years in the Dark Ages, I'm loving the freedom that I now have."

"Hmm…" Phantom paused in thought. "But why did Torch lie about that? Was he saving face…No, not with the way he acts…"

"Torch…is a lot deeper than most people give him credit for." Dora noted. "Even with his…idiosyncrasies, Torch has many different layers to him. After all, he is the ghost that cares about his 'minions' more than his own obsession."

"True, maybe I underestimated him. Torch may have a deep side to him that I have never even seen before." Phantom admitted.

"AH! GET OFF TORCH, YOU LITTLE DEMONS. NO! STOP BITTING! ACK! IT'S LIKE TINY KNIVES STABBING INTO TORCH'S SKIN!"

"…Or not."

Dora merely giggled.

* * *

><p>Spirit couldn't control her laughter. This had to be one of the funniest things that she had ever seen. It had started out very simply. Torch had arrived into the meeting hall and announced his presence. That wasn't unusual. Torch did that all the time. The difference this time was that Nyx was in the same room.<p>

As usual, Nyx decided to comment on Torch's arrival the only way she knew how. She openly mocked the fire ghost. Of course, Torch did not take kindly to this, so he confronted the shadow ghost. It did not go well. This is a little example of the following argument.

"Torch does not appreciate your attitude! You must apologize to Torch!"

Nyx smiled and mimicked him in a high pitched voice.

"What?! Torch does not sound like that!"

Nyx did the same thing again.

"That's not funny!"

It happened a third time.

"Torch demands that you stop that!"

Here's another one…

"Na uh!"

"Uh huh!"

"Na uh!"

"Uh huh!"

And another…

"Lalalalalala! Torch isn't listening to you!" Torch covered his ears.

"Oh, you are soooooooooooo mature, Matchstick! I can't believe that you're a member of the Council!"

"Lalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalala!"

Finally, it got to this point…

"AH! GET OFF TORCH, YOU LITTLE DEMONS. NO! STOP BITTING! ACK! IT'S LIKE TINY KNIVES STABBING INTO TORCH'S SKIN!" Torch cried. Nyx had created cats out of her shadow ectoplasm and was having them attack Torch. The fire ghost was currently being mauled by thirteen black cats.

Talk about unlucky…

"Nyx!" Pandora arrived and glared at her daughter. "Stop that at once!"

"But MOOOOOOOOM!"

"Now!"

"Fine…" The black shadow cats disappeared with a wave of Nyx's hand.

"Ah…huff…Thank you…" Torch muttered from his spot on the ground.

Pandora ignored him. "You know that you shouldn't use your powers like that, Nyx."

"Meh, he was annoying." Nyx shrugged. "Besides, he'll be fine."

"That's not the point. It isn't nice to use your powers to attempt to hurt someone in anger." Pandora instructed.

"…Are you serious? You're the queen of hurting people in anger." Nyx noted.

"…That is a weakness of mine, yes…" Pandora sighed.

"So your daughter takes after you, I see." Scribe the Ghost Writer approached them. This grey skinned ghost was wearing a purple blazer and grey shirt, pants, and scarf. He also had green eyes, reading glasses, and a black goatee.

Behind the ghost writer was a black and white ghost with no color whatsoever. He had thick glasses, greasy hair, and a bow tie. His appearance could be described as the definition of a super nerd. This ghost's name was Sydney Poindexter. He was recently taken under the Ghost Writer's wing after the war.

"Be silent, Scribe." Pandora glared.

"Of course…"

"Nyx, just apologize to Mr. Torch. Don't take him lightly. If he hadn't decided to play your games, then he could have easily killed you." Pandora explained.

"…Fine…Sorry, Matchstick…"

"Of course, Torch will accept!" Torch stood up and struck a pose. "Torch is the most forgiving person in the world after all!"

"You most certainly are, Master Torch!" Bi the fire monkey ghost shouted by his master. "Torch will forgive anyone of anything!"

"Well…Torch wouldn't go that far." Torch muttered.

"Alright." Pandora knelt down. Despite this, she still towered over her daughter. "The meeting will begin soon. You need to go to the waiting room with the other friends and guests of the Council."

"But the Girl Scout is going to be allowed to enter the meeting, why can't I?" Nyx questioned.

"It was already decided that Spirit should be allowed to witness the Council in person. Five members of the council have vouched for her potential to become an S-rank ghost at some point." Scribe eyed the girl. "Even if she isn't the type of person to take orders…"

He was clearly referring to Spirit's decision to try and help Phantom during the war. While no one really condemned her on her decision, Spirit did act rashly. She could have easily gotten killed by Agent Z…

"But that's not far! I'm just as strong as the Girl Scout is!" Nyx glared at the adults.

"Perhaps, but someone would have to suggest that you to be admitted. Then, the majority of the Council must support this suggestion." Scribe explained. "Those are the new rules set after the war. We can no longer just let anyone on the Council. Not with what Undergrowth did when he abandoned us during the war."

"Mom! Will you get me into the council chamber?" Nyx looked up to her mother desperately.

"No, I can't do that. You're not ready for that." Pandora noted.

"What?! And the Girl Scout is?!" Nyx scowled. "She isn't any more mature than me!"

"Hey…" Spirit had her own frown.

"Danielle has proven herself many times. Especially over the past few months. I'm sorry Nyx, but while you can obtain the power of an S-rank ghost one day, you can't handle responsibility yet." Pandora sighed. "It's just not in your nature…"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nyx looked hurt. "Does this have to do with why I can use magic?"

"No…no it doesn't. Just forget about it." Pandora gave her daughter a small smile. "Just please go."

"…Fine." Nyx turned to Dani and gave her a nod. "I'll see you later, Girl Scout."

"Nyx…I'm sorry. I didn't mean…"

"It's fine." Nyx scowled. "It's not you I'm mad at…"

* * *

><p>The large meeting hall was decorated to suit royalty. The floor was pure clean marble. Various runes that were meant to reinforce the building were spread across the white walls. At the center of the room was a giant table fit for royalty. The table was set with fine cuisine and rich drinks for the Council.<p>

Around the large table were twelve seats that were basically miniature thrones. Ten of the seats held one of the members of the Council of the Elite. These were the most powerful and influential ghosts in the Ghost Zone. There were two members of the Council that were missing. Colossus and the Spectre were not at this meeting.

Colossus's reason for missing was simple. He was asleep. After the war, Colossus decided to return to his slumber. As the oldest and most battle worn members of the Council, Colossus needed to rest after incredibly long or difficult battles. No one knew when he would wake again.

The Spectre…was complicated. He was a ghost that had a human host. They shared the same body, and this is what allowed the Spectre to control his need to kill for vengeance and justice. Of course, this meant that he had a human life like the halfas. Unfortunately, the Spectre wasn't concerned with this meeting because it didn't concern war like the previous ones. Thus, he didn't come.

"None of the missing ghosts or Freakshow have been captured yet." Scribe noted after the meeting began.

"Yes, that is troubling…" Frostbite frowned. "Many of them have been seen in public too."

"Nocturne, Aragon, Freakshow, and Lydia all bluntly attacked Amity Park and nearly hurt my daughter." Pandora glared across the table. "We need to find them and bring them to justice."

"That is easier said than done, Pandora." Fright Knight crossed his arms. "We are dealing with the Reality Gauntlet and the Reaper's old power rings after all. You know how difficult it is to deal with those cursed items."

"Some of us don't." Dora piped up. "I may have gotten a taste of a black power ring's power from Aragon, but I know very little about the Reality Gauntlet."

"Torch knows that it isn't too complicated." Torch informed Dora. "The Reality Gauntlet can alter realty through the power of the various stones that it uses. Luckily, the user needs an access code to use the gauntlet. If not, then we would all be at war with Freakshow now."

"I'm impressed, Torch." Plasmius smirked at Torch. "I didn't realize that you do your homework."

"Torch may not be the smartest ghost, but Torch isn't ignorant on important stuff." Torch grumbled.

'He admitted to being dumb…' Phantom thought from his spot.

"He forgot to mention the terrible consequences from altering reality." Scribe scowled as he remembered. "If you try and control the universe, it will fight back. Alter reality for good, then great bad will happen. Alter reality for evil, then great good will happen."

"You make it sound like evil and good must be in perfect harmony." Phantom mentioned. "Like…um…yin and yang."

"I wouldn't say that they absolutely must be equal in all circumstances, but if you use a power that no physical being should have to change the world around you…It ends badly." Scribe sighed. "For all we know, my use of my powers during the war was what brought forth these black power rings."

"Doubtful." Vision noted. "The only thing you did was make sure that the majority of the ghosts didn't die. I believe that we all built up some good enough karma so that the…universe as you say wouldn't fight back for such a small crime."

Scribe just frowned.

"The question is what do we do about them?!" Pandora nearly yelled.

"Hmm…" Vision looked to Spirit who was sitting in a simpler chair between Vision and Vlad. "What say you, Spirit? You are the only person here to have interactions will all of these threats."

"…None of the dirtbags are going to show up until they want to." Spirit noted. "I got the feeling that while these guys are freaking nuts…and I mean FREAKING NUTS…They aren't dumb. They know that we can't track them unless they act, so they're going to be careful."

"Excellent point." Fright Knight nodded at the girl. "There is nothing we can do but prepare and be ready to act when they make a mistake."

Plasmius smiled at his adopted daughter. "Nicely said."

"There must be something…" Pandora mumbled. "What about the Infi-map? Would that work?"

"No. For some reason in these cases, work the Infi-map will not." Frostbite shrugged. "The Reality Gauntlet and black power rings block it, and for the others…ineffective it seems to be."

"The other missing ghosts?" Torch counted on his fingers. "Spectra, Bertrand, Undergrowth, and Walker…Is Torch right?"

"I believe so." Dora nodded. "But why would the map not find them?"

"Well, it would work for Walker…" Phantom explained. "But that's not the problem. Walker is working with the Shadows. He's surrounded by trained assassins ready to fight. If we just suddenly go after him, then he'll just escape and we'll get hurt."

"Luckily, you keep running into him." Fright Knight noted. "You almost caught him once correct?"

"Yeah, I had to choose between capturing him and going after Freakshow. I went after the bigger threat." Phantom explained. Every one of them knew about the Red X incident.

"Torch would have done the same." Torch shrugged.

"No one is condemning Phantom's actions." Vision nodded. "Freakshow is the bigger threat by far."

"Meh…" Spirit shrugged in her spot. "We'll get him eventually. The Shadows will sent him on missions, and Danny will keep running into him. Walker may be cunning, but his luck will run out eventually."

"That is true, but with the others…I have no idea for why the Infi-map won't work." Frostbite frowned.

"Magic, advanced technology, they died, or maybe something else." Plasmius shrugged. "Take your pick."

"Either way, they have been too quiet." Scribe noted. "From what I understand, none of them could stand being incognito for too long."

"Especially Undergrowth." Torch nodded. "Torch thinks that he's way too flashy for his own good."

Everyone stared at Torch as if he was insane. After all, Torch was the flashiest ghost there was.

"What?"

"Nothing…" Pandora sighed. "But you do make a point. Undergrowth is not the person to hide. Something must be going on."

"The coward ran away after the war and won't stop hiding." Fright Knight growled. "He must be afraid that we will end him. Under these circumstances, he might be seeking refuge with someone magical or that has highly advanced technology to counteract ectoplasm."

"He was a member of the Council once." Plasmius noted. "He knows that we won't take his abandoning us lightly. If I were him, I'd be doing anything to stay hidden."

"Then do you have an idea where he would go?" Dora questioned.

"None whatsoever."

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!" Torch rolled his eyes. "So none of these wimps can be found."

"Wait, what about Spectra?" Phantom questioned Vision. "You told me that you might have found a trace."

"Yes…" Vision nodded. "Several cities have fallen under a wave of depression. Many have been categorizing this as a bad day for the city. A rainy day if you will. But I'm sure that the League has caught the pattern…or lack thereof. Luckily, I've managed to hide the large amounts of ectoplasmic energy released by Spectra, so the League doesn't know that it's her."

"So…you're going to look for a pattern then?" The Ghost Writer questioned.

"Yes."

"Good! Then we can capture that foul woman and her lap dog." Pandora spat.

"We need to get to her and the other others before the League…" Plasmius noted. "The humans have already proven that they can't hold our enemies. Both Agent Z and Solomon Grundy escaped Belle Reve recently."

"Grundy wasn't the enemy. He saved me!" Spirit exclaimed.

"Yes. We should find him and provide refuge for him in secret!" Frostbite grinned.

"I don't know about that, but we should at least make sure he's in the Ghost Zone." Fright Knight mentioned. "He's our responsibility, not the humans. It was a mistake to hand him over to the League."

"Torch agrees. Torch's prision is far more secure than any on Earth." Torch grumbled. "Torch won't let anyone escape. Not even Technus."

"Has the League mentioned him?" Dora questioned. "His activity was contained in Amity Park, but they probably wanted to take him into their custody."

"They weren't happy, but they'll get over it." Vision chuckled. "But if there is a ghost attack outside Amity Park, then we won't be as lucky."

"Well, I'm in a good position to be on the lookout too. Members of Young Justice has full access to the League's data base." Phantom mentioned. "If they find anything out, I'll know. Maybe I can act before the League can. That way we can keep the ghosts from going into human custody."

"And who will you take on such an endeavor, my liege? That team of yours?" Fright Knight questioned.

"No." Phantom frowned. "They proved that I can't trust them with these kinds of things. If I take anyone with me, then it will be one of my friends from Amity Park. After the whole fiasco with the Ghoul Project thing, I don't even know if I want to be on Young Justice anymore."

"Yes, you told us all about that. A rumor that the humans are making special weapons created from ectoplasm from the war…" Frostbite frowned.

"Very troubling." Pandora sighed.

"I guess that's another thing we have to worry about." Dora noted.

"Like there wasn't enough already…" Torch mumbled.

"Wait?" Spirit blinked at her brother. "You're going to quit the Team?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure yet." Phantom shrugged. "Right now, I'm going to try and get as much info as possible from the League's data base. Batman threatened to kick me off the Team, and I know that he'll go through with it if he finds out that I'm hiding anything else. But hey, I don't need them. I only wanted to help in the first place because if I didn't those…mini-heroes would probably have died."

"So it might be a matter of time?" Plasmius inquired.

"Yeah," Phantom nodded.

"I'm fine with that." Vision interjected. "Young Justice has been hurting you more than helping you."

"Mean what does that?" Frostbite questioned.

Vision looked at Phantom for a reaction. He nodded to her. "They should know…"

"If you wish to make this known…" Vision nodded slowly. "Phantom has been having troubles with his powers lately. He has grown weaker."

"What?!" Everyone turned to Phantom.

"You've gotten weaker?!" Spirit jumped to her feet. "Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Because I thought you would overreact."

"Of course, I'd overreact! Danny, you're-"

"Danielle…" Plasmius instructed his daughter. "Please sit down. Now is not the time to make a scene. Let us explain."

"You knew too?!"

"As did I." Fright Knight noted nonchalantly. "I didn't think it was that big of a deal. Even the king goes through slumps."

"I can't believe I was kept in the dark…" Spirit grumbled as she sat back down in her seat.

"Woah, wait a minute. Just hold up. DP got weaker?" Torch raised an eyebrow. "When?"

"After the war." Phantom stated. "I guess I just felt guiltiy for how things went. I sent…a lot of ghosts to their death. They were my responsibility, and I feel like I failed them."

"That's not true, Great One!" Frostbite encouraged. "You did an excellent job!"

"I agree. Without you things would have been a disaster." Pandora smiled.

"I third that." Scribe noted.

"I…know that." Phantom sighed. "But I can't change my feelings. My guess is that it's survivor's guilt."

"Guilt…That is a weak emotion…" Dora gained a sad looked. "It's understandable, but still…"

"My powers have fluctuated. They've gone up and down at times. Sometimes, I'm perfectly fine. Others, I'm going on fumes…like my emotions have all dried up. And one time, they just…failed. I might as well have been a normal human being." Phantom explained.

"…When was this?" The Ghost Writer asked.

"When the Shadows were trying to steal the Mirror of Memories." Phantom stated.

"…" Vision stared at Phantom. "I think I understand it fully then."

"What?"

"Danny, you gain your powers from the emotions based around your obsession. Your obsession is 'to protect what matters.' The reason that your powers have weakened is because you feel that you didn't protect what matters to you." Vision explained. "You blame yourself, and that is what weakens you."

"It's true. The subconscious is a powerful thing." Fright Knight stated. "If you feel that you went against your obsession, then your ghost half will react to it…even if you didn't actually go against your obsession."

"Okay…so that's the full reason." Phantom shrugged. "I'll work on it."

"I don't think that you can do that if you're on Young Justice." Vision mentioned.

"Huh?"

"Do you care about Young Justice? Does that Team matter to you?"

"I…guess…"

"That's an uncertain answer." Vision observed. "That means that it doesn't truly matter to you."

"Where are you going with this?"

"On that day…the day that the Shadows tried to steal the mirror of memories, you chose to help Young Justice instead of Amity Park. The entire day was completely focused to your Team even though you knew that the Mirror of Memories needed to be guarded. Amity Park matters to you, while Young Justice doesn't. That means that you abandoned your obsession in a time when you knew that they needed you. You didn't protect what matters to you, and your powers reacted accordingly."

"They stopped completely…" Phantom breathed out.

"Yes."

"But...there were other times where I knew that Amity Park was in trouble." Phantom argued.

"There is a difference." Vision explained. "Before that, there was no hint of a significant threat that you knew of. After that, you knew that people were ready to protect Amity Park. Either the Justice League or members the Council stood ready after the Shadows incident. That one day, however, you were uncertain of Amity Park's state and still chose to go with your Team. Subconsciously, you thought that you completely abandoned your obsession."

"So…as long as I'm on Young Justice, I won't be able to regain my strength?"

"If they don't matter to you truly, then yes."

"But…they're my friends. I mean, I'm mad at the sure, but they're all good people." Phantom argued.

"But they aren't your obsession, Danny." Dora put in her two cents. "You don't care enough about them to risk everything for them. They don't give you purpose. Even if they are good people, which considering that they're your friends they probably are, it doesn't change the fact that you aren't willing to sacrifice everything for them."

Phantom was silent. "I…understand. But-"

An alarm went off at that moment. Phantom's phone blared out an SOS signal. The halfa immediately grabbed the phone and examined what was wrong.

"Is it Amity Park?" Plasmius questioned.

"No, it's the Team…" Phantom's eyes widened. "Someone's attacking the Cave! I have to go help!"

In a rush, Phantom jumped to his feet. He began to fly to the door. When he reached it, however, he heard a shout, "Wait!"

Phantom stopped and looked at his adopted sister. "What?"

"Didn't you just hear what Vision said?" Spirit questioned. "She just said that you'll be weaker as long as you're on that team. That means that when you abandon anything on your plate in Amity Park or the Ghost Zone for that Team, then there's a chance your powers might fail. If that happens, then you'll be killed! Do you want that!?"

"I can't just ignore an SOS signal!" Phantom exclaimed. "It would be wrong! They're pleading for my help!"

"They have the entire League for help!" Spirit retorted. "Why do they need you?!"

"I don't know. But I know this…" Phantom's eyes showed conviction. "I can't just ignore someone that needs my help. If they die or get hurt because I failed to do anything, then I'll always blame myself. My honor won't let me ignore someone who needs me."

"So this is about you being a hero?" Spirit whispered. "You already proved yourself. You don't need to-"

"Dani." Fright Knight addressed Spirit. "Let him go. Lord Phantom wouldn't be himself if he didn't leave. Don't ask him to be someone else."

Spirit frowned and bit her lip.

"Is that all?" Phantom questioned.

Silence was his response.

"Then I'm off."

With that, he was gone.

* * *

><p>"Gack!" Spirit moped as she and Nyx sat in Vision's garden. "I can't believe them. That was totally pointless. You didn't miss anything Nyx."<p>

"But it's not like I even had a choice in the first place." Nyx complained. "It wasn't like I wanted to sit in the meeting. I just wanted the opportunity to turn it down. Is that too much to ask!?"

"Er…No?"

"Exactly!" Nyx exclaimed. "It didn't help that Vision didn't show the meeting to the guests through her visiual birds like before."

"I think that had to do with the threat of war. Now that that's over, the meetings will be more private." Spirit frowned. "But I don't think I'll go to any other of their meetings. It was boring and seemed to be pointless. All they said is how very little they really got done."

"Psh…It's more for security reasons compared to anything else. They want to know where they stand, and what they need to do. It helps stop everyone from worrying." Nyx snorted. "Heck, even I'm a little worred. These ghosts are actually hiding from my mom and Vision. Do you know how hard that is? I'd have thought it was impossible."

"That may be, but did we have to go over every one of them?" Spirit sighed dramatically. "Half of them we can't predict, and the other half won't come out of hiding? The solution? We wait! That's stupid!"

"It is and it's sooooo boring!" Nyx rolled her eyes. "Adults are useless sometimes."

"Yeah, and it's all because the Council can't get along with the League." Spirit frowned. "I don't get it? Why don't they just get along? Don't we both want the same thing?"

"Fear." Nyx noted. "The League's afraid of the S-rank ghosts…actually, ghosts in general really. We do have some terrifying powers and we remind them of their mortality. And the Council is afraid that we'll lose control of our lives. Ghosts can't completely live the human's rules or morality. It's not in our nature."

"Because our obsessions." Spirit remembered her fight with Technus. "We have to be able to pursue them. Like Vision said earlier, if we don't strive for our obsessions or even turn against them, then we'll grow weaker…"

"And none of us want that." Nyx noted. "That's why I always aim to have fun!"

"Yet you came here." Spirit mentioned.

"Mom dragged me here. She doesn't want me to be alone." Nyx sighed. "I don't know if it's because of how I seem to keep getting targeted to get to her, or if she doesn't trust me enough to leave me alone."

"I would guess the first one." Spirit encouraged. "My Dad's the same way."

"But when you were kidnapped, he didn't freak out!" Nyx argued.

Spirit chuckled. "Says you. You should have seen him. He added tons of new security to the mansion, I'm not allowed to go on patrol alone anymore, and he just ruined the guys' reputation that tried to use me to get to Danny. From what I heard, the Penguin is having some financial problems, Scarecrow is in complete lockdown in Arkham, and Killer Croc is missing his teeth."

"He sent a message." Nyx nodded to herself. She seemed to approve. "I can get that, but with my Mom, it's different. No matter what, she won't explain the magic thing! I've practically begged her to explain this to me, but she won't. She always just looks so…worried. Whatever it is, she thinks that I'll overreact."

"Well…You do have the tendency to overreact to things?"

"And this is coming from you, Miss Drama Queen?"

"I thought I was Girl Scout."

"What? I can't give you two nicknames?"

"I suppose you can…." Spirit smiled.

Nyx snorted. "…Well, I'm just going to have to find this out on my own. You have any ideas?"

"Nope." Spirit shrugged. "Wait…what about your Dad?"

"Mom never talks about him. She says that he died and that it's painful to talk about." Nyx frowned. "I did think about it before, but it never seemed important. But…It might just be."

"Maybe your dad is the reason you can use magic." Spirit suggest. "Maybe he was a wizard or something?"

"But humans and ghosts can't have children together." Nyx noted. "And ghosts can't use magic…well, except for me…"

"It's the best lead we got though." Spirit stated.

"We?" Nyx raised an eyebrow.

"What? You think that I'm just going to ignore your detective case? No way! I want in!" Spirit smiled deviously. "Or I could just tell your Mom that you're going to find out who your Dad is…"

"Fine! Geeze, I was going to let you help anyway, Drama Queen." Nyx rolled her eyes.

"Alright! If we're doing this, then we're going to need information." Spirit noted. "And luckily for us, the most informed ghost in the Ghost Zone are right here in Vision's domain."

"Then let's go, Watson."

"Hey, there's no way I'm Watson! You can be Watson, I'm Sherlock."

"Why do you get to be Sherlock?"

"Because I'm smarter than you."

"What?! No you're not! I'm totally smarter than you!"

"Then why didn't you think about the Dad thing yourself!?"

"I did! I just didn't act on it yet!"

"Oh, yeah right! You have an excuse for everything!"

And there they go again…

* * *

><p>"Hide in plain sight. Yeah, that totally works. Great idea." Phantom muttered as he helped cool Aqualad and Miss Martian from their flame cage induced fatigue.<p>

After exiting the Ghost Zone, Phantom immediately went to the Zeta-tube hidden in Amity Park. He quickly learned that the Zeta-tubes in the Cave were offline, so he Zeta'd to the nearest tube and flew from there. He arrived to just in time to distract the Red Tornado look alikes who were trying to kill Young Justice, while Artemis activated an electromagnetic pulse to shut the machines down.

Phantom had to admit that Artemis made one hell of a shot. She shot an arrow across the Cave, through flying flames and water, and hit the target the little slot in the main generator. Phantom was sure that he couldn't even do that in his dreams.

"Ack…" Kaldur mumbled as he helped M'gann to her feet. "Thank you, Danny."

"Don't mention it." Phantom turned off his ice powers when he saw that the two of them would be fine. "Although, I would like to know just what the hell is going on. Why are Red Tornadoes cousins attacking the Cave?"

"Er…" M'gann looked up weakly. "I…think we all want to know that…"

"We can figure it out later." Phantom helped fly the two down to the others.

"Danny!" Artemis smiled at the halfa. "Thanks for the assist. That shot would have been a lot harder without you."

"You're welcome, but damn that was a good shot." Phantom complement.

"Of course. It is me that we're talking about." Artemis smirked.

"Yeah, yeah, great job to everyone involved." Kid Flash grumbled. "Now can you get us out of this rock now!?"

"Yeah, Yeah…" Phantom turned Superboy intangible as Robin explained how he played possum to survive drowning earlier.

"M'gann…" Superboy rushed to the Martian.

"I'm fine, Conner." M'gann smiled despite her weakness.

"Okay, now me." Kid Flash noted.

Phantom paused and took out his phone. "One second. I got to get a picture of Kid Flash as human art."

"Dude! You're phone shouldn't even work right now! Don't try to stall!"

"Just get him out." Artemis waved Wally off. "We will never hear the end of it if you don't."

"Yeah, yeah…" Phantom freed the speedster.

"How'd you get here anyway?" Robin questioned. "The Zeta-tubes were toasted."

"After I got a distress signal from Kaldur, I tried to Zeta here, but the tubes were offline hers. So I Zeta'd to the closest one and came from there. Glad I made it in time."

"Truth be told, I was worried about you responding to the SOS. You have been…distant as of late." Kaldur stated sadly.

"Meh, I was pissed…" Phantom paused and glanced at Robin, Kid Flash, and Artemis. "I'm still pissed, but I'm not going to just ignore my friends when I need my help."

Every member of Young Justice smiled at that. Most of them looked ready to respond when they were interrupted.

"That is good to hear." Red Tornado approached the Team. "It seems that you had the same Idea as me. I was a mere few minutes behind you, Phantom."

"Red…" Phantom turned to their…den mother. "Glad to see you. Do you know why your family tried to kill everyone in the Cave?"

"Kill? More like decimate." Artemis added her imput.

"I was not aware I had relations…" Red Tornado mentioned as he approached the downed robots.

"So what do we do with them?" Kid Flash questioned.

"I say we turn them into scrap metal…" Conner growled.

"The League will want to examine them." Kaldur stated. "We should deactivate them completely before the EMP wears off…"

"Yeah…" M'gann looked pale despite her green skin.

"Okay. Wally and I will-"

Phantom was cut off when suddenly the oxygen was cut off from the room. Red Tornado had turned on them and was sucking the air away from them. This, of course, caught Young Justice off guard. The already weakened and exhausted quickly succumbed to the lack of breathing air.

This excluded Phantom, though. He didn't need to breathe after all.

"What?!" Phantom muttered when Red Tornado stopped his attack. "You…you're the mole!"

Red Tornado said nothing as Phantom charged at him. Fists glowing with green energy, Phantom went to strike the android. Red Tornado flew back to avoid the strike, and went for an attack of his own. Phantom swerved to the side to avoid the blast of wind…and ran into a blast of fire.

It seems that the EMP wore off.

"Ah!" Phantom slammed into the ground. The ball of fire hit him in the back and scorched him. "You-"

A blast of water hit Phantom in his side. He was sent crashing into the walls. It crumbled on top of him.

"Crap!" Phantom shoved the ruble off of him. This was not good. Phantom would have trouble with one of the Reds. All three of them at once…It would be impossible. But he had to try.

Focusing, Phantom decided to activate his ice powers. At least he had the element advantage. His ice could counteract the fire and freeze the water. After all, this…Red Inferno…while strong, did not have Torch's ectoplasmic fire that opposed his own.

There was a problem, however. Vision had been right when what she said before. He was weakened when he chose the Team over his responsibilities in Amity Park and the Ghost Zone.

His ice powers weren't working.

"Son of a…"

Phantom had left himself open in his attempt to use his ice powers. Red Tornado took advantage. A tornado appeared under Phantom and sent him flying into the air. It was then that the other Reds attacked. Fire hit Phantom on his right. Water slammed into Phantom's left. He was smashed between two elemental powers.

After the elements calmed down, Phantom fell to the ground with a thud. His clothes were torn. His skin was burnt and bruised. He hadn't felt so…outclassed in a long time.

The halfa realized that there was no way he was going to win this fight. The three androids would kill him. He had to run…But he couldn't just leave the Team. He didn't know what he could do, though. If his ice powers weren't working, then his Ghostly Wail and duplicates sure as hell wouldn't work.

"Gah…" Phantom forced himself to his knees. "What do you want?"

They were silent.

"Do you want to kill me, or what?" Phantom demanded.

The Reds just looked.

Phantom groaned. "Fine, if you don't want to kill me…just leave. You win. I can't beat all three of you at once, and if I try…the others will be hurt."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"JUST GO!" Phantom glared.

Silently, the Reds turned and began to head out of the Cave. Before he disappeared from Phantom's sight, Red Tornado turned to look at the halfa. Phantom just glared at the robot that he considered a traitor. Then, with that, the android turned and left.

Phantom glared down at the ground after they left. He hadn't been defeated like this in a long time. Circumstances had been against him this time, though. The halfa wouldn't forget this…

He punched the ground. "Damn it…"

* * *

><p>"What? You want to know who the brat's father is?" Torch raised an eyebrow at the girls.<p>

"Don't call me a brat, Matchstick." Nyx glared at the flame ghost.

"Torch will call you whatever Torch wants to…" Torch stuck out his tongue childishly. "You're the one coming to Torch for help after all."

"Grr…" Nyx's purple eyes narrowed dangerously at Torch.

"Nyx…" Spirit muttured. "We talked about this…"

"…Fine!" Nyx pouted. "Please, great and wise Master Torch, I need your excellent knowledge and …um…awesomeness to inform me of who my father was."

"Now that's the way to make a request!" Torch beamed.

"So you'll tell me?!"

"Huh? What gave you that idea?" Torch raised an eyebrow.

"GRAH!" Nyx tried to lung at Torch but was restrained by Spirit. "YOU JERK! I FREAKING BEGGED YOU! I'LL TEAR YOUR BALLS OFF!"

"Nyx, calm down." Spirit instructed.

"Torch…" Dora looked up to the fire ghost. "She did ask very nicely. Perhaps you should tell her if you know."

"Of course, Torch knows who the brat's father is." Torch shrugged. "It's not that Torch can't tell her, or even wants to keep it a secret. It has to do with Pandora's wrath. Torch doesn't want her to be angry at Torch."

"What?" Nyx calmed down and blinked.

"Pandora is a very protective person." Torch looked down at the girl. "She…is a good parent. A good mother. Don't forget that. The reason that this is a secret is because your father is very dangerous."

"Is? Not was?" Spirit questioned as she released Nyx. "Does that mean he's alive?"

"…Torch has said too much." Torch fell to his knees in depression. "Torch is a bad secret keeper."

"It's okay Torch…" Dora comforted him. "They would have found out that much themselves."

"…Thank you, Dora." Torch smiled at her. "You are a good person."

"So…my dad is alive." Nyx whispered.

"…" Torch got onto one knee and looked Nyx in the eye. "Yes, he is. But Torch has to warn you…don't seek him out. Your father…He is not the type of person you should associate with."

"But…He was with my Mom once." Nyx returned. "How bad could he be?"

"This is far more complicated than you can imagine." Torch explained. "But let Torch tell you this. Your father will kill you. No! Don't interrupt Torch! Torch isn't kidding! Nyx's father…has no compassion or mercy. He is insane, and will love to watch you burn."

"I…see…"

"Promise Torch that you will leave this alone."

"…I promise."

"Good."

* * *

><p>"Why did you just let them go?!" Artemis demanded.<p>

"What was I supposed to do? There was three of them and one of me, and our fight would have put you and the others at risk." Phantom sighed. "Look, I know how you feel. But there was nothing that I could do besides let them leave. It was the best possible option I had."

Artemis frowned but said no more.

The League had arrived not too long after the Reds had left. They found a destroyed Cave, an unconscious Team, and a heavily bandaged Phantom who abandoned his torn shirt and coat to apply the bandages. Of course, he had been the one who explained what happened. None of them were angered by Phantom's decision to allow the Reds to leave. In a similar position, they would have done the same.

Young Justice was similar to the League. While they weren't happy, they accepted that Phantom did the right thing. No, that wasn't a problem at all.

Phantom's main problem right now was the fact that Red Tornado appeared to be the mole. He never even imagined that a member of the League would be the one who was informing the enemy of their movements. The halfa assumed that anyone that would be trusted with all of the League's secrets would be trustworthy. He was obviously wrong.

Turning his head to Aqualad, Phantom could tell what the Atlantian was thinking. He was going to tell Batman what he knew. It wouldn't be good if Batman learned that Phantom kept more knowledge from the League, even if it was supposed to be Young Justice's problem. He would have to talk to Aqualad. Phantom knew that Batman had the right to know about this, but he didn't want anyone else to tell Batman.

No…He would have to tell Batman himself.

* * *

><p>"RAH!" Agent Z slammed into the side of his cage. He screamed and hollered in madness with each slam. It seems that the experimentations have begun to take their effect on the ex-leader of the Guys in White.<p>

Joel watched from his cage. Agent Z looked a lot paler than he had nearly a weak ago. His mustache and beard stubble was now pure white. At the same time, he seemed to be bigger and more muscular. That was how many of the failed ghouls looked at first, though. They looked very strong up until their death.

"Wish he would keep it down..." Joel didn't like being next to the screaming subjects of the Ghoul Project. He never had time to himself during the day, so the night was all he had. His quiet mediation was difficult to do while listening to the insane shouts of a crazed man. Sleep would be nearly impossible.

Agent Z would eventually wear himself out, though. The failed ghouls always do. The body could only take so much after all. He would collapse soon enough. Until then, Joel would just have to force himself to ignore the deranged man.

Sighing, Joel began to think about his real problem. He had not seen Solomon Grundy since he was first brought here. The giant monster had to be somewhere in this facility, but a silent subject of the Ghoul Project was rarely a good thing. The boy had no idea what they were doing to the paled skin behemoth, but he could guess that it was bad.

Were they making him stronger?

Were they altering his mind?

Were they breaking his will?

Joel didn't know for sure, but he knew it couldn't be good for him. Grundy was aggressive and tough enough as it was. Adding onto that would be bad for the ghoul. This was especially true with what Joel once saw of Grundy's great strength.

The ghoul would be lying if he said that he wasn't worried. While he could take on these dying men, Joel didn't know how much he could actually do in a fight with an opponent that could take on several real ghosts. He would have to come up with a real plan, but what could work if he didn't have the strength to back up a plan to take down a walking tank.

He really just wished that he had a weapon. Joel's real talent always lied on his ability to use weapons like they were natural limbs. It was what caught the Shadows attention in the first place after all. Unfortunately, there was no way Joel could get a real weapon in here.

What he wouldn't give for a bo staff, a pair of tonfas, some nunchuku...or even a simple chain. Yes, that would do nicely. While not a conventional weapon, a chain could prove to be very useful. A chain would allow him to tie up his opponents. That way, they wouldn't be able to trash around as much. Heck, that might help them live longer.

Joel could picture it. He would swing the silver chain around and catch the failed ghouls as they attacked. They wouldn't even know what hit them. Yes, he wished he could have something like that now...

"Gack!" Joel gasped. Energy was moving through his body against his will. It was flowing to his hands like he was forming a blast of ectoplasmic energy. But this...felt more contained. It was staying with him. He could feel it in his hands. It was almost like it was changing shape.

Clink! Rattle!

"Huh?" Joel stared down at his hands. In his possession was now a thick metal chain like he pictured in his brain. The odd thing was that the object was silver instead of green. Whenever ectoplasm was shaped, it stayed the original color as the energy used. Now, though, it had changed. Why?

"Wait...Is this real?" Joel examined the chain. It didn't feel like ectoplasmic shaping. The energy always moves quickly when it was shaped. Now, it was slower. It was like the molecules were closer together. Instead of raw energy, this was...metal.

Did...did he just change ectoplasmic energy into matter?

"..." Joel gave a small smile. "Oh...this is going to work out just fine..."

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Nyx<strong>

"Goodie two shoes!" Nyx pulled at Spirit's hair.

"Spoiled brat!" Spirit insulted as she grinded her elbow into Nyx's side.

"You think that hurts, weakling!?" Nyx bit Spirit's arm.

"Ack! No biting, momma's girl!" Spirit gave Nyx an Indian burn.

"Ah? Can't take it, wimp?" Nyx mocked. "Well guess what? All's fair in love and war!"

"Fine then!"

"Ack! Not the wet willie!"

"Take that!"

"Fine then!"

"What are you-OH MY GOD!"

"Nuclear Wedgie!"

It all started out so innocently like most things do. Spirit and Nyx had been trying to learn more about Nyx's magical abilities when a small argument occurred. Spirit joked that when Nyx could use her magic well enough that she would finally be able to keep up with the halfa.

Of course, Nyx did not take kindly to this. She insulted Spirit and her fighting skills. The shadow ghost said that Spirit couldn't hope to ever match Nyx. She insisted that Spirit couldn't fight her way out of a paper bag.

Obviously, this angered Spirit. What followed was a serious of arguments based on a wide range of topics.

How to fight…

What the best color was…

Whose parent would win in a fight…

Which philosopher was the smartest…Yeah, they actually argued about that.

And even what the best food was…Actually on that one, they decided that it was bacon. Bacon is the best food in the world…

But there was one argument that put them over the edge. It was the age defining argument that had the world in turmoil. The single argument that caused countless riots and mosh pits…

Xbox vs. Playstation

After that, it was on!

"Enough!" Pandora reached down and grabbed the girls by their ears.

"OW!"

"MY BEAUTIFUL EARS!"

"No more fighting you two! You're going to ruin my garden!" Pandora lectured. "If you have so much energy, then I have something for you to do."

(Twenty minutes later…)

"This sucks…"

"I know…"

"This is your fault…"

"No, it's your fault!"

Pandora had given the two young ghosts a pair of buckets of warm water and brushes. She instructed them to take them and scrub Pandora's entrance hall. To say the least, this hall was very large…

Like Taj Mahal large…

"How is this my fault!?" Spirit demanded. "It's your mom that's making us do this!"

"But it was you that started our argument in the first place!" Nyx retorted.

"I was just trying to help!" Spirit defended herself.

"Well, you're kind of help is sucky!" Nyx glared. "It got me in trouble."

"You're in trouble half the time anyways. I don't need to be around for that to happen. In fact, you're the one that always gets me into trouble!"

"You call it trouble, I call it fun. Too bad that you don't know what fun is!"

"I don't do I?"

"Nope."

"Okay, then…"

Splash!

Spirit dumped the bucket of water on Nyx's head. The shadow ghost merely stared at the halfa for a second. She didn't say or do anything. No, she just stood there and stared…

Until she splashed Spirit as well…

"Gack!"

"Ha! That's what you get!"

"Oh, it's on!"

Thus, the great water war began. Both Spirit and Nyx tried to drench the other girl. In mere minutes, they looked like drowned rats.

Pandora arrived soon to find the chaos. Both girls were drenched from head to toe. Many of Pandora's decorations were either soaked or destroyed. Also…somehow the girls managed to destroy a part of one of the walls.

But…at least the hall was clean.

That's something, right?

* * *

><p><strong>I decided to change the summary of the story. Part of me really didn't like the summary from before, so I wrote a new one. Personally, I like this one better than the other one. It seems like it flows better.<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	13. Outrage

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"I think people should be angry at things that are worthy of anger. Injustice is outrageous and deserves outrage." Chris Hayes

* * *

><p>Chapter 13: "Outrage"<p>

(Thursday-September 23, 2010)

Batman stared down at the halfa. "So you knew about the possibility of a mole…"

"Well…" Phantom shrugged. "I did get information that there might have been a mole from Kaldur, but he received that info from Sportsmaster, so I wasn't sure how reliable the info was."

"…" Batman frowned.

"Look this was different than the Ghoul Project thing." Phantom held his hands up in defense. "First, if there was a mole, I didn't want to tip him or her off. Second, this was an internal issue of Young Justice. I thought that Kaldur and I could find the mole on our own…if there was one. Third, I had no clue that the mole would be…Red Tornado."

"I see…" Batman sighed. "I'm not going to kick you off the Team. I have been informed that I might have... overreacted to the Ghoul Project information."

Phantom glanced at the various members of the League in the Cave. They were all working on rebuilding the refuge for Young Justice. For the most part, the majority of the League liked and respected Phantom. After all, Phantom wouldn't have been invited to the Hall during Independence Day if they didn't. If Batman was apologizing, then the majority of the League must have been willing to forgive his…mistake.

"It's not as if you meant to alert Luthor. You just wanted to stop the weapons. I can't fault you with that." Batman noted. "And now that you told me about the mole information, I can see why you kept everything a secret. You didn't want to tip off Luthor."

"No…I should have told you…" Phantom sighed. "It was my bad. If we worked together to find the mole and investigate the Ghoul Project, then we wouldn't even be in this situation…"

"Like you said before, that's a 'what if' scenario…" Batman glanced at the rest of Young Justice who were seated at the kitchen table. "Now we just have to press forward with what we have."

"And Red Tornado? What do we do now that we know that he's the mole?" Phantom questioned.

Batman was about to respond when their conversation was interrupted.

"I can't believe it…" Superboy glared at them. "You knew? YOU KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN!?"

Conner rushed to Phantom and slammed him into the wall. "That android and his maniac nearly killed M'gann!"

"Conner, what's wrong?" M'gann flew up to the two teens.

"Danny knew there was a traitor among us and said nothing!" Superboy glared. "I can't believe this!"

"You knew?" Robin asked in shock.

"And didn't say anything?" Kid Flash frowned.

"I didn't know. I just heard that there might be a mole in relation to this Team." Phantom argued. "It was just a rumor. I didn't even know if it was true or not. How could I even act on it?"

"You acted on the Ghoul Project rumor like it was the most important thing in the world!" Artemis argued. "Wait! This is why you didn't tell anyone of us about the Ghoul Project! You thought that one of us was a traitor!"

"No! It's not like that!" Phantom shouted.

"M'gann almost died because you didn't do anything!" Superboy snarled.

"Please stop this." Kaldur stepped in. "I was the one that told Danny of this mole info in the first place. We both knew about the possibility of a traitor. We believed that we could protect the Team-"

"Well, obviously you couldn't…" M'gann looked away.

"Enough." Batman stopped the fighting. All of Young Justice turned to him. "With Red Tornado…missing, Young Justice will now be overseen by rotating supervisors. Captain Marvel has volunteered to take the first shift."

"I'm really looking forward to hanging with you guys." The tall muscular man in a red jumpsuit with a lighting bolt on it and a white side cape smiled at them.

'…'Hanging with you guys'?' Phantom wondered. 'Please don't tell me that he's some old guy trying to be hip….'

Superboy turned to Phantom. "After I dismantle Red Tornado, we're going to have a talk about-"

"Red Tornado is a member of the Justice League. That makes him a League responsibility." Batman intervened. "You will leave him to us.

Phantom frowned. He didn't like that. The halfa wanted a shot at a rematch with the android. A second fight would show just how tough the wind android would be without help from his siblings…

"I have another assignment for this Team." Batman gestured to the holographic news article that appeared behind him.

"Gotham Mayor attacked by Guerrilla Gorilla?" Kid Flash scowled.

"Batman, please! Tell us that you're not sending us on this joke of a wild ape chase!" Robin stepped forward.

"I never joke about the mission." Batman glared.

Robin instantly stepped down.

"I've checked the sources. I studied the patterns. Mayor Hill's encounter is only the latest in a series of incidents." Batman explained. "Phantom, you and your Team will depart for India and check this out."

Phantom frowned as Kid Flash passed him and scoffed. "Yeah…your team…"

Phantom scowled. Turning to Batman, he noted. "For now at least…"

* * *

><p>"Okay…" Nyx glared at the book in her hands. "This makes no sense!"<p>

"Calm down." Raven structed. "You just aren't focusing enough. Take a deep breath and look closely."

"Okay…focus…Focusing. I am super focused. Nothing can distract me-SQUIRREL!"

"…" Raven sighed and placed her face in her hands. "I regret agreeing to help you."

"Oh, come one, Raven. Don't be like that." Spirit chuckled. "You have to admit that that was funny."

"I have to admit nothing." Rachel frowned at Nyx. "Magic is a serious issue. If you don't take it seriously, then you will never be able to use it."

"Fine, fine." Nyx waved her off. "I'll be serious."

"Hey look there's a nickel on the ground." Youngblood looked down at the street below them. They were currently on the roof of Fenton Works. Nyx convinced Raven to help her with her magic again, and Raven agreed as long as they worked at Raven's favorite meditation spot.

"Phillip?" Nyx looked down.

"Okay, I'm done." Raven grabbed her book and began to float away.

"Raven, wait." Spirit called out to the magic user. "Come on, you said you would help. We swear that we'll stop joking around."

"…Fine." Raven returned unhappily. "But the moment that you make a bad joke again, I'm out of here."

"Fair enough."

Raven looked at Nyx. "Magic isn't about the words you say or the emotions you feel. It is different from ectoplasm. Magic is alive. It has a will of its own. You don't control it, you channel it."

"Don't control it?" Nyx was confused. "How can you cast spells if you can't control magic?"

"It isn't about control. It's about harmony." Raven instructed. "You're heart and mind must be in sync with your magic, or it won't agree to work with you."

"That sounds…really complicated…" Youngblood mumbled. "Remind me to never play as a wizard or mage. Too much work…"

"Rack! Done…" Polly agreed from Youngblood's shoulder.

"This all seems stupidly difficult…" Nyx frowned. "Is there any easier way to do this?"

"No, if this was easy anyone could be a magic user." Raven shook her head. "If you wish to use magic, then it will be a difficult process."

"Greeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaat…" Nyx slumped to the floor.

"It sounds like you'll have to forget everything you know about controlling ectoplasm in order to use magic." Spirit mentioned.

"Basically…yes. They are energies that usually oppose each other after all. Part of it has to do with the difference in using the energy." Raven explained.

"I thought it had to do with the will of the users." Youngblood remembered. "You know if the users' wills conflict so will the energies."

"That's a big part of it yes. The largest reason actually, but there a quite a few smaller reasons too." Raven nodded. "It has to do with the fundamentals of the different energies. Usually they don't mix."

"And if they do?" Spirit questioned.

"Like I said last time we talked about this, the user or users might be unstoppable. But doing so is easier said than done." Raven explained. "After all, no one has done it before."

"My brother did it once when he put on the Helmet of Fate." Spirit noted.

"I still doubt it was a perfect mix. From the story you told me, he put the helmet on with a distaste towards magic." Raven shook her head. "He may have been powerful, but it was a far way away from perfect."

"What about me?" Nyx questioned.

"Well, you're about as far away from perfect as a person can get."

"I could kill you…"

"But then you wouldn't have a teacher."

"…Fair point. I'll kill you later."

* * *

><p>There had been rumors all day throughout the facility of the Ghoul Project. Joel heard these whispers clearly and was pleased by the news. It seemed that the scientists made a mistake. They were handling the Solomon Grundy when the worst possible thing that could occur happened.<p>

Three different failed ghouls escaped.

You could imagine the panic when people realized what happened. Because everyone was so focused on Grundy that they never noticed when the giant's stumbling around managed to damage a few of the cages. For any normal being, these opening cracks in the cages would not be enough. The failed ghoul's, however, had very loose shapes. Some of them were basically goo. The small cracks were enough.

In mere minutes, the failed ghouls managed to exit their cages and leave the facility. An hour later, people realized what had happened. At first, Joel didn't know what had occurred. Despite the chaos, no one was speaking directly of it at first. Eventually, though, Joel caught on to the facts. Three different experiments had escaped.

Actually…Joel was more conflicted about this than someone would originally think. On one hand, it was good to know that escape was, in fact, possible. The ghoul had been constantly looking for a way out. No opportunities ever arrived, but now it was confirmed that the Ghoul Project was not an impenetrable fortress. Escape was possible.

For now…

After this incident, the security in the Ghoul Project will sky rocket. The amount of protection put in the facility would be terrifying. Every cage would constantly checked for security. The amount of guards would double. Escape would become almost impossible.

'No…I'll have chance.' Joel thought. 'I'll just have to be careful.'

Trying to sneak out might prove to be too difficult now, though. If the security went up so much, then a lot of it might be focused on the only successful ghoul in the Ghoul Project. Hundreds of other subjects were expendable. If they tried to escape, they would be killed, but if Joel was lost…The Ghoul Project just might be shutdown.

Joel might just be constantly monitored now. If he tried to leave, they would know instantly. The ghoul's only option would be to fight his way out. That, however, would be completely impossible on his own. The number of soldiers in this facility was already staggering. Doubling that would make a small army.

No…he was going to need help. But how would he get that help?

Joel would just have to think of something.

"Get out now!" The door to Joel's cage swung open. Several soldiers were there with guns at the ready.

The ghoul quickly got to his feet. "What is it? I already fought today."

"Because of the circumstances, it has been decided that we need to make some progress to make up for it." One of the soldiers growled. "Otherwise, half the staff will be killed."

"I see…" Joel muttered as he was being led by the soldiers to the arena. "And this progress will be?"

"Making you reach your potential." Another soldier grunted.

"What?" Joel was confused.

"You're going to fight the giant monster."

"…Solomon Grundy?"

"Do you know any other giant monsters in this facility?"

'Oh, I see several around me right now.' Joel thought to himself. In his opinion, the real monsters in the Ghoul Project were not the failed ghouls. No, the real monsters were the people doing this to innocent people.

"I thought that Grundy was not ready to fight me yet…" Joel noted.

"Enough talk! Just do as you're told, and you won't be killed!"

Ah…that meant that Grundy wasn't ready yet. They still couldn't completely control him. The inhibitor collar would stop the giant man from rampaging, but it could not control his will yet. That much was obvious to Joel. That meant that he wasn't just their puppet…not yet at least…

Perhaps Joel could reason with him?

* * *

><p>Phantom couldn't reason with these people…<p>

The entire flight with India, Phantom tried to reach out and talk to his teammates. He attempted to explain the situation to them. How he really didn't even know if he could trust the info. How he didn't want to cause discourse in Young Justice. How he didn't even want to freaking believe that there was a mole on the Team!

But they wouldn't listen. They were all too hurt. Each one felt betrayed that Phantom didn't really trust them completely. Each one of them looked up to Phantom. He was their friend and leader. It was like learning that a close friend was someone entirely different than what you thought.

Phantom could understand that. He really could. That's why he wasn't getting angry at their moping and snappish attitude. The halfa, however, did not have the patience of a saint. He could take a lot of crap. It came from all the trials he had been through during the past year alone. But…there was a limit.

Phantom's nerves were already on edge before Young Justice's spat. Yesterday, he had been reminded that a lot of his enemies weren't even close to being caught yet, his powers were at an all-time low, he lost a fight against a traitor, and he was yelled at by a bunch of people on both sides of his life. Suffice to say, Phantom's patience was at the edge…

One more thing was going to push it over the edge.

"All clear!" Robin called after he and Artemis checked the area around the Bioship.

"Okay, everyone go to stealth." Phantom ordered as the rest of Young Justice exited the ship. Captain Marvel decided to tag along, much to the ire of all of Young Justice. They did not appreciate being babysat by the League. "Let's come up with a plan."

"Plan? What plan? The mission is simple." Wally piped up.

"It's recon! We all know what to do." Robin noted.

Phantom glared as they turned their backs. "Like hell you do. You're not allowed to leave yet."

"Allowed?!" Robin glared. "You think you're better than us? We started this Team together. I thought we were equals, but then you proved that you're just like the members of the League. You keep secrets from us just like them."

"First the Ghoul Project, and now the mole? What else could you be keeping from us?" Kid Flash questioned. "I really don't see why we should take orders from you anymore."

"Because you freaking made me the leader in the first place." Phantom hissed.

"And that was obviously a mistake. Because of you, M'gann was seconds away from death." Superboy glared as he grabbed M'gann's arm gently. "I thought that I could trust you with anything, and you proved me wrong."

'I can take care of myself, Conner.' M'gann ranted mentally. 'Stop acting like a character from a 70's sitcom…'

"I only want to protect you!" Superboy argued.

"And your type of protection sounds just like Danny's." Artemis supported her friend. "Useless and unwanted."

"Gee, thanks for that, Artemis." Phantom scowled. "Great to find out where we stand after everything…"

"You've brought this on yourself!" Artemis snapped.

"Comrades, please. We need to stand united."

"Shut up, Kaldur." Kid Flash frowned. "We'll get to you later. Right now, it's Danny's performance review."

"This is not the time for that!" Phantom argued.

"We'll make time." Superboy grunted.

"Yeah, you're the one holding up the mission." Artemis glared. "Let's discuss it. Get everything out in the open."

"You do know how we feel, right?" M'gann looked away in sadness. "We all feel betrayed, angry, and sad. Can't you understand that?"

"I understand! But we have to push through this!" Phantom argued. "We can discuss this afterward, but right now we need a plan!"

"How are we supposed to follow a plan made by someone we think is a liar and a traitor?" Robin asked.

"I don't care what you think about me right now!" Phantom growled to his teammates. "Right now, we have a mission to do."

"You lied to us!" Kid Flash yelled. "How are we supposed to trust you?"

"We all have our secrets." Phantom glared.

"Yet, everything about you is a secret." Superboy frowned.

"I'm dead. My secrets should stay dead." Phantom explained.

"You're working with the living, though." Miss Martian pointed out.

"And apparently that was a mistake…" Phantom sighed.

"The blame does not lie solely on Danny." Aqualad intervened.

"Yeah, you're not innocent in all this either, Kaldur." Robin snorted.

"You're all playing the innocent card, that's just hilarious." Phantom drew the attention back to him. "Don't you get it?"

"Get what?" Artemis asked.

"The fact that despite what anyone says or does, none of us truly trust each other."

"What does that mean?" M'gann questioned.

"It means that I could know more about you guys than you even know about yourselves." Phantom stated. "You forget my powers? I'm almost literally undetectable without the proper equipment. If I had wanted to, I would have invaded every one of your lives and found out each and every one of your darkest secrets."

"And why didn't you?" Robin questioned.

"Because I respected and trusted you enough to respect your privacy!" Phantom shouted. "In that sense, I trusted you far more than any of you ever trusted me. I know that all of you have secrets that you are keeping from me, but I never cared because I thought that you trusted me in the same way. You find out that I've been keeping some things from you and you flip out!"

"You don't understand…" Superboy frowned. He was still obviously hurt and angry about what happened. Unfortunately, people tend to say the dumbest things under these circumstances. "You act like you do, but you don't understand what we're going through right now. Any secrets we have don't affect the Team, unlike you. A ghost can't possibly understand what the living are going through."

"Shut your filthy mouth." Phantom didn't yell this. He didn't give any reaction really. His voice was completely neutral. It was the calm before the storm, and it was terrifying.

"Danny…" Kaldur tried to say something, but was stopped by Phantom.

"No!" Phantom yelled. "They want to talk about my understanding of their feelings, so let's talk about it!"

"Er…" Captain Marvel shifted uncomfortably. "I can understand the trouble, but I don't think that getting angry like this will help anyone."

"I've been patient enough with these people!" Phantom clenched his fists. "I'm done being patient, so stay out of this Captain. This is Young Justice, not the Justice League."

"…" Captain Marvel looked down at the ground.

"You all feel betrayed? You feel angry? You feel sad? So what?!" Phantom scowled. "You don't even know what real betrayal, anger, or despair really are. You're all just wet behind the ear greenhorns in this lifestyle! This is the worst you ever faced? That's just sad."

"Danny…" M'gann looked hurt.

"I kept the Ghoul Project from you because it was none of your goddamn business. I kept the mole thing from you because if I told any of you, this Team would have fallen apart. You would have all point the finger at each other and acted like children." Phantom glanced at all of them. "And you've proven me right. You're all just children. None of you are ready to really be heroes yet."

"And you are?" Superboy crossed his arms.

"Yeah, some of us have been at this for years!" Kid Flash glared. "Rob's been Batman's partner for four years. How long have you been doing this? A year?"

"Yeah…It's been a year… You want to hear what that year's has been like? You want to hear what betrayal, anger, and despair really are?" Phantom's eyes became clouded for a second.

"What do you mean?" Artemis questioned.

"Betrayal…Real betrayal is finding out that one of your closest friends was actually a damn spy. Real anger is having to give up your deepest desires because someone abused your dreams. Real despair…Is watching your best friend sacrifice himself for you…knowing that hundreds of people died in a war because of you…Completely failing everything and everyone you ever cared about…" Phantom trembled.

Everyone stared at the halfa.

"I get that you're mad at me. I do! But guess what? It's nothing compared to what I went through!" Phantom shouted. "Want to know how I got my powers? I DIED! Yeah, what did any of you give up for your powers? I gave up everything! My parents shot at me like I was a monster! I can no longer be with any normal human friends! I don't get to hope to have a family one day! I can no longer **live**!"

"Danny…I-" Robin was cut off.

"Shut up." Phantom gritted his teeth. "I am sick of this. I agreed to be on this Team, because I…I wanted a taste of what it was like to be alive again. I thought that if I joined this Team, that I could gain a bit of humanity back…a bit of redemption by being with you and helping you succeed….I was wrong. Right now, I regret ever going to the Hall of Justice in the first place."

"Dude…We…Wait! Don't you put us through the guilt trip! No one made you join the Team! No one made you keep secrets from us!" Kid Flash exclaimed.

"You're right. And nothing is keeping me here now." Phantom gave him a hard look.

"What does that mean?" Artemis questioned.

"It means that I'm done with this." Phantom turned away from them. "I don't need you, and I don't need Young Justice."

"Danny! Wait!" Kaldur tried to stop him. "Tensions are high right now. Don't make any rash decisions."

"Well, none of you like my thought out decisions, so why not mix it up?" Phantom glanced over his shoulder. "After all, two minutes ago you all were about to through a mutiny against me. This is what you wanted, right? I'm no longer going to be your leader. In fact, I'm no longer going to be your teammate. I know when I'm not wanted. I quit."

"Danny! Wait!"

"NO!" Phantom roared. "I'm going to say the same thing I should have said when you asked me to investigate Project Cadmus. Screw you guys, I'm going home!"

* * *

><p>Spirit's Ghost Sense was not something that differentiated threats from non-threats. If a ghost was close enough to Spirit, she would sense it. Granted, some of her moments of sensing the ghosts would be stronger than others, but it always happened.<p>

It occurred even with Youngblood and Nyx. If they reached a certain distance from her, she would know that a ghost was near…even if the ghost didn't know that she knew…or something like that. Basically, no ghost could ever sneak up on her. It didn't matter their intent.

So, when Spirit's Ghost Sense went off, she didn't know how to react. "Someone's nearby…"

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Raven questioned.

"No idea…." Spirit mumbled. "But…my Premonition isn't going off. No one has the intent to hurt us right now…"

"Oh…So it's a friend?" Youngblood questioned.

"It's probably my mom or one of her servants…" Nyx sighed dramatically. "It's late and tomorrow we have school…"

"But why hasn't the ghost shown itself?" Raven's eyes narrowed.

"I don't know…" Spirit mumbled. "Maybe Vision is testing me? Or it's Dad, Fright Knight, or Wulf checking up on me secretly."

"They know they can't hide from you." Nyx argued.

"Then…I'm out of ideas…" Spirit shrugged.

Youngblood decided to speak. "Maybe-"

Splash!

"…"

"…"

"…Is this paint?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yes…" Raven's now green eyebrow twitched. "Yes it is…"

"Someone…just pranked me…" Spirit trembled in anger. "Pranked me…"

"WHOEVER DID THAT IS DEAD!" Nyx roared.

"Technically, the ghost is already dead…" Youngblood mentioned.

"Shut up!" The three girls glared at him.

"Rack! I think you should be quiet now…" Polly suggested to his master.

"…okay…" Youngblood whimpered.

"Gahahahahahahahaha!" Laughter sounded above them.

"YOU!" They all roared.

The ghost above them was dressed in a torn orange jumpsuit. It was almost like a prison jumpsuit. The ghost had short white hair and a beard. He had a thin build that seemed to constantly move like smoke. In his hands was a bucket that once held the green paint.

"Gahahahahahahahahahaha!" The ghost laughed as it flew away humorously.

"GET BACK HERE!" The girls decided to give chase.

"…They do know that they could just turn intangible and get the paint off right?" Youngblood questioned as he allowed to paint to fall through him.

"Rack! I would wait until they calm down to remind them." Polly suggested. "That way we don't receive their anger.

"Hmm…Good point."

* * *

><p>Joel eyed Grundy as the giant monster panted and huffed from the other side of the metal arena. It was clear that the abuse Grundy had taken from the scientists of the Ghoul Project had not healed yet. If Joel had to guess, they were trying to train Grundy. They wanted him to act like their tool.<p>

This obviously hadn't worked yet, though. Grundy had yelled at the soldiers that brought him in. He struggled and trashed at the men. They had been forced to use the collar more than once.

"Your job is to fight! Can you understand that, you moron? Fight him!" The soldier pointed at Joel.

"Grr…Why should Grundy listen to small man?" Grundy glared. "Grundy wants to crush you, not a child."

"Because if you don't, we'll do this." The soldier activated the collar.

"AAAAHHHH!" Grundy screamed in pain.

"Stop it…" Joel stated calmly. "We will fight. If you hurt him too much, then he won't be a real challenge, will he? Then what will you tell Queen Bee?"

The soldier stopped the electricity in the collar. "Be quiet freak. Or I'll deal with you myself."

"Big threat…" Joel's eyes flashed green. "But I wonder…could you actually hurt a real ghoul?"

"You see the ecto-gun in my hand?"

"Have you not seen my fights? That will matter little." Joel looked the soldier in the eye. "I can easily defeat you, and if you attack me, then that will be the least of your worries. You'll be killed if you try and hit me again."

"Sir…" One of the other soldiers stated.

"Let's get out of here." The soldier grunted.

"Yes, sir!"

"I'll enjoy seeing this monster kill you…" The soldier grunted as he and the others exited the room.

Joel turned to Grundy and whispered. "Look. They want us to fight. We can just fake it, though. If we put on a show, then they might be satisfied-OOF!"

Grundy swatted the young ghoul away. "Grundy is sick of the shocks!"

"Erk…" Joel quickly jumped to his feet. Luckily the blow hadn't been too hard. He hadn't even changed into his ghoul form yet. Grundy could easily kill him right now. "I understand, but violence is not the solution. Fighting must be avoided at all cost. We are not monsters. If we cooperate, then we can get out of this with minimal injuries."

"RAW!" Grundy wasn't listening. He charged at Joel and tried to crush him beneath his fists.

Rolling away, Joel pleaded. "Please! I don't wish to do this!"

"SHUT UP!" Grundy shouted.

"Fine…" Joel sighed. "Have it your way." In a flash of white rings, Joel was quickly changed into his ghoul form.

"Flashy trick show won't save you!" Solomon Grundy roared.

"That's not the trick…" Joel quickly formed a metal chain in his hand. "This is."

* * *

><p>"Ungrateful little sidekicks…" Phantom muttered to himself. He was currently flying over the vast forests. He was heading home. It was time to cut the ties with Young Justice. "I spend my time helping them, and what do I get? Nothing!"<p>

Phantom hadn't felt this angry in months. He could feel his blood boiling beneath his skin. The audacity of all this had pushed him to the edge. How dare they speak as if anything they're going through right now could compare to him? How dare they say that he didn't understand!?

That was what Phantom really was mad about. He could understand their mistrust and anger. Phantom would be a hypocrite to tell someone to instantly let go of anger like that. No, it was their attitude that really got to the halfa. They were acting like Danny hadn't gone through anything similar to this. They pointed the finger to him and told him that he couldn't understand them.

It was that that made the halfa snap.

Phantom had gone through trials that would break almost every other person on this planet. He faced enemies that he had not hope of defeating. He lost people that could never be replaced. He gave up so much just so that others could live for one more day.

The halfa had gone through literal hell on Earth. There were times that he wanted to give up. After all, how much pain, suffering, betrayal, and loss could one boy, not even a fully grown man yet, take? Yet, he pushed through. He survived through everything.

And they had the nerve to say that he couldn't understand?

LIKE HELL!

His patience had been pressed too far past its limits. He didn't want to be on Young Justice in the first place! He didn't want to be their leader! He didn't even want to be their friends!

…No…That wasn't true…He wanted to be their friends. Why else would he spend so much free time with them? Why else would he laugh and smile with them so much? Why else would he have allowed them to hurt him in the first place?

Phantom stopped his momentum. He floated above the jungle and remembered. The halfa thought of all the times that he and the members of Young Justice just hung out like regular teenagers. They spent hours bonding and growing their friendships.

He didn't do all that because he wanted to be distant from them. Phantom wouldn't waste time and effort like that. The halfa always wanted to be their friend. He wanted to grow close to them and have something that resembled the friendships he lost with…Klemper…Tucker….Sam…

None of his other relationships were like that. He may have cared for all of his new family and friends greatly, but none of them were like his previous best friends. There were too many differences in personality, desires, and age for Danny to have the close friendships he had with those three.

He couldn't just goof off and talk with his new family and friends. Some of Danny's fondest memories with his deceased friends were the times that they just acted like…teenagers. Those times where Phantom could just stop being a hero, partner, brother, leader, or role model and just be…a normal teenager.

'I miss that so much…' Phantom thought. 'I miss feeling…normal…'

That was what he liked about the members of Young Justice so much. They made him feel like he did when he was around his old friends. He felt like he didn't have to be anything else but a normal friend.

"…They're my friends…" Phantom mumbled to himself. "Crap…"

He couldn't just leave them here. Kaldur didn't have a whole lot of leading experience yet. The others were still upset and would be prone to mistakes. There was a good chance that they would be killed.

Phantom couldn't just let another friend die, even if he was angry at them. He had to go back.

But that didn't mean that he couldn't quit Young Justice after this…

* * *

><p>It turned out that there wasn't one ghost wanted to pull pranks on the children. There were three of those little suckers. They were pretty successful in their endeavors too. The girls were now covered in green paint, feathers, and glitter. Somehow, the pranking ghosts even managed to tie some of their shoes together.<p>

You can, of course, imagine the girl's anger at this.

"Azaroth Metrion Zinthos!" Raven used her magical energy to grab a car and try to hit the ghost in front of her with it.

This was ineffective, however. The ghost was very fat. In fact, it was almost a complete circle. The only difference that make him look like a sentient being was the bald head and stubby limbs. The unusual part was that all physical attacks seem to bounce off the fat ghost.

Much too Raven's ire, of course…

She had flung a lot of things at the ghost. Cars, lamp posts, pieces of concrete, and even Youngblood ("AAAAAHHHHH!") were all sent to the fat ghost. None of them did any damage, though. Raven would have attacked the ghost directly with her magic, but the ghost was surprising fast. If Raven even thought about attacking directly, he would bounce out of her range.

It was getting rather annoying…

"STAY STILL!" Nyx roared.

She was fighting the ghost that originally dumped the paint on them. Her blasts of shadow energy did nothing to the smoke like ghost. His form kept changing so the blasts would just pass by him. The same could be said for the rest of Nyx's attacks.

Shadow spike clearly didn't work. Her shadow cats were pretty much useless. Widespread explosive shadows were quickly avoided. Not even Nyx's secret attack of swinging Youngblood around like a bat ("SOMEONE HELP!") did nothing.

"I HATE YOU SO MUCH RIGHT NOW!" Spirit wasn't fairing much better either.

The last ghost that had been pranking the girls was even weirder than the others. It was covered in green armor, almost like it was an armadillo. The ghost could curl up into a ball and sly around quickly. It was zipping back and forth around Spirit. The halfa girl tried to catch the annoying ghost, but it was incredibly fast.

Her Premonition was no use right now. The ghost had no real ill intent. He obviously didn't want to cause any real harm to the girl, so Spirit couldn't pick up on any of its thoughts. There was another option, though Spirit's reaction speed was faster after her training with Vision, but it was hard to predict an opponent that wasn't trying to attack you.

She couldn't get close enough to use her Spectral Claws. None of her far ranged attacks even got close to the ghost. Not even using Youngblood as an obstacle was helping much ("PLEASE STOP! I'M A PERSON TOO!").

"Why aren't you helping anymore!?" Nyx yelled at Youngblood.

"I'm afraid for my life!" Youngblood called from down the street. "You keep using me as a weapon!"

"WHIMP!" Spirit yelled.

"No I'm not!" Youngblood reasoned. "I'm being smart! You guys are scary!"

"Do something at least…" Raven noted.

"Should I go get help?" Youngblood questioned.

"NO! I'll be embarrassed to death if we needed help with these three clowns!" Spirit shouted.

"Then what should I do?"

"Help us!" Nyx answered.

"…Er…" Youngblood frowned. "Well…How about we just try to capture them instead of beat them up? I think subduing them with traps will be a lot more effective than just hitting them."

"But I like hitting them!" Nyx argued.

"But…it might be more effective to work together and try to be smart about this…" Raven sighed.

"Fine!" Spirit nodded. "I just want to take them down, I don't care how."

* * *

><p>(Play: Way Away by Yellowcard)<p>

Swink! Clank! Bang!

"Quit swinging that!" Grundy yelled.

Joel actually felt the need to accommodate the giant brute. The chain idea did not work at all. Striking the monster with the chain was pointless. It did nothing to the huge being. The chain was to the monster like a piece of string was to a normal person.

A very thin and weak piece of string at that…

That meant the containment method was a no go either. The chain would hold Grundy for mere seconds. That was not near enough time for Joel to do anything to the monster.

Joel knew this because none of his other attacks were effective at all. Ectoplasmic blasts bounced off the beast like a rubber ball. Punches and kicks were just about as effective. Any bladed weapon that Joel tried to create didn't work as well. The monster had incredibly thick skin and a high healing abilities. Joel's small cuts did nothing to him.

After that, there wasn't much in Joel's arsenal. He could form other weapons, but he didn't have the energy to continuously make new weapons. If he wanted to win, he would have to do two things. One, he would have to think of some weapon to match the monster's strength. Two, he would have to find some way to actually keep Grundy down.

"RAW!" Grundy sent a huge uppercut at the ghoul. Joel didn't have time to dodge. Qucikly, Joel pictured a giant shield in his mind. His ectoplasm worked to accomdate Joel's desire. The shield that was about Joel's size formed in his hands. Joel held this by his side in an attempt to protect himself

That was how his Shade Shaping ability worked. The limit of what Joel could physically make was Joel's imagination and his stamina. It was similar to a power ring, but with Joel, the objects were real instead of made of energy. Joel shaped the ectoplasmic molecules into physical matter.

Not only that, to retain some energy, Joel could reabsorb part of the energy of his shade weapon. He would have to maintain physical contact with the shade weapon at all times, though. If he let go of the shade weapon, then it would rapidly deteriorate.

Bang! Crash!

…Or the shade weapons could be smashed like that. Joel could not reabsorb weapons that had been destroyed.

"Gack…" Joel groaned. The shield might be gone, but it served its purpose. Joel remained mostly unharmed.

Seeing this, Grundy charged. He sent several wild blows at Joel. The ghoul, however, quickly dodged the blows. The monster was slow, so dodging wasn't all that difficult. The problem was that unlike in his other matches, Joel was sure that he would run out of energy before his opponent did.

And if Grundy caught him…It wouldn't be good.

As he dodged, Joel quickly thought about what to do. He didn't know any weapons that he could make to help him. Nothing was powerful enough to hurt Grundy. No normal human weapon…Wait…Joel wasn't normal. He was a ghoul. Perhaps he wasn't limited by normal human weapons. Maybe if he imagined something different, something special to help him, then Joel might be able to defeat Grundy.

It would have to be simple. Joel didn't have the time to learn how to use a complicated weapon. The first thing that came to mind was an energy blade like a light saber, but Joel didn't have the practice to make something like that. No…he needed something basic.

Perhaps it could be something that could increase the power of his strikes? Something like a…gauntlet could help him. Not just a regular gauntlet, though. No, it could be one that focused his ectoplasm in concentrated bursts. Yes…something like that could multiply Joel's offensive ability multiple times over.

A Burst Gauntlet

"Ah?" Joel felt as his ectoplasm shaped around his arms. The ectoplasm set on his arms and began to take shape. The hard green gauntlets were thick and sturdy. Small slits were at the outward side of the gauntlets. Each one was pointed back. There were also small slits on the knuckles as well.

Focusing, Joel sent a little energy into the gauntlet. Green energy burst out of the side slits. 'Just what the doctor ordered….'

Dodging Grundy's latest strike, the young ghoul rocketed to the monster's face. The right Burst Gauntlet came to life. Green energy poured out the side. The energy increased the power of the boys attack to a steel shattering level.

Or in this case, a Grundy shattering level.

BOOM!

Joel's Burst Gauntlet rammed into Grundy's face. As soon as it made contact, the gauntlet stopped sending energy back. Instead, the energy poured through the slits at the knuckles. The force of the punch was so great that Grundy was sent flying back with his face covered in a green blast. With a thud, the monster hit the side wall.

Before the monster could even get the chance to shake off the dizziness, Joel was already in front of him ready to attack. He had used the Burst Gauntlets to greatly increase his speed. Like before, Joel used the moment of the gauntlets to strike Grundy. Both of Joel's arms rammed into the giant monster with burst of ectoplasm like before.

Joel continued his assault for a few more strikes. He hit Grundy's midsection and left dark bruises. Grundy, however, retaliated in anger. He struck out at the ghoul, but Joel was too fast for him. The boy had lunged back and was out of the range of Grundy's attacks.

In a fit of rage, Grundy charged at the ghoul. His punches were wild and powerful. Joel managed to use the Burst Gauntlets to continuously fly around the giant man. Grundy was now effectively trying to swat a fly moving around with the speed of a rocket.

As he zoomed around Grundy, Joel sent several different attacks at the monster. Each one landed. Unfortunately, while the attacks did cause damage, they weren't strong enough to cause Grundy a small amount of pain and annoyance. The monster just had too tough of a body to defeat with normal raw brute force. Joel would have to think of something else.

'He must have a weakness.' Joel thought. 'Everyone has a weakness. But what can hurt him? Even my gauntlets aren't doing too much damage. The only thing that hurts him enough to stop him is…his collar…'

That was it. His collar was his weakness. If Joel could somehow activate that, then he might be able to stop the beast. Hitting the collar wouldn't work, though. No, to activate it, he would have to use electricity. He didn't have electrical powers, though.

But maybe…his Shade Shaping ability could make an electrical weapon…

Quickly flying back to gain some distance, Joel reabsorbed his Burst Gauntlets. He then focused on creating a Taser. Joel didn't know if he could form such a weapon, but it had to be less complicated than the Burst Gauntlets.

'Well, what do you know…It actually worked.' Joel thought. He peered down at the metallic hand-held taser. His plan might just actually work.

Forming a normal chain in his free hand, Joel rocketed towards the charging monster. With a show of skill and control, Joel flew around the monster. He was forced to dodge Grundy's wild blows, but Joel still quickly managed to circle the beast. As he went, Joel carefully wrapped the chain around the monster.

The chain wouldn't provide a lot of time. Grundy would destroy the chain in seconds. He wouldn't be able to do anything completed, but Joel's whole plan was not complicated in the least. In fact, Joel only needed a moment for this to work.

After the chain was wrapped around the beast, Joel tightened the chain. Grundy grunted as the chain coiled around him and tightened. He felt no pain from the chain, but his arms were momentarily trapped. They would be freed soon, though. All he had to do was break the chain.

He never got that chance, though. Joel landed on Grundy's back with enough force to cause the monster to stumble a little. The ghoul quickly activated the Taser and rammed into the back of Grundy's neck. The effect was instantaneous. Grundy's inhibitor collar was activated.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Grundy screamed.

Not wanting to be shocked as well, Joel quickly created distance between them. He watched as Grundy flailed in agony. The monster was completely stopped by the sting of the electricity. By the time the electricity stopped, Grundy was smoking and dazed. It was then that Joel decided to take advantage. He had to knock the monster out.

Using the last bit of his energy, Joel reformed the Burst Gauntlets one last time. Flying above the dazed zombie, Joel gathered one last bit of energy to his gauntlets. Joel then rocketed down to Grundy's head. In a blaze of green ectoplasm, Joel did a massive superman punch to Grundy.

Once again, the monster was sent sprawling. He hit the side wall and slid to the ground. This time, though, he did not get up. Grundy was unconscious. The monster had been defeated by the ghoul.

Joel let out a relieved sigh as he reabsorbed the gauntlets. He did it. The ghoul had come out of the fight alive. He was exhausted and wounded, but he would live. That was all that mattered…

"GACK!" Joel spit out green blood onto the metal floor. He fell to his knees as his body trembled. His skin seemed to waiver and flicker green. It felt as if his entire body was about to fall apart.

Joel instantly knew what the problem was. He had used too much of his energy. His weakened form could not sustain itself like this….

The rings of white light once again appeared. They changed Joel back into his human form. This was good. Joel's form seemed to stabilize for now because of this. He wouldn't deteriorate today.

Thud!

…But he would pass out from exhaustion.

* * *

><p>"All that fancy tech for a stupid light switch." Phantom groaned. "I don't know whether to be impressed or pissed…"<p>

Phantom had been surprised to find that Kaldur had taken charge. Granted, there had been…bumps. The Team wasn't exactly pumped for the mission after everything that was said and weren't too keen of listening to Kaldur. Aqualad had observed Phantom, though. He learned how the halfa acted and spoke as a leader. The Atlantian managed to organize Young Justice and Captain Marvel to investigate the jungle.

They found that the Brain was using Kobra Venom to genetically enhance animals and inhibitor collars to control them. Phantom had mostly watched as they stormed Brain's base and freed the animals. He did interfere with their final battle with the mechanized rolling robot with a human brain called the Brain and his giant ape companion known as Monsieur Mallah.

Of course, the Brain and his ape escaped by using a super huge light switch. Phantom still managed to get some Pinky and the Brain references out before that happened, though. So it wasn't a total loss.

"You act like you knew the Brain personally." Kaldur noted. He was the first one to approach Phantom after the battle. They had managed to free all the animals and

"He once tried to create a ghost portal. I stopped him and destroyed the chrome dome's lab." Phantom muttered.

"You never mentioned that…" Superboy noted. His shirt was torn his battle with the giant wolf that he named…Wolf. Yeah, that's not going to get confusing at all.

"You never asked…" Phantom returned.

"And we're supposed to ask about all your adventures?" Artemis questioned.

"I suppose not…" Phantom crossed his arms. He was still very mad at them, and he didn't feel like speaking right now. "I just never thought it was important."

"Like the other things." Robin noted.

Phantom's scowl deepened.

"I…um…" Captain Marvel backed into the Bioship. "I'm just going to wait in the ship until you sort this out."

"Look…" Robin sighed. "I…understand what you did. You're reasoning is sound. The Ghoul Project wasn't our business and the mole thing…Well, you saw how we acted with you. I can't imagine what we would have done to each other."

"I could. That's why I kept it a secret." Phantom reasoned.

"Um…W-why did you come back?" M'gann questioned. "You seemed pretty mad before."

"I'm still angry, but I'm not the type of person to abandon his responsibilities. And I'm definitely not the type of person to leave his friends to die. I shouldn't have tried to leave in the middle of a mission." Phantom sighed. "For that I'm sorry."

"So were still friends, huh?" Kid Flash questioned.

"Pretty crappy friends, but yeah. Or at least I think we are." Phantom answered.

"So…does that mean that you changed your mind about quitting Young Justice?" Kaldur questioned with a smile.

Phantom looked away. He wasn't angry at Kaldur. The Atlantian was the only one that at least tried to be civil through everything. "No. I'm done with this Team. This was my last mission. You proved that you can lead this Team. My presence is no longer necessary."

"What?!" M'gann gasped. "Of course you're necessary! Like you said, you're our friend and leader! This Team wouldn't be the same without you."

"Of course it would be different, but maybe it would be better." Phantom stated. "After everything that happened…we can't just go back…"

"Why not?" Kid Flash zoomed up beside Phantom. "Look, Bro, we're sorry alright? It was our bad. We should have just listened to you. It won't happen again. We trust you, man."

"But I no longer trust you." Phantom argued.

"You…don't?" Even Artemis seemed hurt by this.

"No." Phantom looked saddened. "I can't. Not after everything you've said and done. I've seen it…If I make a mistake in your eyes, you're quick to jump me for it. In battle, you act like some sort of invincible force that never needs help, like in the Tower of Fate. I would have died if it wasn't for Mr. Nelson."

"We were a little preoccupied." Superboy argued. "And it looked like Kent Nelson would help you."

"But you still had the chance to help me. In the heat of battle, reason doesn't take place. You all made a split second choice to leave me to help each other." Phantom reasoned. "I understand. I'm a ghost. I'm already dead. Why choose me over someone that's alive?"

"None of us have ever thought that!" Robin shouted.

"But you all act like you do." Phantom retorted. "Even someone that's just observing us can see that you view me as being different. You think that because I'm a ghost I'm inherently different from you. Even if you don't realize it, you've regarded me as a ghost instead of a person. You don't understand."

"Understand? Understand what?" M'gann questioned.

"Everything!" Phantom gritted his teeth. "What it means to be a ghost. What I've gone through just to keep existing. What I've given up. What…I've lost…"

"Can't you just explain it then?" Kid Flash questioned. "Explain it all to us. Maybe then we can understand, and view you more in a…human way."

"It's not that simple…"

"Yeah, it is." Artemis argued. "If we need to understand what it means to be a ghost, then tell us. We want you to stay on Young Justice. We want you to be our leader...no offense, Kaldur."

"None taken." Kaldur placed a hand on Phantom's shoulder. "Please, Danny. Give us the chance to learn and understand. Give us one more chance."

One more chance…Phantom had once been given a second chance. Clockwork could have just killed him to prevent a terrible future. The Master of Time had given Danny a second chance, though. Phantom lived and learned a lesson that he completely believed.

Everyone deserves a second chance…

"Okay." Phantom agree. "But I can't do it here or now. Come to Amity Park this Saturday. If you do that, then I will try to explain…what I can."

* * *

><p>"Well…That was annoying." Raven muttered neutrally.<p>

"Yep." Nyx frowned. "It's taking all my willpower not to kill these guys."

"So…You're settling for just kicking them while they're down?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yep!"

"Stop that!" Spirit snapped. "I already called your mom. She'll come to pick up the ghosts soon enough."

"I have to ask…Why am I using my magic to hold them?" Raven questioned. "Won't a Fenton Thermos be a lot easier for everyone?"

"I…didn't bring it…" Spirit cringed. "I'm not in the habit of carrying it around anymore."

"And here I thought that girl scouts were always prepared." Nyx snorted.

"I will kick you in the face." Spirit glared.

"Um…guys?" Youngblood tried to get their attention.

"You sure can try, but I'll be you fail." Nyx stuck out her tounge.

"Will you two just stop." Raven sighed. "I'm tired."

"Guys?" Youngblood tired again.

"You're always tired." Spirit smirked. "Like an old lady."

Nyx snorted.

"Don't laugh." Raven eyed the shadow ghost. "I'm not the one with a cat fetish. You'll probably end up living alone with fifty cats."

"Big talk, Gloom and Doom." Nyx challenged. "But can you walk the walk?"

"Guys!"

"What?!" They all turned to Youngblood.

"Look." Youngblood pointed to the fat ghost.

The large ghost was trembling and sweating. It looked exhausted and pale. For a second, the children thought that it would throw up. They were quickly proven wrong, though. The ghost did not puke. No, what it did was much worse.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

To the children's horror, the fat ghost began to deteriorate right before their eyes. Green ecto-goo bled from its skin. Smoke rose from its body. Parts of his body began to fall off of him. The ghost seem to boil and dissolve at the same time. Its eyes screamed pain and terror.

The children couldn't bring themselves to look away. They were too horrified to even blink. This ghost was dying right before their eyes and there was nothing they could do. In mere seconds, the ghost was merely a pile of goo.

"Oh god…" Nyx sounded terrible.

"That…was horrible…" Raven was even paler than before.

"I won't be able to sleep tonight…" Youngblood mumbled.

Spirit was silent. She stared at the pile of goo. The ghost just…dissolved. Why? They didn't hurt them that badly! The only thing they really did was capture them! Spirit didn't understand why the ghost would die like that!

…Or why one of the other ghosts were doing the same…

"Oh no…"

* * *

><p>(Friday-September 24, 2010)<p>

"Can't this wait?" Phantom sighed as Vlad stood by him down the elevator to the lab in Masters' Mansion.

"No. It really can't." Vlad stated as the doors opened to the lab.

"I'm really tired, Vlad. It's been a long night." Phantom sighed. Vlad led him through the lab to a few containment tubes.

"It's about to get longer…" Vlad pointed at the ghost floating in the tube.

"…Who's that?" Phantom questioned.

"A ghost I captured ealier." Spirit turned to her brother. She had been staring at the ghost before the older halfas approached her and the tubes. "One of three actually."

"Okay… And why is one of them here?" Phantom questioned. "Shouldn't you have sent him with Pandora like the others?"

"We couldn't do that." Vlad sighed.

"Why?"

"Because they're dead." Spirit answered.

"Dead?! What happened?!" Phantom glared.

"They just dissolved!" Spirit cried. "I don't know what happened! One minute they were fine, the next they were gone!"

"We managed to get this one here in time to…prolong its life." Vlad explained. "This ghost is extremely unstable. It could fall apart any minute."

"Why is it like this?" Phantom questioned.

"I scanned it. It appears…"

Phantom stopped listening. He was too busy examining the white haired ghost. His smoke like body was trembling in pain. The ghost was looking at Phantom desperately. He was hoping.

'What is this instinctive feeling?' Phantom questioned. He knew this ghost from somewhere. But where? The halfa didn't know, but his instincts were screaming at him. This was important. The ghost was connected to him somehow…

Phantom's eyes met the ghost's eyes. It was then that Phantom knew. That was the connection. He could see it. He could feel it. This ghost's eyes and ectoplasm were very similar to his own. That meant…

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Phantom flinched as the ghost dissolved. It wasn't easy to watch. He would have stopped Spirit from watching, but Vlad was already covering her eyes. She made no attempt to stop him. The ghost girl did not want to see this again. Then the ghost was gone. All that was left was ectoplasm.

"It's gone." Vlad sighed. "I was hoping to get more answers from it."

"The poor thing…" Spirit frowned. "I remember what it feels like. If Danny hadn't helped stabilize me, then I would have been like that."

"Danielle…"

"The same thing…would have happened to you…" Phantom mumbled.

"Daniel?"

"It can't be…" Phantom knelt down and examined what was know a puddle of ectoplasmic goop.

"What is it?" Spirit questioned. "Did you know that ghost."

"I've never seen him before, but I just….I can't…." Phantom trailed off.

"Are you okay?"

"No, I don't think that I am…" Phantom glared at the puddle. "I think that…whatever that thing used to be…was a clone of me…"

"A clone!?" Spirit's eyes widened.

"Yes." Phantom nodded. "I can feel it. This guy…was…well, not like you. You are a clone that's made from half of my DNA. Basically, you're my genetic daughter. This guy, though…He basically had the same ectoplasmic signal as me."

"How can you know?"

"Instinct." Phantom noted. "We need to run tests on his remains, and the remains of the others. I think that something is up."

* * *

><p><strong>Extra: Hero Boy<strong>

"_We're here with the new hit sensation Ember McLain." _The radio announcer spoke. _"Ember, thank you for taking time out of your schedule to talk with us."_

"_It's no problem._" Ember sounded like she was happy. _"It's nice to get off the tour bus every once and a while."_

"_I bet. Now, Ember, you're mostly known for your once hit song Remember, but lately your latest songs have jumped up the charts." _The announcer noted. _"Some of your top hits are War, Painful Sacrifice, Our Dreams, and Hero Boy. What was your inspiration for these songs?"_

"_Oh...There were quite a few inspirations." _ Ember noted. _"The one of the main inspirations for my current music is my ex-boyfriend."_

"_Ah, and what happened there, if you don't mind me asking?"_

"_It's a really complicated story about a complicated individual. But…my ex is a really good person. He tends to bring the best out of people."_ Ember sighed. _"Especially me. Unfortuantely, we had to break up. We both had two different paths that we needed to go down, and, unfortunately, we couldn't make it work right now."_

"_So you left on good terms?"_

"_Very good terms."_ You could almost feel Ember's smirk. _"He encouraged me to follow my dreams. If he had asked, I would have stayed, but he wasn't selfish enough to do that."_

"_Sounds to me like there are still feelings there."_

"_Well, you've heard Hero Boy." _Ember stated. _"That song pretty much sums up everything I feel about my ex."_

"_You've heard it straight from the source. Hero Boy is a song of lost love. And here for your listening enjoyment is Hero Boy…"_

Danny listened as the music started. The pace started loud and fast, but slowly it tamed down. Ember's voice then came up and began to sing. The siren told a story of a boy that defied the odds. She spoke of how they fought, connected, and bonded.

_You're a selfless fool that has to help_

_You're the one melted my heart_

_You're my hero boy_

Danny paused his work. He looked up from his work on the Red X suit. "Tsk? Really Ember? You really are writing songs about me? I thought you were joking…"

Nevertheless, Danny couldn't help but smile. It was a nice song after all…You couldn't blame him if he enjoyed it. Or if he decided to sing along…

…Don't judge him…

* * *

><p><strong>It's hard to believe that the USA actually made it to the next round in the FIFA world cup. I'm so excited for the next game against Belgium. I believe that we will win!<strong>

**Next chapter won't be involved with any of the events of Young Justice. It will occur between the events of this chapter and the events of "Revelations." I'm looking forward to it.**

**Be prepared, too. The dots will finally be connected on the fine details of the Ghoul Project. It will all make sense very soon.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	14. Depression

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad." Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

* * *

><p>Chapter 14: "Depression"<p>

(Saturday-September 25, 2010)

"They all match…" Danny observed as he stared at the screens in the lab of Fenton Works.

"That they do, my liege." Fright Knight agreed. "That does bode well for us."

"And what exactly does match?" Valerie questioned. "You never told me exactly."

"Remember the ghost that were pulling pranks on Dani and her friends?" Danny questioned.

"Yeah." Valerie chuckled. "I wish I was there to see it, though. I heard that their reactions were hilarious."

"Well, those three ghosts dissolved shortly after their capture." Danny explained. "Dani and them saw it too. It must have been hard for them."

"They are hardly strangers with death." Fright Knight noted. "But to see that…It is troubling to see a ghost pass without fulfilling his or her obsession."

"That's the thing." Danny sighed. "They weren't full ghosts."

The other two people in the room's eyes widened. Valerie frowned. "You don't mean…Halfas?"

"No. Not full ones at least." Danny mentioned. "I've examined the remains of the almost halfas…They are humans that basically had ectoplasmic energy pumped into them. They temporarily gained powers before their bodies just gave out."

"So that's what you mean by they matched?" Valerie questioned.

"They're ectoplasm." Danny pointed to the screens in front of them. "All three of these have identical ectoplasm."

"And the other two?" Fright Knight questioned.

"One of them is a sample that Vision had of Solomon Grundy." Danny explained. "He matches as well…"

"And the other one?"

"…"

"My liege?"

Danny turned to his friends. "It's mine."

"No…" Fright Knight's eyes widened.

"Wait?! Yours?! What does that mean?" Valerie questioned.

"It's complicated." Danny pulled out the folder that contained the information on the Ghoul Project.

"And what does that have to do with anything?" Valerie questioned.

"Everything…" Danny was very pale and looked older than a teenager. He seemed to be very distant right now, like he wasn't paying attention. He seemed to be speaking to himself right now. "We…Vision and Vlad…wanted this research to be 100% secure. After what happened with the last bit of info we had on the Ghoul Project…I couldn't do this anywhere that could be broken into. So I did the research here. This place is impenetrable. Good thing we did it too. If this got leaked…"

"That does not answer her question, Lord Phantom." Fright Knight gently reminded.

"Oh…right…right." Danny turned to Valerie. "From what I learned from the file, the Ghoul Project is an attempt to create weapons using the ectoplasmic energy released during the war."

"Yeah, you explained that." Valerie noted.

"But what if they weren't trying to create normal weapons? What if they wanted human weapons? Ones with ghost powers…" Danny remembered his long conversation with Vlad and Vision over this matter.

"Oh! That…explains those human ghosts." Valerie looked down at the folder. "Those…ghouls…"

"Exactly." Danny nodded. "But that only explains part of it. Why do these ghouls have the same ectoplasmic signature as Solomon Grundy? Why do they all have the same ectoplasm as me?"

"Er…I don't know. Shouldn't all the energy be different because it was from thousands of different ghosts?" Valerie stated.

"Yes, but you see, they all went through a filter. Something that changed the ectoplasm to have a similar signal." Danny sighed. "I…was that filter."

"I remember that." Fright Knight stated. "It was when you obtained the ascended ectoplasm. All the energy of the war was absorbed into you. Then you…released it all when you were done."

"Yes. That's why all the samples match." Danny placed his hands in my face. "The Ghoul Project is making imperfect clones of me. It would explain so much. They even have some of tendencies and impulses. That's why all of them are drawn to Amity Park and Dani. They partway share my obsession; but...it doesn't stick and they don't form an obsession of their own so they can't adapt to the ectoplasm."

"My god…" Valerie whispered. "They're trying to make more of…you. But…do they even know?"

"That I don't know." Danny sighed. "For all I know, the Ghoul Project's use of my ectoplasm might be a coincidence. Or it could an intentional attempt to clone my powers. Who knows?"

"What do we do?" Fright Knight questioned.

"We're going to have to call the Council for this." Danny stated. "This is big. Bigger than I ever could have thought."

"And until then, we just keep our ears to the ground?" Valerie questioned.

"That's all we can do."

* * *

><p>"You guys, okay?" Victor questioned. "You seem down."<p>

"Huh?" Dani looked over to Victor. They were all at the Masters Mansion. No one was really doing anything today. It was really gloomy and cloudy out today. It was like the energy was being sucked out of the air.

"I was asking if you guys were okay…" Victor eyed his friends. They were all spread out the living room doing nothing. "I think you all just answered my question."

"It's nothing…" Nyx sighed. "I just feel…down today."

"I know, right?" Rachel frowned. "Even I'm not usually this depressed. What about you, Charlie?"

"Gah…." Youngblood moaned. He was face down on the ground.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Victor mumbled. "I wanted to do something, but I don't really see the point…"

"Exactly." Nyx messed with her disguised hair.

"But you guys seem even more down than everyone else." Victor stated. "Which is saying something…"

The super powered children still thought about what happened with those three ghosts. They may have seen a lot in their short lives, but the children still didn't enjoy watching the ghosts die. It shouldn't have bothered them too much, but for some reason, they couldn't get it off their minds.

"We're fine." Dani stated. "Just a bad day."

"Then what's with that picture you're drawing?" Victor eyed the shades of black and grey swirling the pages. "This is dark. I mean, even darker than Rach's poetry."

"I take offense to that. Nothing is darker than my poetry."

"It's true." Nyx nodded.

"Just a…change in style." Dani gave a weak smile. "It's nothing."

"If you say so."

"I do…I'm just not feeling peppy today for some reason." Dani knelt down and picked up Cujo. The dog that was currently disguised to have black hair was sleeping and didn't seem to want to wake up. "Let's just…watch something to cheer us up. Where's the remote?"

"Charlie's laying on top of it." Victor stated.

"…" Dani eyed the disguised ghost. "Roll over."

"Gah…" Youngblood groaned and complied.

"Good boy." Dani grabbed the remote and tried to turn on the TV. All she got was static. "What?"

Changing the channel didn't work. "Is the satellite down? Why? Is the weather?"

She got no response.

"Geeze…" Dani looked at her phone. "I've got no bars either. What's going on?"

"…"

"Guys?" Dani turned to her friends.

They all were lying down. Each one was staring at the walls in ceiling. Dani could hear them begin to mumble something. She had to listen carefully to discern what they were saying.

"Mom will never trust me…" Nix whispered.

"It will happen. Nothing I can do can prevent it…" Rachel trembled.

"Don't cry. I'm sorry he left…" Youngblood mumbled.

"Why won't he accept me for who I am…" Victor muttured.

"What?" Dani frowned. "Guys! Snap out of it!"

They kept mumbling as if she wasn't there.

"Guys!" Dani was beginning to panic

What was happening?

* * *

><p>"Welcome to Amity Park." Phantom led Young Justice from the abandoned warehouse owned by Vlad Masters. That was where they decided to hide the Zeta-tube.<p>

"It's…nice…" M'gann tried to say nicely. She had changed her skin to Caucasine to hide her secret identity.

"Really? Because this place is really bring me down." Wally in civilian clothes mentioned. "OW! Would you quit elbowing me in the ribs?!"

"Only when you stop saying stupid and rude things." Artemis glared.

"So…never?" Robin smirked.

"Dude!"

"Actually…" Conner frowned. "I was expecting something different too. It's really…quiet."

"We aren't in the most public of places." Kaldur pointed out.

"But usually I can hear something." Conner stated. "There are always noises in a city. This place, though…It's quiet as the dead."

"Is that a joke?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"No. Just…a comparison…" Conner frowned. He obviously wasn't joking.

"Hmm…" Phantom shrugged. "Whatever you say. Amity Park isn't exactly the loudest city in the world. In my experience, it's the times were things get loud that there is real trouble."

"What about the Nocturne Crisis." Robin mentioned.

"…Good point." Phantom nodded. He fixed his black hoody and hat that hid his appearance. "Something may be happening, or maybe not. We're going through the city anyway. If something is up, we'll see it."

"Aren't you worried at all?" Artemis questioned.

"You kidding? You don't know this city. This place may be a magnet for trouble, but it's also a minefield for enemies." Phantom noted. "You can't do anything bad in this city without it blowing up in your face in the end."

"That's true…" Wally nodded. "But that won't change the fact that we'll be on the lookout, right?"

"Psh…I'm always on the lookout." Phantom mentioned.

"Where are we going, anyway?" M'gann questioned.

"You guys wanted to learn what it means to be me…to be a ghost, right?" Phantom questioned.

"Yes." Robin nodded.

"Then we're going to the place where everything started for me. The place where all my troubles became real." Phantom sighed. "We're going to the place where Nasty Burger Incident occurred."

* * *

><p>Even a master assassin would find it difficult to break into Masters Mansion. The security, weapons, alarms, and shields that armed the place could rival Belle Reve. The only difference were the guards, but considering that ghosts lived in the place, it wasn't that big of an issue. Vlad had taken every possible measure after the Gotham villains attacked. This place was a fortress.<p>

…One that was useless if all the technology stopped working correctly, all the ghosts were incapacitated, and the ghost portal was destroyed…

"Ack…" Dani opened her eyes slowly. "…Why am I lying in the yard?"

"Because I brought you here." A higher pitched man's voice spoke from above her.

"Gack!" Dani winced as she was pulled into the air. "You…"

The being holding her was what could be described as the green blob with arms, red eyes, and sharp teeth. This ghost was Bertrand the assistant to Penelope Spectra. Something else caught Dani's attention, though. It was the being in the ghost's other arm.

It was a bloody, wounded, and unconscious Wulf.

"Wulf!" Dani cried. "I'm going-ack!"

"No no no." Bertrand smiled as he dumped Wulf to the ground and clenched Dani in his hand. "You don't get to have a fighting chance in this battle."

"Ah…" Dani was in too much pain to go ghost. "Coward…Can't fight… a little girl…"

"Please, I know that you're more of a demon spawn compared to a little girl." Bertrand glared.

"Gah…" Okay, so taunting wasn't going to work. Time for plan b. "What do you want?"

"What do I want? Surely your sperm donor told you about his encounters with me and my boss." The blob chuckled. "We want misery to keep us forever young."

"Yeah, I know that." Dani winced as he continued to try to crush her. "But why are you attacking Amity Park? You know that you're wanted, and that Vision will quickly learn that you're here. This is basically asking to be captured."

"Why do you think Wulf is like this? Why do you think we targeted your home? Spectra is far from stupid. She planned this out perfectly." Bertrand laughed.

"…" Dani let him talk.

"The ghost portal in Fenton works is inactive right now. Thus, with your portal and Wulf taken out of the picture, there is no immediate portal for backup to come." Bertrand ranted.

"But the temporary portals…"

"Spectra…has gained a lot of new talents." Bertrand shivered for a moment. "One was to give me the ability to cause extremely deep depression merely by being in the presence of them. Another is to cause…a disturbance to the area around her. She can 'depress' all the energy around her. Technology and natural ectoplasm in this city won't work correctly unless she wants it to. Natural portals won't form anywhere near this city."

"Then…the ghost portal wouldn't have worked anyway." Dani muttered. "Why attack the mansion?"

"To get to you." Bertrand beamed in absolute glee.

"Me?" Dani managed to gasp out.

"Spectra noticed something about you halfas. As long as you have a chance to fight, you always win." Bertrand stated. "We needed to take that fight out of you all by killing you."

"What? How will killing me-AAH!" Dani shouted. Blood began to spill from her mouth.

"Shut it." Bertrand snarled. "I'm talking now. You see, there is a weakness that both Phantom and Plasmius have. You. You are their Achilles' heel. If we show them your mangled and torn corpse, they will fall into despair and absolute anger."

"Idiot!" Dani gasped. "That will make them stronger."

"No it won't. Spectra will absorb the negative energy before they can use it. She will gain the power of two S-rank ghosts and defeat the older halfas with ease. And with Phantom gone, the Fright Knight will only suffer the same fate as the halfas." Bertrand chuckled. "Then, we can do something similar to Vision and Pandora. They both have daughters, or daughter figures, after all. A mother can't stand to see their children hurt. To see them dead? Ha! They'll just die.

"With the power of five S-rank ghosts, Spectra will be unstoppable and have the power to remain young forever." Bertrand explained. "And I will be by her side forever…"

"You…wish….You… piece of…snot…" Dani could feel her vision dim and go blurry.

"Say what you want. You're going to die in a few seconds anyway." Bertrand snapped. "You should have just succumb to my power like your friends. But you have to be so damn…cheerful. Now you have to die painfully. Any last words?"

"You…talk…too…much…"

"WhaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Bertrand roared in pain. Wulf had regained consciousness and was biting and clawing at Bertrand desperately. This caused Bertrand to let Dani go and allow her to fall to the ground.

Dani gasped out breaths as she clutched her sides in pain. Yep, plan b worked. The villains always felt like ranting. It made stalling so easy sometimes.

Now free of Bertrand's clutch, Dani could now focus enough to say, "I'm…going…ghost…"

* * *

><p>"Well crap."<p>

"Is that all you can say?!" Artemis glared at Phantom. "You have freaking zombies all over the place just staring out into space!"

"What am I supposed to say?" Phantom eyed the mumbling masses of Amity Park.

"Maybe that you were wrong?" Conner suggested.

"I never said that it was impossible that something was happen, but if it makes you feel better, then, yes, I greatly underestimated what could be happening in the city." Phantom admitted.

"Who could have done this?" Kaldur frowned as they walked done the street full of unresponsive people.

"Good question…" Phantom stood by a girl and listened to her mumbling. "Uh huh…She's talking about not getting a date for the dance…"

"This guy is talking about all the debt he's in from college." Robin mentioned.

Wally was running by each person quickly and listened to what they were saying. "Gah, all the people are such a drag. This place is really negative."

"It's understandable…" M'gann frowned. "Life is so cruel sometimes…"

They all turned to the normally cheerful Martian. "M'gann?"

"Why must people be so cruel to eachother?" M'gann looked like she was ready to cry. "It's so sad."

"M'gann!" Conner grabbed her shoulders. "Snap out of it!"

"Oh…" M'gann's eyes cleared. "Conner…What happened?"

"What is effecting this town seems to be influencing you as well…" Kaldur noted.

"To effect a telepath…" Robin mumbled. "This is bad."

"Do you think its some kind of machine that sucks out joy or something?" Artemis questioned.

"Possibly. I've seen weirder things." Wally began to explain how it would be possible.

Phantom ignored him. "Suck out joy….Crap!"

"What is it?" Conner questioned.

"This isn't some machine this is-"

Boom!

The Team was blasted back. Out of sheer instincts, the young heroes shielded the civilians from the blast. Conner made sure to take the most damage because he could take it. It was this that allowed the others to come out with minimal damage.

"Me." A woman spoke out above them. She had paler skin and red hair that was pointed up into two horns. Her green eyes and sharp teeth showed great malice. Despite the situation, it was easy to see this woman's beauty and attractiveness. This was especially true considering the woman's tight leather clothes with green flames on them. "I believe you were going to talk about me."

Phantom groaned as he pushed himself to his feet. "Penelope Spectra…long time no see."

"Woah…" Wally looked close to drooling.

"Really?" Artemis glared. "Now is not the time to perv out!"

"Er…right…"

"I recognize her." Robin noted. "She's one of the wanted ghosts."

"I believe that there wasn't any leads on her as of yet." Kaldur stated.

"Well, there's one now!" Superboy roared. He looked ready to leap when Phantom intervened.

"Stop!" Phantom ordered.

Young Justice all stopped and looked at Phantom.

"What is it?" M'gann questioned.

"You don't know Spectra…" Phantom eyed the floating woman in front of them. She didn't seem to be in any kind of hurry. "But I do. She is a teenager's kryptonite."

"What does that mean?" Conner questioned. He was obviously confused with the comparison.

"Does it have to do with her looks?" Artemis glared at Wally.

"Oh, just give me a break…" Wally mumbled.

"No. Not that." Phantom clinched his fists. "She's a psychiatrist. She knows how people tick. By now, she's already examined all of your personalities just by watching you. Spectra knows what to say to take away your happiness and hope. She'll take away your will to fight with a few words."

"The pen is mightier than the sword." Kaldur noted.

"Yes." Phantom nodded.

"Then what do we do?" Robin questioned.

"She…obviously has a power upgrade." Phantom pointed to the nearly catatonic people around them. "From what I can see, she can make people feel depressed by being around her. That means…she has a Haunting Aura."

"Oh! The little hero boy has gotten so smart!" Spectra actually seems impressed. "Vision and Plasmius must be rubbing off on you. But…I can do a whole lot more than just use a Haunting Aura."

With a wave of her hand, Spectra cause red forms to blaze beside her. The forms were the Red Huntress and the Fright Knight. They were both beaten and catatonic. The Fright Knight was downright destroyed. His armor was in chunks, and his body was covered in wounds. The red energy held them up above the ground and prevented them from falling.

"No!" Phantom's eyes lit up in anger. "What did you do to them!?"

"The same thing I did to everyone in this city." Spectra bragged. "I sucked them of all happiness and left only despair. And as long I'm around, they'll be like this. A constant fuel source for me. Granted, the Fright Knight was a lot harder to crack. He have such confidence. I had to…loosen him up a bit."

"You beat him into submission…" Robin glared.

"And if that happens to us…" Wally frowned.

"Now now, don't worry." Spectra smiled. "I won't even have to beat you to put you all of you in this state. Give me a few minutes, and you'll all just like the Red Huntress. In a state of despair because of your own insecurities and fears."

"She almost got me already…" M'gann mumbled.

"I…don't really feel good." Artemis sighed.

"We can't beat her like this." Wally seemed to droop.

"There's nothing we can do." Kaldur looked ready to give up there.

"Shut up!" Phantom roared at Young Justice.

Their eyes lit up.

"We can't think like that!" Phantom stated. "She may be strong, but we have to win for Amity Park! I won't let this place be hurt by her."

"But you just said she's a teenager's kryptonite." Robin noted.

"I've heard what that does…" Conner frowned. Even the Kryptonian seemed to be giving into the doubt. "If you're right, what can we do?"

"So we just give up?!" Phantom exclaimed. "You came here to learn about me, right? Then listen up! Even if your opponent is out of your league…even if you are facing impossible odds…even if your greatest weakness if set before you, you can't give up! Never stop fighting! Never doubt your ability to win! Never give up hope! If you do that, then even death can't stop you!"

"Danny…" Young Justice stared at the ghost.

"This is what we're going to do. Kid, Robin, get the civilians out of here. Artemis, Aqualad, attack from a distance and try to get Fright Knight and RH away from her. Use the fire hydrants to your advantage. Miss M. and Superboy will help me takedown this witch." Phantom ordered.

"Huh…I thought you weren't our leader anymore." Superboy smirked.

"As long as you're in my city, you're going to follow my orders." Phantom stated.

"Aye, aye, captain!" Wally saluted the ghost.

"You got it." Artemis drew her bow.

"We can do this." M'gann agreed.

* * *

><p>"Wulf!" Spirit cried as her friend was flung to the side. He had been quickly beaten by Bertrand. His injuries were too severe to allow the wolf ghost to fight the power boosted Bertrand.<p>

"Now you!" Bertrand roared. His form changed its shape into a green tiger. He then lunged at the girl.

With the movements that were engraved into her by Vision, Spirit managed dodge around incredibly fast tiger with grace and precision. The halfa girl tried to counter attack. She activated her Spectral Claws and tried to cut at the large feline's side. Bertrand's torso shifted, however, to dodge the attack. Her claws just barely missed the tiger.

'Slash left. Bite arm. Tear off limb.' Spirit's Premonition warned her of Bertrand's plan. Before the tiger could even begin his plan, Spirit was moving. She flipped through the air as the sharp teeth and claws were flung at her. Seeing an opening, Spirit brought her foot cross the tiger's face with the speed of a whip and the power of a hammer.

"Ha!" Spirit smirked. "Never was a cat person."

Bertrand was sent sprawling back. "Gack! You brat! I'll tear you apart!"

Bertrand's form shifted again. The tiger was now gone, and in its place was a large minotaur, a bull human crossbreed. The beast roared as he ran to Spirit. The halfa girl quickly dodged the monster's blows, but found that Bertrand now had a thicker skin. Her attacks didn't do any damage.

"Huh?" Spirit suddenly felt sluggish. It was if the air around her was pressing down on her.

"ROAR!" Bertrand batted the girl away.

Spirit was sent tumbling across the yard of Masters Mansion. She left a trail of torn ground in her wake. After coming to a stop, Spirit was forced to come to a keep moving. Bertrand was not giving her time to come up with a plan. She had to keep dodging his relentless assault. While she was moving, though, Spirit tried to use her Spectral Claws.

She left small cuts all around his body. His skin was too thick to do a lot of damage at once. She could, however, slowly wear him down. Take down the giant with bug bites.

"RAW!" Bertrand roared. "I took down far stronger ghosts than you before! Why can't I beat you!?"

"It's not about strength." Spirit stated. "It's about strategy."

Spirit purposefully place herself in front of the minotaur. Bertrand reacted immediately. He tried to reach out and grab her. Spirit, however, was barely within reach. Thus, Bertand had to lung forward to get to her. This left him open, though.

Ducking under the attack, Spirit flew towards the beast's torso. Once there, she activated her Spectral Claws and began to fly up. As she flew up Bertrand's large body, Spirit dragged her claws along the minotaur's exposed body. Twin gashes appeared on Bertrand's body.

"GAH!" Bertrand screamed in pain.

Spirit watched from a safe distance as Bertrand changed back into his original form. The wounds seemed to fade, but Bertrand looked tired and in pain. That last attack must have done a lot damage to the blob ghost.

"You…" Bertrand trembled in anger.

"I'll admit, you have a surprising amount of strength for someone who's borrowing another ghost's powers." Spirit noted. "But Spectra's scraps aren't enough if you don't know how to use that power properly."

"SHUT UP!" Bertrand yelled. "IF YOU WOULD JUST STAY STILL, I WOULD WIN IN AN INSTANT! JUST LIKE WITH WULF!"

"Idiot…" Spirit frowned. "Stay still? This is a fight. If my strength is my ability to dodge, then it's your job to find a way around it. Just like I found a way around your obvious strength…Although, I don't think I have to wear you down slowly anymore."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that if you're going to attack my home, then you should keep your guard up for sneak attacks."

"AH!" Bertrand cried out in pain.

A fist landed into the back of his head. He was sent crashing into the ground. Still stunned, Bertrand could do nothing as he picked up and slammed into the ground multiple times. When he was finally let go and landed on his back, Bertrand looked up to see Plasmius standing above him. That view didn't last long, though. Bertand was quickly knocked unconscious when Plasmius rammed a powerful ectoplasmic empowered fist into his stomach.

"You did well, Danielle." Plasmius looked to his daughter.

"Yeah…" Spirit nodded. "Thanks for the help."

"I don't think you needed it, though." Plasmius noted. "You would have won given enough time. Normally, I would let you settle your own fights, but…"

"There's still Spectra." Spirit agreed. "We need to take her down so everyone will go back to normal."

"Right…" Plasmius nodded. "Let's get Wulf somewhere safe, then we can go."

"Yep…" Spirit's eyes narrowed. Yeah, Spectra was going down.

* * *

><p>"Move!" Phantom ordered the Team.<p>

Using the teamwork they built from hours of bonding, training, and fighting together, Young Justice managed to hold their own against Spectra. The psychiatrist ghost was devastatingly powerful. Not even Superboy's blows could harm her too much. They were slowly wearing her down, though….

"Hahahahahahaha!" Spectra batted M'gann out of the air and into a car below them. The Martian girl crashed into the metal and dented it with a loud bang.

Or not…

"What is with her?" Artemis questioned. "We can't hurt her! My arrows just bounce off of her."

"It's the people!" Phantom yelled. "As long as they are in that coma like state of despair, then she will constantly be sucking energy out of them."

"What do we do then?" Robin questioned. "KF and I couldn't snap any of them out of it. Even the knight ghost and the Red Huntress were comatose "

"She's also the cause of their depression." Phantom stated. "She's releasing a Haunting Aura to make everyone depressed. Then she absorbs the energy of their negativity."

"She's releasing energy to gain it back times ten." Wally frowned.

"Then how do we beat her?" Superboy questioned as he helped the barely conscious M'gann. "We can't take out her power source without hurting civilians."

"Still figuring that out." Phantom mentioned. "She must have some sort of weakness, though."

"Maybe this will help." Spectra smiled. "Like all ghosts, I'm weak to ectoplasmic weaponry, ectoranium, and magic. Unfortunately, my new powers can hinder all your ectoplasmic weapons…even your dumb thermos, you don't have any ectoranium, and the only magic user in this city is under my influence."

"We're so screwed…" Wally mumbled.

"Stay focused!" Phantom ordered. "Don't let her get to you. We're going to need all of us to be her. Formation 7, now!"

With a roar, Conner jumped at the ghost of despair. Spectra merely smirked as she allowed the clone to lunge at her. A simple green energy field surrounded her. Conner rushed into the energy. He sent punches and kicks at the shield, but it nothing. The Kryptonian would have fallen, but M'gann used her telekinesis to hold him up.

"Are you related to Superman, handsome? I never heard about you, though. That must mean that the Big Blue Boyscout is ashamed of you." Spectra mocked.

"SHUT UP!" Conner roared.

"Oh? Did I strike a nerve?" Spectra raised her glowing fist. "Here, let me make it better."

Spectra tried to hit the clone, but Phantom managed to fly up in time to save the clone. He grabbed onto Conner and turned them both intangible. Spectra's fist passed right through them. That wasn't the only thing the intangibility protect them from, though. They were just the distraction, after all.

Boom!

Artemis, Robin, and Kaldur all bombarded Spectra with arrows, explosive shuriken, and blasts of water respectively. Because of her attack, Spectra had left her guard open. The attacks landed and managed to do some damage to the ghost of despair. She was burnt and bruised.

Spectra, would have retaliated, but Wally wasn't idle. He managed to get right below the ghost. The speedster was running around in one big circle below her. He created a miniature vortex which threw Spectra off balance. This allowed the other to continue their assault on their opponent.

"Enough!" With a wave of her hand, Spectra sent a large wave of energy that with all the members of Young Justice and sent them sprawling. "I'm tired of this game. Either you join the rest of the people in this city, or you die. Pick your choice."

"How about option three? We kick your ass!" Phantom turned visible right behind Spectra. The Phantom that Spectra knocked back quickly disappeared, proving that it was a duplicate.

In shock, Spectra turned to the real Phantom. She tried to defend herself, but it was too late. With a power and ferocity that Phantom didn't think he had anymore, Phantom rammed an ectoplasmic fist into Spectra's face.

The blow sent Spectra rocketing down to the street below. Before she could land, though, the rest of the team acted. In a show of mental strength, M'gann lifted the car she hit before and hit the falling ghost with it. This batted Spectra across the street to Superboy.

With a smirk, Conner hit Spectra to Kaldur. The Atlantian formed a bat out of water and hit her down into the ground. Before Spectra could recover, Robin and Artemis threw a combo of strikes and kicks at the ghost. After several seconds of the beating, Spectra flung the two teens away…only to be hit by Wally running at full speed.

Needless to say, Spectra was hurt and sent rolling down the street.

"Gack…I'm surprised ghost boy." Spectra noted. "You have these tween heroes working well together. They're good little pawns under your beck and call…"

"You talk too much." Phantom landed in front of her. "Besides, I don't have any pawns."

"Really? Because you have been training under Plasmius and have been consulting with Vision. They're the rulers of manipulating people like pawns." Spectra smirked.

"I'm not them." Phantom grabbed Spectra and pulled her up.

"You…You're so different from that little boy I first thought. You've grown up so much." Spectra mentioned. "Now, you're the big bad leader. Sending people to do your dirty work. Having people die so that you can live. Using this Team just so you can find the missing ghosts."

"Wait…what?" Kaldur frowned.

"You don't know anything." Phantom noted.

"Oh, but I do. After all, you were the one that led all the ghosts into war in the first place. Finding all that info on the GIW to take them down, and then planning out everything so that you look like the hero." Spectra looked amused. "Well it worked. People adore you now. Even your little team. But no one could see the consequences of your little endeavor to become an idol. After all…war caused so much suffering…so much pain…It made me so much stronger."

"I figured out that much."

"But what about everything else that it caused? Do you even care about the ghosts that died? About Skulker? About Klemper?"

"Shut your mouth." Phantom grabbed her by the throat to stop her from talking.

"Oh…are you still sad about your friend?" Spectra managed to get out despite the pressure on her neck. "It looks you haven't changed that much after all. You're still the insecure creepy little boy with creepy little powers."

Despite everything, this didn't get a negative reaction. Phantom was not saddened or conflicted by her words. He knew, and Spectra knew it. She wasn't going to get any power from him.

"Your words won't hurt me anymore, Spectra." Phantom noted as he held the ghost by her throat.

Despite this, the woman chuckled. "Why? Has your heart hardened so much, little hero? Do you even feel for the people you protect? Do you even care about this little team?"

"My heart…is not up for discussion." Phantom mumbled.

Phantom felt their eyes on his back. He knew that Spectra words had put doubt in their hearts. Would they even trust him anymore? Phantom didn't now…

"But I thought that was why we were here in the first place…" M'gann noted.

"Not with her here…" Phantom stated.

"Fine then. Just capture her, and we can-"

"Capture me?" Spectra smirked. "That's funny. You think this is over. Play time's over, little children. Now, I'm going to show you what the power of despair is really like."

In the next moment after Spectra spoke, the street was covered in red energy.

BOOM!

* * *

><p>"Well…" Spirit sighed as she turned the people she was holding tangible again. "That was close."<p>

"Yeah it was…" Phantom agreed with his sister. "It's a good thing you showed up when you did. If not…these guys would have been hurt bad…"

"That they would…" Plasmius lowered the shield he had created to minimize the explosion. He eyed Spectra. She had changed into her appearance to her shadowy form. Her skin was now pure black and was moving about like smoke. "But they are still endanger."

"Very true…" Spectra grinned. "I have enough energy from normal people. And if killing them breaks Phantom…then so be it."

"Get them out of here." Plasmius instructed. "They're in no shape to be fighting."

Spirit and Phantom eyed the fallen teens. They had become just like all the other people in Amity Park. Under the power of Spectra's battle form, the Haunting Aura's strength had tripled. It was too much for Young Justice. Fortunately, Phantom's experience and Spirit's training allowed them to function under the powerful Haunting Aura.

"Right." Phantom created duplicates to help carry the Team. "Let's go."

As the younger halfas flew the heroes away, Plasmius prepared himself for what was to come. "It seems that this has become one on one."

"You think you can defeat me?" Spectra questioned. Power was coming off her in waves. "You must be dumber than I thought. I've absorbed enough energy to surpass you strength."

"You mean my previous strength." Plasmius smirked. "Can't have the children surpass me after all. I've learned a few new tricks myself."

"I doubt-"

Boom!

"You doubt what?" Plasmius lowered his glowing hand. "That I send out an ectoplasmic blast that fast? I bet."

"Ah!" Spectra flew at Plasmius with neck breaking speed. When she drew close, she raised her now glowing red claws. In fact, the claws grew to several sizes as it slashed at Plasmius. The older halfa twisted to the side to avoid the attack. Spectra's claws created extremely deep smoking gashes into the concrete below them.

"So close." Plasmius sent a punch at Spectra's head. It landed. "But not close enough."

Despite the blow, Spectra wasn't injured in the slightest by the punch. She was merely angered. The despair ghost sent several strikes at Plasmius. The older halfa dodged each one expertly. Seeing an opening, Plasmius quickly created a ball of energy and rammed it into Spectra. The ball didn't explode, though. It continued to push Spectra way from Plasmius, and when she was a good distance away it blew up.

"You have power. I'll admit that…" Plasmius noted. "But you don't know how to use it yet."

"I don't?"

Squelsh!

Plasmius looked down. Spectra had sent her right claw down below the concrete. It had traveld underground to Plasmius and jumped up to stab him in the chest. All five claws had pierced through his chest to his back.

"Hahahahahaha!" Spectra laughed. "You think that I can't control my strength properly! I just killed you. I-Ah!"

Plasmius grabbed Spectra's hand and pulled it out. The claws slid out of his chest, but there was no blood. Instead, pink plasma appeared. It filled in the missing area where Plasmius had been stabbed. After it had settled, the plasma changed to fit Plasmius's skin and clothes.

"I apologize, but you must not have heard my ability to shift into plasma." Plasmius smirked. "While I'm in my plasma mode, I cannot receive an injury."

"We'll see about that!" Spectra's clawed hand quickly glowed red and blasted Plasmius in the head. The force of the blast easily destroyed Plasmius's head and conintued down the street to destroy several cars.

As Plasmius's head reformed, he stated. "Did you just listen to what I said?"

Pulling Spectra's clawed hands, Plasmius caused the stretched arm to rise above the concrete. Wincing in pain, Spectra could do nothing as she was flung towards Plasmius. She was also powerless to stop Plasmius from knocking her to the ground and creating a crater below them.

"**RAW!**" Spectra yelled out. Red ectoplasm exploded out of her. The energy disintegrated everything around her. The crater below her tripled in size. This didn't kill Plasmius, but it did give her some much needed distance.

Plasmius had decided to gain some distance after Spectra's explosion. The various wounds he gained from the explosion quickly regenerated because of his plasma mode. While in plasma mode, Plasmius was practically invincible, but he could not attack. Also, there was a second or two when he switches back to normal that he's completely defenseless. Luckily, when he switched back before, Spectra couldn't attack, but now he would have to be careful.

"You cannot defeat me!" Spectra shouted. "I am above you! I understand the true power of emotions! You're just a pathetic man that could never get the woman he loved in college."

"Ouch." Plasmius rolled his eyes. "That hurts so badly. Unfortunately for you, I have moved on."

Red energy poured out of Spectra in waves. She was angry. For a moment, Plasmius paused. Wow…that was a lot of energy. This fight was going to be difficult. She had enough energy for three S-rank ghosts. Her duribilty was incredible. Defeating her alone would be incredibly difficult.

Luckily, he didn't have to fight her alone.

Boom!

* * *

><p>"What's going on with her?" Spirit questioned as she landed by her dad. Phantom's and Spirit's sneak attack had given them distance from her, but she looked unfazed. "She's totally freaking out."<p>

"That is not the Spectra I've fought before." Phantom mentioned. "Spectra is smart and cunning. This lady…she's acting freaking nuts."

"That's the consequences one relying on negativity too much." Plasmius reasoned. "Just like with Vortex or you after Klemper died. Eventually using hatred, despair, and desperation as a power source affects the mind."

"So…If I continued to use negativity all the time to fight…" Phantom reasoned. "I would have gone nuts."

"Eventually, but it would not be nearly as quickly as her. You would have taken years, decades even, before that happened. Spectra is a vain woman who only cares about her looks and power." Plasmius sighed. "A weaker mind will always succumb to the madness quickly."

"This is really enlightening. It truly is, but I think we should stop talking about the problem, and…oh, I don't know…DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM!" Spirit shouted.

"Fair point!" Plasmius nodded.

"And here she comes…" Phantom sighed. "Hey…Why do we always get the crazies?"

"I hear that you gain enemies that are similar to you." Spirit charged forward to Spectra.

"Heh…You didn't hear that! You just made it up!" Phantom followed after Spirit.

"Kids these day…" Plasmius smirked as he followed. "Always jumping ahead."

Spirit was the first one to reach Spectra. The halfa girl was met with a glowing red fist. Gracefully, Spirit twisted and twirled around the fist. The energy that was in the fist was released. It flew past all the halfa's and destroyed part of a building.

The halfa girl was forced to dodge several more times, until she finally found an opening. Spirit unleashed a devastating ectoplasmic kick to the side of Spectra's head. Spectra was sent reeling. She was completely vulnerable for a single moment.

Phantom quickly took advantage. He had been waiting for this moment. Rushing to the psychiatrist, Phantom swung a hard uppercut to her chin. He followed this by through with kick to her stomach. Then, he elbowed her, grabbed her, and flung her to Plasmius.

The eldest halfa smirked. He flew up. When Spectra was directly below him, Plasmius sent a concentrated beam of magenta energy at the psychiatrist. The beam hit Spectra and the back and blasted her into the concrete. Plasmius's beam was so powerful that it cut through Spectra's energy and left her vulnerable.

When Plasmius finally stopped his energy, Spirit was there and ready to take advantage. Spectral Claws blazing, Spirit swiped at Spectra's unprotected midsection. Spectra cried out in pain, but was quickly silenced when Phantom kicked her in the head.

This was how the fight continued. The three halfas proved their power and teamwork as they dominated the crazed enemy before them. Spectra wasn't even given the chance to fight back. She was too busy being pummeled into the ground.

"You've learned some knew moves, Daniel." Plasmius noted as he hit Spectra with an energy disk.

"Thank! I learned a lot of this stuff from Black Canary." Phantom kneed Spectra in the face.

"Lucky!" Spirit danced around the shadowy ghost.

"Hey, you're the one that' been working with Vision."

"Yeah, I have! Look how much stronger I've gotten!" Spirit smirked.

"Hell, I wouldn't have messed with you before. Now? I'd prefer to be crammed in the Fenton Thermos." Phantom complimented.

"Hahahaha! Stay focused! The fight isn't won yet." Plasmius smiled.

"Noted!" The youngsters exclaimed.

"RAW!" Spectra yelled. Red tentacles of energy blasted around her. They destroyed everything they touched.

"OOOOOOOH!" Spirit snorted. "She's angry now."

"Careful…" Phantom fired blasts at Spectra. The tentacles blocked them with ease. "Those things are tough."

"I can move around them." Spirit danced around the tentacles attacking her.

"Good, keep her distracted." Plasmius moved in. "We need to finish this."

"Right!" Phantom followed after his mentor. Together, they stuck Spectra back. Most of the tenticles were destroyed, but a few were still around to keep Spirit busy. Phantom moved to the side in order to get ready for a Ghostly Wail. That would finish her off.

Plasmius was about to warn Spirit to gain some distance in order to allow Phantom to do the finishing blow, when he noticed Spectra preparing for a massive ectoplasmic attack. She was going to try and blow Plasmius away. That was useless. He would just become plasma and the attack wouldn't do any damage.

No…wait…Spirit was directly behind them. If he turned into plasma to avoid the damage…She would be hit. And with that much energy…she would be killed.

She could just dodge it, though…No, Spirit's Premonition wouldn't work in this case. Spectra's intent with that attack would be to hit Plasmius, not her. The Premonition sometimes extended to others, but right now, Spirit was too focused on defending herself for her Premonition to spread to others.

There was also too little time to warn her. Trying to get her out of the way would take too long. That meant…either Plasmius needed to take the hit, or Spirit would be killed. For Plasmius the choice was easy. He spread himself out as wide as he could and braced himself for the attack.

* * *

><p>"DAD!" Spirit cried as she stared at her father's back. The blast had completely covered him. He was covered in various burns and bruised.<p>

"Arh!" Spectra raised her claws and swiped them at Plasmius. She was rewarded with five deep gashes and a spray of green blood.

"Get away from him!" Phantom roared. With a speed he didn't think he had anymore, Phantom flew to Spectra and delivered a punch to her head. The force and blast of the attack sent her into the side of a building.

"Vlad…" Phantom caught his mentor and lowered him to the ground.

"Gah…well, that was painful." Plasmius noted. "I'll live, though."

"Can you still fight?" Spirit questioned.

"No…but I can move." Plasmius stated. "I'm no longer any use in this fight. Staying will only distract you. Don't worry about me, I'll go check on the young heroes. You two…finish this."

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded.

"We got this." Spirit agreed.

"Good-Look out!" Plasmius's eyes widened.

Without looking, Phantom punched behind him. Spirit did the same thing with a kick. The combined force of their blows hit Spectra and knocked her away from them again.

"Like she said…" Phantom glared at Spectra. "We got this."

"…Alright." Plasmius nodded as he slowly flew away. "I'll leave this to you."

"Don't worry…" Spirit frowned. "She's done for."

As Plasmius left, Phantom realized something. "You know what?"

"What?" Spirit asked.

"I think this is the first time I've fought in Amity Park like this for months…" Phantom noted. "And this is the first time in a while where I feel like I need to protect people that really matters to me."

"Yep, that's true." Spirit nodded.

"It feels…good." Phantom smirked. He could feel it. His power was better. No, it was not just better. It was back to 100%. "It feels right. It's nice to be back defending my obsession."

"Of course it is…" Spirit smiled. "Not only that, this is a first time in a while that we've acted like a team."

"Ha! Very true. Why don't you show me some of those new tricks that Vision has been teaching you?" Phantom felt the air around him grow cold. Blue cryoplasmic energy seeped off him. A shining blue ice sword formed in his hands.

"You got it." Spirit grinned. Energy flared in her hands as she activated her Spectral Claws.

Giving one last glance to each other, the halfas were in complete agreement. "Spectra doesn't stand a chance."

* * *

><p>(Play: The Hell Song by Sum 41)<p>

Phantom's first charge was met with the regenerated red energy tentacles from before. The energy hissed and sizzled at the male halfa. Phantom wasn't concerned, though. He raised his ice broadsword and swung a wave of cryoplasm at the tenticles. They were instantly froze.

"HA!" Spirit flew through the frozen tentacles. She swiped her Spectral claws as she went. All of the tentacles were cut to pieces and shattered.

"Raw!" Spectra tried to hit Spirit as she drew close. Spirit, however, dodged expertly. She twisted out of the way and flew above her opponent.

Spectra looked up and was about to follow the halfa girl when she was stopped. Phantom had formed a ball of snow. The ball hit the psychiatrist ghost and instantly froze her. Cracks quickly began to form, but the ice gave Spirit the time she needed.

Spirit flew down feet first. She landed her feet on the back of Spectra's head with incredible force. Her kick broke through the ice and crushed Spectra's head into the concrete. With this done, Spirit quickly gained some distance from her enemy.

"Yar!" Spectra was about to chase after Spirit when Phantom appeared in front of her. He did a quick combo. Knee to the face, jab cross, side kick her way, and finish with a tornado kick.

"AH!" Spectra cried in pain. The cryoplasmic empowered blows covered her skin with ice as she was injured. It slowed down her reaction time greatly.

Spirit took advantage. At top speed, she flew in front of Spectra. The halfa girl ran her Spectral claws across the shadowy being's stomach. She was rewarded with a deep cut and a cry of pain.

Seeing an opening, Phantom quickly kicked Spectra in the head. The psychiatrist ghost saw stars from the force of the kick. Clearly out of it, Spectra could do nothing as Spirit sent several small balls of energy at her side. She was bombarded with small explosions.

Spectra dropped to the ground in pain. She flinched and writhed from the pain of her wounds. Phantom and Spirit quickly regrouped to decide what to do.

"Is she finished?" Spirit questioned.

"No, she's still releasing her Haunting Aura." Phantom reasoned. "We're going to need to knock her out. I'll use my Ghostly Wail and finish this. Make sure to stay behind me."

"Isn't this overkill?"

"It's the safest thing to do." Phantom argued. "She won't stay down, and as long as she's awake, she can continue to absorb energy from the people in the city. The Ghostly Wail will knock her out for sure."

"Okay, I'll-"

"**RRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWW!**" Spectra's energy exploded in rage. Red ectoplasmic energy rolled off her in waves. The force was so strong, that the earth began to shake.

"Holy cow…" Spirit muttered. "What is she trying to do?"

"You act like she's acting rationally." Phantom muttered. "Right now, she's acting in a fit of rage. She's going to try and blow us up."

"What do we do?"

"I do this!" Phantom took a breath and prepared for his strongest attack.

He couldn't, though. Spectra's constant blasts of energy hit Phantom and Spirit. They were forced to the ground. Neither of them could move.

'Crap!' Phantom mentally ranted. 'I can't use the Ghostly Wail like this. I guess that we're going to have to do this the longer way, then. Spirit will have to distract her while I get close. Then-'

"Rah!" Conner yelled as he jumped from the room and landed on Spectra. His tackle cause Spectra to fall to the ground. The clone, however, was quickly thrown off and sent flying down to where the halfas were.

Spectra didn't get any time to rest, though. Wally had rushed behind her and knocked her off balance with a punch that was faster than the eye could follow. He didn't stay there. The speedster quickly moved out of the way. He was just in time, too. M'gann had thrown a car on top of Spectra with her telekinesis.

Before Spectra could react, Robin and Artemis used their explosive equipment to blow the car up. It was this that which caused Spectra to be stunned. Unfortunately, she would recover quickly…if Kaldur didn't hold her down with water.

"Phantom! Now!" Kaldur yelled.

"Right!" Phantom, now on his feet, prepared his attack like before. The only difference this time was that it worked.

**OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**

The power of the wail of death was so great that Spectra's energy was completely wiped away. The defenseless ghost writhed in agony as the sound attack seemed to burn every nerve in her body. The wounds she received before worsened. Her ears began to bleed. She looked like she would give anything for the attack to stop.

Phantom was glad that she was the only one. Wally and Conner sought refuge behind Phantom, while the other members of Young Justice covered their ears on the rooftops. They could feel some of the attack's effects, but it only a small fraction of Spectra's pain.

After a full minute, Phantom stopped his Ghostly Wail. The street had been basically destroyed by the wail. The windows in the buildings had shattered. Everyone, even Phantom, was disortiented by the attack. The only one unconscious, however, was Spectra, but that was a good thing.

"We won…" Spirit let out a sigh of relief. "That…was a fun fight."

"Bro…" Wally pushed himself to his feet. "It's official. Your family is insane. The vampire ghost looked beaten to hell, but he still able to move like the wind. This girl, though, can keep up with you and look like a boss doing it. And she…Why isn't she on the Team, exactly?"

"She isn't ready. Give her a year or two. You can try, but good luck convincing Plasmius and Vision until then." Phantom noted.

"Maybe I don't want to be on your Team…" Spirit huffed. Granted, being with these legendary teen heroes would be cool, but she had enough to deal with right now. She didn't need teen drama in her life yet.

"Sure…sure…" Phantom chuckled at his adopted sister.

"Is it over?" Robin questioned after gracefully flipping and grappling down the buildings.

"Uh, duh." Artemis smirked as she landed down as well. "She's down and out for the count."

"What do we do about her?" Conner questioned.

"Well…my thermos was fried in the fight." Phantom sighed. "We just wait for the authorities to show up."

"Did you call the League?" M'gann floated over the downed Spectra.

"Nope, but I'm sure my ghost allies will show up soon. Spectra can't damper the tech and natural energy around her anymore." Phantom stated. "Speaking of which…how did you guys wake up? Her Haunting Aura only increased as the fight went on…"

"Your mentor Plasmius awakened us." Kaldur explained. "He has skill with this 'Haunting Aura.' He managed to wake us and convince us to go help. Luckily his…words of motivation managed to help us overcome the power of Spectra's negativity."

"Yeah, and the small energy shields he built around us didn't help at all." Superboy snorted.

"What?! If he can do that why didn't he wake up my friends?!" Spirit seethed.

"He probably didn't want to put them in harm's way." Phantom reasoned. "Also…Who knows how much energy it takes? He might not wanted to waste energy if the shield only lasts a few minutes, which it most likely does."

"Whatever…" Spirit frowned.

"So…is she going to the Ghost Zone's prison?" Robin questioned.

"Yes." Phantom nodded. "You have a problem with that."

Wally sighed dramatically. "Yes, please take her out of this dimension. I do NOT want to deal with her again."

"For once, I agree with you." Artemis agreed.

"The League might not be happy, though." Kaldur noted.

"You know…I really don't care right now." Phantom sighed. "I'll deal with that later."

"And…what about us?" M'gann questioned. "Are you going to deal with us and the…explanation later?"

"…" Phantom eyed Young Justice. "No…You deserve to know the truth. Especially after helping me despite what Spectra said. After the other ghosts get her, I'll explain what I can."

* * *

><p>"Ack! AH! Smalishi! RAAAAAWWWWW!" Spectra twisted and turned in her straitjacket. She was tied down to a bed and was being wheeled away. The psychiatrist ghost now looked somewhat human again. Her hair, however, was incredibly messy, and her eyes were crazed.<p>

"Poor thing…" Pandora sighed as her servants led Spectra away. "I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy."

"Torch will need to make sure she gets a padded cell…" Torch eyed the ghost sadly. "She will hurt herself acting like that."

"Why…why is she acting like that? She no longer has the negative energy." Spirit frowned.

"But the mental scars are still there." Pandora explained. "After you give into the negativity…to the madness, it's so hard to come back."

"So she's stuck like that?" Spirit questioned.

"We shall try to get her help." Vision noted. She was a little busy, though. The strategist was busy tending to Plasmius's wounds. "Really, must you worry me so?"

"My apologies, my dear." Plasmius smirked. "The risks of battle."

"Well, if you get hurt like this again, I'll put you in the hospital permanently." Vision warened. "At least then I'll know you're somewhere safe."

"And…you know…hospitalized."

"Hush, Vlad. You're in enough trouble as it is."

"Yes, dear."

"Help?" Spirit inquired.

"There are plenty of unique powers in the Ghost Zone." Pandora reasoned. "Perhaps one of them can help Miss Spectra return to sanity."

"To do that, though, they would have to go in her head." Torch frowned. "No one wants to go into a broken ghost's mind. It's dangerous. Emotions are made alive in a ghost's mind. An intruder can literally be hurt by what the ghost feels and thinks."

"So…she's stuck like this?" Spirit was saddened.

"Yes, for a while." Pandora nodded. "It can't be helped, though. She chose this path. This is her own fault."

"Brutal…but true." Torch nodded. "Either way, though, she's going to be locked up. Along with Bertrand…"

"That's two down at least." Plasmius noted. "Capturing two of the wanted ghosts is a big achievement. Now we need to find the rest."

"That can wait for another day, though." Vision glared at Plasmius. "Don't move too quickly. You will reopen your wounds."

"Of course."

"What about you, Dani?" Vision's sharp gaze turned to Spirit. "Were you hurt?"

"Not really. I'm more worried about the others." Spirit stated. Wulf, Fright Knight, and Valerie already received medical attention, but they were already asleep, like most of the city. The state of despair really wore out the people of Amity Park. Almost everyone had passed out.

"They will be fine. My healers have already looked after them." Vision glared down at Spirit. "Now go get checked out by them before I ground you."

"Really? What about Danny?! He went off with his friends!" Spirit whined.

"I will deal with him later. He shall be punished harshly. Now march."

"Yes, ma'am…"

* * *

><p>(Sunday-September 26, 2010)<p>

After the other ghosts had arrived, Phantom took Young Justice to the only place that fitted the tale he was about to tell. He took him to the place where the real story began. The halfa took them to where Danny's life was forever changed. It wasn't Fenton Work or Masters Mansion. No, he took them to the Nasty Burger Memorial.

Even now…It hurt Phantom to be here. To look up at that statue and see the people he lost was one of the most painful things Phantom could do. It was not an experience he liked, but this was the best place for him to tell them about his difficult afterlife.

Phantom started at the very beginning. He explained the circumstances of his death. Everything relating to his secret identity was left out, but Phantom still explained that he died by electrocution because of a malfunction of one of his inventor parent's projects. He told them how he died, and how he fought to live on as a ghost.

The halfa then began to explain to them his beginning troubles. How he had a hard time controlling his powers. How he tried to be a hero despite all the controversy surrounding his being a ghost. How…his parents shot at him and threatened to destroy him molecule by molecule if they ever caught him.

He didn't go into too much detail about his adventures in the beginning. A lot of them involved Sam and Tucker after all, but he did explain the ghost he fought. Phantom told them how he grew and came into his own as a hero. But that was when the happiness ended. Eventually, he had to explain the worst part of his life.

The Nasty Burger Incident.

Now that he thought about it…it was almost a year ago now. It felt like a lifetime ago, though. Phantom remembered how the decision to use his powers selfishly had led to the creation of his alternate self. He recalled how Dark Dan, his alternate future self, destroyed the world he was from. The halfa was forced to confront his future by the Master of Time and was defeated.

Dark Dan left Danny in the future while going back to secure his future. While Phantom fought to get back to his time, Dan had managed to set everything up. He got all his friends and family at the Nasty Burger and trapped them to the ready to explode building. Phantom had managed to return and fight off his future self by using the Ghostly Wail, a power that he wasn't supposed to get for ten years. For a brief moment, Phantom thought he had won.

He was wrong.

After the fight with Dark Dan, Phantom was powerless to save the Fentons, Mister Lancer, Tucker and…Sam. He was forced to watch as they died. Phantom could remember every agonizing second. It was branded in his memory. It was his ultimate failure, and he would never live it down.

Life continued on, though. Phantom was forced to keep fighting the ghosts despite his mental fatigue and pain. Fortunately, he wasn't completely alone. He allied himself with Plasmius, Spirit, Cujo, and Klemper. They were what kept him sane through those first couple of month. Without them…he would have given up a long time ago.

It was after the holidays that things became difficult again in Amity Park. Dealing with his attraction to Ember, befriending a secret spy for the shadows, being defeated by Colossus, allying with Red Huntress, fighting off the GIW with Spirit, and having to find the secret spy in the Ghost Zone all quickly occurred. And that was only in one month.

It was then that Phantom told of the events of what led up to the Nocturne Crisis. He explained in great detail how he was eventually captured and used by Nocturne. The, he told them about his dream world. To him, that place was heaven on earth, and he had to give it up for his cruel reality.

Phantom didn't stop there, though. He then told them all about the events that led up to war. The stress, the first meeting of the Council of the Elite, the death of Vortex…it was all so much. But that wasn't the worst part.

It was Klemper's death that escalated everything.

"…After he died for me, I knew I had to find out everything I could about the GIW. That's why I dressed up as Red X and went to Gotham." Phantom could hear their collective gasps at that information. He didn't stop, though. He didn't turn around either. He was too focused on staring at the statue in front of him.

"When I found out what went the GIW were planning…I decided that I had to act." Phantom explained. "I brought together everyone in the Ghost Zone. Friend or foe…it didn't matter to me. We all worked together and prepared for war. Everything was planned out. We would attack first and make sure ghost life continued to live on. My part of the plan was simple. I would make everything look like we didn't plan for war. My appearance at the UN…my fight with Agent Z…Everything I did was to make us look good."

"What about…the end?" M'gann sounded close to crying at this point.

"When I died? Yeah, I thought that might happen. Didn't think I would be able to come back like I did, though. Everything after that was spontaneous." Phantom closed his eyes. "And…you know what happened from there."

"Wow…" Wally sounded depressed. "Bro…That's…I don't…wow."

"It's weird." Artemis noted. Her voice was unusually low and quiet. "This is the second time today that I agree with you….Danny…I…I don't know what to say."

"How…" M'gann was crying now. "How did you keep going through all of that!?"

"Don't know." Phantom shrugged. "I guess I didn't really have a choice. If I didn't keep fighting, then everyone would have died…like these five did…"

"…" Conner didn't say anything. What could he say in this situation?

"I…I'm sorry." Kaldur stated. "You probably don't want to hear it, but I am sorry. Not about what you went through. I don't think I have the right to say anything about that. But…I'm sorry that I never bothered to figure this all out."

"I can't believe it…" Robin muttered. He had went through his own loss, but Batman always made sure to tell him that it wasn't his fault. For Phantom, though…He had to live with the fact that people died because of his choices. "How…how do you act like none of that happened? We talk with you all the time. Most people would be traumatized beyond repair. How do you act like everything is normal?"

"A lot of practice…" Phantom sighed.

"Did…did your parents really threaten you like that?" Wally questioned. His parents had accepted his powers immediately. This made him question what he would have done if they weren't so accepting.

"Yes." Phantom frowned. "Everything I told you was true."

"Spirit…Spirit's your clone?" M'gann tried to wipe away her tears. "Is that why…Conner…"

"He already told me that." Conner nodded. "Everything else, though…"

"So…now you know." Phantom stated. "You know everything. You really understand. What are you going to do?"

"What do you mean?" Artemis questioned.

"I told you a lot of stuff that could get me in trouble with the League." Phantom finally turned to them. "Are you going to tell them?"

"…No…" Robin shook his head. "They don't need to know right now. If you don't want to tell them yet, then none of us will."

Everyone quickly agreed.

"Okay then…" Phantom rubbed his eyes tiredly. It was late. He had spent hours talking about all this. It was now really late. The battle had worn him out, and he really needed sleep. "Thank you."

"So…" Artemis questioned. "Are you going to come back to the Team now?"

"Yes, now that we learned everything, will you give us another chance?" M'gann inquired.

"I don't know…" Phantom sighed. "There's another problem…"

Phantom then explained his power problem. He explained that because he wasn't protecting his obsession, that he wouldn't regain his strength. As long as Young Justice wasn't a part of his obsession, then he wouldn't be able to fight at full strength with them.

"Okay…" Conner finally spoke up. "If that's the case, then the answer is simple. We make ourselves a part of your obsession."

"What?" Phantom questioned.

"Right!" Wally grinned. "We stick with you and annoy you enough to make sure you never forget about us."

"Like anyone could forget your annoyance." Robin smirked.

"Dude!"

"Please…" M'gann looked to Phantom desperately. "I…we don't want to lose you as a friend or teammate. Come back, and we'll make sure that we never make you feel unappreciated again."

"Yeah…" Artemis nodded. "We won't make the same mistake again.

"So, will you come back, leader?" Kaldur questioned.

"…" Phantom thought for a moment. "Okay. I'll rejoin Young Justice. For now, though. We'll see where things go."

"I think we're all fine with that." Kaldur nodded.

"Yeah, and…Oh, crap! Is it that late!?" Artemis eyed her phone. "My mom is gonna kill me!"

"Forget your mom, MY mom has texted me twenty times already." Wally whined. "I am so gonna get it."

"Meh…" Robin shrugged. "Batman is fine with being out late."

"Shut it!" Wally grabbed Robin and began pulling him. "Come on! You're going to help explain this to my parents!"

"Fine, fine…"

"We should get going too…" M'gann yawned. "I'm exhausted."

"Yeah, let's go…" Conner smiled at M'gann. "We'll see you later, Danny."

"Right…" Phantom turned back to the statue.

Kaldur frowned at his friend. "Are you going to stay here for a while?"

"Just a bit…" Phantom nodded. "I have some things to think about."

"Okay then." Kaldur nodded. "I'll see you soon."

"Yeah, see you soon." Phantom didn't look as the Atlantian left. He was too focused on the statue.

_Gone, but not forgotten._

"Did I make the right choice?" Phantom questioned.

Silence was his answer.

"Only time will tell, I guess…" Phantom sighed.

Once again there was silence.

"Sorry…that I haven't come by for a while…I was busy." Phantom eyed his old family and friends. "I-I'll try to come by again soon. Because I could never forget any of you…"

* * *

><p>"This is…amazing…." The scientist examined the Burst Gauntlet that Joel had created.<p>

"We knew that you could create small things, but this…" The second scientist was in awe. "You created a completely unique weapon…"

"Yes." Joel agreed neutrally.

"This progress…" The first scientist noted. "The bosses will be pleased."

"Yes, now we need to duplicate this…"

"Will that be possible, though? We already tried, and no one is managing to stay together like the boy…and even then, it isn't perfect."

Wait…what?

"What do you mean?" Joel questioned.

"Hmm…I suppose you should know." The first scientist gestured to the computer. "We examined you when you passed out after your fight with Grundy. The more ectoplasmic energy you use, the more unstable you are. There is also a chance that as time goes on, you might begin to become more unstable naturally. That's only spectualation, though. In fact…"

Joel stopped listening. That…was really bad. His stability was standing on a wire. If he was pushed too far, or if enough time goes by…he might begin to act like the other failed ghouls. He could not let that happen.

He would have to escape, and soon.

Luckily, Joel had come up with a plan. With all the increased security, it would be impossible to escape alone. He was going to need help. Unfortunately, there was not a rational soul that would agree to help him.

Luckily…a prison riot did not need to be rational.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Young Justice<strong>

"…And then, no joke, the Riddler tried to jump to his getaway car, and got snagged on a flagpole." Robin snickered. "He got a wedgie so bad that I think he needed surgery to have it removed."

Everyone laughed at Robin's story. After they finished training, the Team had decided to relax before going home. They were relaxing in the living room of the Cave, and they decided to tell stories of their past adventures. Wally had many humorous tales of the Trickster, Ragdoll, and even Captain Boomerang.

"Then, just when he was about to get, he was hit in the back of the head by his own boomerang!" Kid Flash laughed. "The guy forgot that boomerangs come back. Yeah, Captain my ass. If you get knocked out by your weapon, then you can't be the captain of anything."

"What about you? You trip over your feet all the time? Isn't that a major problem for a speedster?" Conner questioned.

"Oh, come on! Even Supes is giving me a hard time now?!" Kid Flash whined.

"You do make it easy." Kaldur noted.

"Psh! Some friends you are…What about you, Mr. Too Serious? You got any good stories?" Wally questioned.

"Hmm…I can't recall any of my battles ever being very humorous." Kaldur noted.

"BOORING!" Artemis rolled her eyes.

"There are stories about when I was in the Sorcerery Academy in Atlantis, but I doubt you will get the humor. Cultural differences, and all that." Kaldur stated.

"At least you have original stories…" M'gann stated. "Every missioin and fight I've been in involved the Team."

"Same." Artemis shrugged. Well, there were stories, but they all involved her family. She wasn't ready to reveal that yet.

"Yep…" Superboy frowned.

"Well…" Phantom took a sip of his pop. "How about you ask Green Arrow and Martian Manhunter to let you two tag along some time? I'm sure they'd enjoy the company."

"Sounds good." Artemis smirked. "It's would nice to get out like that."

"I would love to spend more time with Uncle J'onn." M'gann beamed.

"And SB…" Phantom frowned. "You could always tag along with Wally…or maybe you can ask Black Canary. I don't think Gotham or the oceans really fit your fighting style. And not much really much happens in Amity Park."

"Really?" Robin raised an eyebrow.

"Not while I'm there anymore at least." Phantom shrugged. "Now, the weird and funny stuff always happens when I'm gone. I'm sure Spirit has a story or two now, though."

"Well…I suppose going that's better than nothing…" Superboy sighed. "I'll ask Black Canary. I don't think Wally and I would make a good duo. We both tend to break the things around us."

"You act like that's a bad thing." Wally chuckled.

"What about you, Danny?" Kaldur questioned. "Do you have any humorous tales?"

"Oh…I have plenty. Some of the best involve the Box Ghost, though." Phantom snorted.

"The Box Ghost?" Artemis raised an eyebrow. "You must be joking."

"Nope. The Box Ghost was one of my most consistant and annoying enemies." Phantom stated. "Sometimes, I didn't even have to fight him to foil his plans. He was just that bad at being evil."

"Oh, I have to hear about this." Robin smiled widely.

"Okay, here's how we first met…"

Phantom then explained in great detail his 'fights' with the Box Ghost. He told them every moment. How the Box Ghost tried to use boxes to defeat him (and failed). How he eventually moved on to bubblerap (and failed). How he ended up defeating himself most of the time (is that a win for Phantom or an epic fail for the Box Ghost?).

Then, the halfa got to his last story of the Box Ghost. It was the time he stole Pandora's Box.

"Wait…you actually set him up with this Lunch Lady ghost?" M'gann questioned.

"Yep."

"And eventually, they're going to have a child named Boxed Lunch, and you know this because of your time adventure." Superboy couldn't believe it.

"Yep."

"Wow…so are you going to be the godfather?" Wally joked.

"Lord no!" Phantom shouted.

"What about best man at the wedding?" Kaldur suggested.

"Hey! I thought you were the serious one?!" Phantom scowled.

"What can I say, you've been rubbing off on me." Kaldur smiled.

"Well, hardy freaking har." Phantom sighed.

"By the way…" Artemis smirked. "Spirit mentioned that you spent last Valentine's Day with Torch…"

"What?"

"We've been texting." Artemis held up her phone. "She mentioned that instead of getting a date, you decided to pick a fight with Torch and the Brain."

"Hahahahahaha! For real!?" Robin seemed elated.

"Shut it! That's just way things worked out. I never meant to spend the day fighting Torch and the Brain…." Phantom grumbled.

"You forgot that it was Valentine's Day, did you?" Conner questioned.

"…Yes…"

"Ha! Lame!" Wally laughed.

"Don't worry, Danny. I'm sure you can get a date next year." M'gann encouraged. Phantom could tell that she was joking, though.

"Okay, all of you suck. I regret ever agreeing to rejoin the Team." Phantom frowned at them.

"Sorry, bro. You're stuck with us."

In that moment, Phantom realized that Wally was right. He hadn't joked around in a group like this just for fun…in a long time. He really felt like a teenager again. It was…nice…

"Yeah…I'm stuck with you…"

* * *

><p><strong>Quick advertisement! If you're interested in Fairy Tail fanfics, then I made a one-shot series of different scenarios that I think would be funny. Unlike my other stories, the focus is completely on humor. The title is Alternate Fairy Tails, and right now there are four chapters.. Check it out.<strong>

**That is the last bonding moment for a while. And no, Victor won't recieve one yet. He will get his time later, but not now. Oh, and I bet you thought that I goofed back in "Obsession" when chapter 9 was set on Valentine's Day. Well, I had a plan all along. It will be a running joke for some time to come.**

**I hope that the explanation of the Ghoul Project helped. All the details are out there now. If you read the "Behind Obsession" chapter of Obsession, then you know what the Light's real intentions were from the beginning. Of course, there are still the behind the scene details of the Ghoul Project that only the Light know. Will these details ever be revealed? Two words: Behind Absolution.**

**Anyone play the last episode of Telltale's Wolf Among Us? That was truly an epic and decisive way to end the season. I felt like my choices throughout the five episodes really mattered in the end. Only one problem...Now, I have to read the Fables comics because I'm hooked on the concept. Stupid Telltale. I don't need another series to catch up on even if it's great!**

**The next chapter is probably my second or third favorite chapter that I have planned. It will be out in two weeks. Be prepared.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	15. Sacrifice

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost."

Arthur Ashe

* * *

><p>Chapter 15: "Sacrifice"<p>

_One step forward…two steps back…_

_One step forward…two steps back…_

_One step forward…two steps back…_

_That was what our lives seemed to be like at that time. For every good thing that happened, something far worse occurred to make it even worse than before. It became so frustrating at times. No matter how hard we tried or what we accomplished, life seemed to come back and bite us in the butt. Granted, this wasn't the hardest time of our lives. Later, worse trials would occur, but…this was different._

_Things were supposed to be different after the war. Everyone should have been at peace. Now, we had an incredibly large group of powerful enemies. We might have been naïve to think this, but it felt like we earned at least a little reprieve._

_No such luck…_

_Back then, I was so ready to prove myself. I wanted to show just how much I was growing. I was only focused on myself most of the time. Yes, I did notice the problems of my friends and family, but I didn't think too much of them back then. I never knew things would escalate so much with each of them…_

_Sorry, I'm getting off topic._

_What I meant to say was that I didn't ever think about the possibility of my strength being useless. My family could always solve something with the right amount of power, intelligence, and strategy. That was how all our problems were always solved. So, it wasn't too hard to believe that we could handle anything. I pretty much thought that we were invincible. No matter what, we could figure out how to fix it on our own._

_Not this one, though. We had absolutely no control what happened on October 1, 2010. No one could have predicted what would happen. It was a normal day. There was no tensions in the air. Even Batman and Vision couldn't predict what happened that day._

_And that is the scary part…No one saw it coming. It was one of the single most helpless moments of my life. There was absolutely nothing I could do to prevent it…There was absolutely nothing I could do to prevent Undergrowth's attack._

_Capturing Spectra and Bertrand was our one step forward…This was our two steps back…and what a terrible two steps it was._

_To me, it was like hope had died._

_-From the personal memoirs of Danielle Masters_

* * *

><p>(Friday-October 1, 2010)<p>

"You…are asking a lot, Danny." Jennifer stated.

"I know, but…I have to know." Danny explained.

"I can understand that, but…I don't know if I can help you here." Jenifer mentioned.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

The two teen were merely walking through a forest a few dozen miles away from Happy Harbor, Rhode Island. They had lunch at a nearby diner. Neither of them had anything to do, so they decided that a walk through the beautiful autumn trees would be nice.

After their meeting in Rhelasia, Danny and Jennifer had been meeting randomly while in disguise. The wanted a bit of time to…just be themselves. This time was where they didn't have to be enemies and relax. They didn't really do anything too different than what they did back before the GIW war. They just hung out and talked.

Of course, Danny had to go and try to bring business into this…

"That's…disappointing…" Danny sighed. "But…I saw it coming."

"How do you even know about the Ghoul Project?" Jennifer questioned.

"…If I tell you, will you get that person in trouble?" Danny asked.

Jennifer sighed. "Not if you don't want me to…besides, how could I get them in trouble if I can't reveal where I learned about him."

"Her…She's a her." Danny corrected.

"Oh…" Jennifer frowned deeply.

"Not like that! She's Dani's age, actually, I think she's a year or two younger." Danny explained.

"Huh?"

"Cassandra. Shiva's daughter." Danny stated.

"What? Shiva's kid? Why would she tell you about the Ghoul Project?" Jennifer inquired.

"No idea." Danny shrugged. "But…It has been pointed out to me that she might like me…"

"Oh…Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" Jennifer burst out laughing.

"What? Why are you laughing?" Danny questioned.

"It's funny! The child of Lady Shiva and David Cain has a little crush on the great Danny Phantom." Jenifer wiped away the tears that were in her eyes.

"Jeeze…Should I be insulted?" Danny muttured.

"No, no…" Jenifer waved off his concerns. "It's just that I've seen how Cassandra has been brought up. I'm surprised she has any feelings at all. In fact, if it wasn't for Shiva's intervention, she might not have any social skills at all. She wouldn't have even been able to talk."

"Woah…" Danny frowned. "And why's that?"

"Most assassins are raised from birth to be perfect weapons. Having attachments make you weak." Jennifer explained. "I'm different. I wasn't raised to be an assassin. Things just…turned out that way. From what I heard, Cassandra was supposed to be raised as a ruthless killing machine whose sole purpose is to protect Ra's Al Ghul and his daughter."

"Hmm…" Danny nodded. "And Shiva…stopped that?"

"She didn't want her daughter to become a monster." Jennifer shrugged. "That's one of the many reasons I respect that woman."

"I see…" Danny frowned. "That would explain your surprise…"

"Yeah."

"Well…I would have asked Cassandra about this, but I have no way to contact her." Danny explained. "But I need to find out everything I can about the Ghoul Project."

"And what makes you think I know anything more than you do?" Jennifer asked.

"Because it's you." Danny answered simply.

"Aww…That's so sweet." Jennifer smiled. "But…still no."

"Okay, okay…It was worth a shot." Danny sighed. "Not like I would give you any precious information of any of the Leagues or the Council's secrets, but still…I know people are being experimented on. You don't need to confirm that. The 'ghouls' that attacked my town gave that much away."

"Should have known you'd figure that out." Jennifer noted. "Look…the truth is, I don't really know all that much about the Ghoul Project. My father really doesn't want me involved for some reason. If you're looking for a location, I really have no clue. Very few people do."

"I see…"

"Look…I can't give you a location, but I can give a lead or two to investigate. Don't make this a habit, though. I won't help you like this again." Jennifer explained.

"Thanks so much, Jen." Danny smiled. "You're awesome."

"You're damn right I am. And don't you forget it." Jennifer grinned.

* * *

><p>"Ah…October, the most wonderful time of the year." Dani sighed contently.<p>

"Er…I think that's December…" A disguised Youngblood inserted.

"Not for me." Dani smiled. "For me, October means candy, scares, and pranks. For those reasons, Halloween is definitely my favorite holiday."

"That, we both can agree on!" Nyx smiled deviously.

"Yes…" Rachel's monotone voice drawled out. "The inky blackness of the night reigns down on Hallow's Eve. The dead rises from the ground decaying and decrepit. Spiders and snakes run wild as the world slowly falls into a depressed state of hopelessness…It sounds perfect."

"Dang, girl, why do you have to make everything so creepy?" Victor took a step away from Rachel.

After school had been let out, Dani and her friends decided to go shopping. Usually, shopping wasn't the girls' style. While they did enjoy new things, they always preferred to do something more heart pumping than picking shoes (no matter how cute they were…). Of course, there were exceptions. One was Black Friday. Shopping then made skydiving look safe.

The other was Halloween shopping. They quickly learned that they loved Halloween shopping. Why? Well…They are ghosts after all. Scaring people was part of their nature.

…and Rachel's apparently…

"You'll get used to it eventually." Youngblood chuckled as he examined the zombie mask.

"I don't know if I want to get used to…that." Victor mumbled to his male friend.

"Hmm…Don't think you got a choice." Youngblood noted.

"What do you-"

"Vic!" Dani shouted to her friend. "Hold this stuff! We're picking out some stuff to decorate the mansion with!"

Victor looked at the large pile of Halloween decorations in the girls' hands. 'Yeah…I have a friend with a mansion, but now I have to carry her stuff. Maybe I should have made friends with the jocks…'

"I still say that we should make bombs." Nyx argued.

"Do you want to get grounded for the rest of your life?" Rachel questioned. "Because I sure don't."

"What if they were egg bombs?" Dani suggested. "It would spray entire groups of people in egg gunk. Oh! We can also get Danny to make a toilet paper launcher too! We can teepee every building in the city."

"I still like my plan better…" Rachel stated.

"Er…I don't think we can do that…" Youngblood noted.

"Why not?"

"Summoning an evil curse to make everyone zombies might be considered…extreme." Youngblood mentioned.

"Yeah, Doom and Gloom…" Nyx eyed her friend. "Even I think that's a bad idea, and I'm the girl that once tried to flood her house in order to get an indoor swimming pool."

"You people never like my ideas…" Rachel frowned. "Why do I even hang around you?"

"We bring joy into your life, Ra Ra…." Dani cooed annoyingly.

"I'm going to pretend that you didn't just say that…"

Victor smiled. Well…at least these people knew how to have a good time….

"Ah!" Dani gasped as blue smoke escaped her mouth.

"Dani?" Youngblood questioned carefully.

"It's nothing yet…Chuck…" Dani frowned as she used Youngblood's original name.

"You cold?" Victor questioned. "You're shivering."

"No, it's nothing…" Dani looked around.

"Is…there a problem?" Rachel questioned.

"Maybe…I just…"

Rumble!

"Earthquake!" Victor pulled Rachel and Dani to the ground. "Everyone down!"

"Who?!" Nyx growled. She did not go shopping often, but she did not like to be interrupted when she did.

"Someone strong, that's for sure…" Youngblood noted.

"What are you talking about?" Victor questioned.

"Nothing…the shaking stopped." Dani quickly got to her feet. "We need to get outside."

"But…Wait!" Victor's eyes widened as his friends began to run off.

The children quickly ran to the exit of the mall. Everyone was in a mad panic, but they didn't care. They knew that the real action was outside. They were proven right, when they exited the mall and saw the giant plants that were attacking the city.

"One guess on whose doing this…" Youngblood frowned.

"Is he stupid?" Nyx questioned. "Attacking the city like this? The entire Council will be here in two minutes."

"Here? Or everywhere?" Rachel looked down at her phone.

"What?" Dani looked at her own phone. "…Well, crap…"

Amity Park was not the only city being attacked by giant plants. Several major cities across the world were under attack. Plants were everywhere and were quickly tearing the cities to pieces.

"…Maybe its not Undergrowth?" Youngblood noted. "I don't think he has the power to do…that."

"Who's…huff…Undergrowth?" Victor caught up to his friends. "Dang…pant…huff…You guys are fast…"

"Er..." Dani didn't know how to respond.

Luckily, Rachel did. "He's a ghost that attacked the city once. He used plants, but was quickly beaten by the ghosts."

"Oh…" Victor seemed to accept that. "Then this isn't him?"

"No, I don't-"

"**FOOLISH FLESH DWELLERS! YOU HAVE HARMED THE EARTH FOR FAR TOO LONG! NOW YOU MUST FACE THE WRATH OF UNDERGROWTH!**"

"…Nope, that's him." Youngblood stated.

"So…does that mean he's attacking the rest of the world?" Victor questioned.

"Probably…" Rachel nodded.

"…er…How?" Victor questioned. "If he was beaten so easily, then he shouldn't be strong enough to do this."

"Good question…" Nyx frowned. "No way he should-LOOK OUT!"

The children's eyes widened. Giant vines were about to crash down on them. The people around them ran for their lives, but they would be crushed by the vines. They would have to act in order to prevent their death.

As subtly as possible, Rachel muttered a magic phrase to make the vines slow down significantly. This allowed the citizens of Amity Park to move out of the way. As this was happening, Victor began to move the other children in order to get away from the vines. Unfortunately, this broke Rachel's concentration. Just as they reached the edge of the attack, the vines came crashing down.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Victor yelled until he realized he wasn't crushed. The boy then realized that the reason that he wasn't crushed was because he was intangible. "Ah?"

"…I'm going ghost…" A flash of white light, and suddenly the vines were blasted away.

"Huh?" Victor questioned through the smoke. "What happened?"

Silence was his answer.

"Guys, what ha…Oh…" Victor looked to his friends. "Holy crap…"

"Yeah…That's what I'd thought you say…" Spirit mentioned.

"We should knock him out and make him think it was a dream." A now undisguised Nyx noted.

"Nyx!" Youngblood glared.

"What? We were all thinking it!" Nyx rolled her eyes.

"Not a good idea…" Raven mumbled. She had used her magic to change into her cloak and leotard. "We should just wipe his memory."

"You can do that?"

"…Maybe…"

"I…um…how…" Victor was pale and seemed to have went into mental shock.

"Victor." Spirit grabbed Victor and glanced around. "You have to calm down."

"Humina humina humina humina humina…" Victor mumbled.

Slap!

"Ow…Thanks, I needed that…So…What the he-" Victor was caught off when Spirit covered his mouth.

"Sh!" Spirit warned. "I know this is a lot to take in right now, but you have to stay calm. There's I crisis going on right now. You need to get to safety. I promise, I will explain everything later."

"…"

"Just…trust me..."

"Okay…" Victor nodded as he began to leave through the smoke. "Just…be safe…I guess…"

"Well…that didn't go well." Raven scowled.

"No…but…We can deal with that later." Spirit turned to her friends. "We have a weed problem do deal with…Do not make drug jokes right now!"

"Aw…You ruin my fun…" Nyx sighed.

* * *

><p>Something was going on. Everyone seemed distracted. They were acting like something incredibly important was happening, but no one was speaking of it. The entire Ghoul project was quiet and inactive.<p>

This terrified Joel. No matter what happened, the Ghoul Project was never completely quiet. If there weren't fights and experiments going on, then the ghouls were screaming in their cages. Now though, they weren't even whimpering. Looking around at the other cages, Joel saw that they were all curled up into balls and shivering.

"What the hell is going on…" Joel muttered.

None of this made sense. If there was some disaster going on, then the Ghoul Project wouldn't just be abandoned. Everything would be moved if something happened. At the very least, all the failed ghouls would be killed. But this…This was like everyone was hiding from a hurricane.

Joel felt his nerves go on edge. Somehow, he doubted this was a good thing. Perhaps they were preparing something big? Maybe all the bosses were about to show up? Something had to be up, but Joel wasn't certain to what it was.

Uncertainty was the enemy of logic and planning. But…it was also a key to opportunity. This was the opportunity to take a chance. Joel now had the opportunity to make a move.

'…What should I do?' Joel thought calmly. He could exit his cage and manage to at least figure out the entire layout of the facility. That's not all, though. There was a small chance to escape. It was a small chance, but it was there.

Of course, there was also the chance of being caught. Being found out was a huge possibility. If that happened, then Joel didn't know what would happen. He might be killed. They might torture him to the point where escape was impossible. Hell, they might just throw him into a cage that was inescapable.

None of the possibilities were desirable…

If he just sat here, though, then nothing would change. This was the opportunity had had been waiting for. It was a small glimpse of freedom. The glimpse was small and dangerous, but it was there. All he had to do was reach out and take it.

'…Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and hoping for change…' Joel noted to himself. 'I don't try this, and still hope to eventually escape, then I'm crazy.'

He had to try, at least.

After making his decision, Joel quickly got to his feet. It was time to use the plan he had been creating for weeks. Using every bit of control, focus, and energy he had, Joel created an imitation of himself. It was a poor imitation, though. The face was clearly wrong, but it was his size and was wearing his prison uniform. If Joel curled the double into a ball, then a passing guard or scientist would think that it was him.

Approaching the door to the cage, Joel quickly created a silver key that would match the lock to his door. He had been studying the cage for a long time. He knew everything about it. Creating a key for the lock wasn't the hardest thing Joel had ever created.

Closing the cage door behind, Joel quickly began to move. His double would only last twenty minutes tops before it dissolved. The ghoul would have to move fast if he wanted this to work.

* * *

><p>"You guys know they're a couple right?" Robin asked Kaldur and Phantom as they looked on to Conner and M'gann.<p>

"Psh! It was obvious even to me." Phantom snorted quietly. "And that's saying something."

"Yes, I believe that I knew before they did." Kaldur smiled.

A noise caused the three of them to see the Wally and Artemis. Robin questioned. "Do we tell them?"

"It is not our place."

"Oh, come on. How can they not know?" Phantom questioned. "It's so obvious that even I can see it."

"What's obvious?" Artemis questioned as they approached.

"Er…we were talking about Captain Marvel." Phantom whispered. "Don't you think it's weird that he's still hanging around here?"

"Yeah, and why is he eating my snacks?!" Wally was outraged. He suddenly saw a candy bar in front of his face.

"Saved you one." Phantom noted.

"Bro, you're awesome."

**Recognized: Batman B02**

"Computer, national news." Batman stated as he walked into the Cave.

Young Justice turned to watch the news. They were shocked to see giant plants were attacking not only Metropolis, but all over the world. What really got to Phantom, though, was a different detail. It was the shape and form of the main parts of the plants.

"Undergrowth?" Phantom questioned in shock. "What is he doing?"

"Apparently, he's attacking the whole world." Robin summarized.

"There's no way he could do that." Phantom shook his head. "I've fought him. He's strong, but not that strong."

"Are you sure?" Miss Martian asked.

"Yeah, of course my ice powers helped…plus I had help from Torch…but that doesn't change the fact that he can't operate like this. He needs to base and spread out. Not only that, this isn't his style. He always takes captives to serve his plants." Phantom examined all the mindless destruction.

"Maybe he's changed and evolved?" Superboy glanced between Phantom and the picture of Undergrowth. "Ghosts can get pretty strong from what I've seen."

"Crap!" Phantom pulled out his phone and looked for messages.

"Do you want us to get out there?" Robin questioned.

"No, the League will soon have the situation under control. That's not why I'm here. According to your info, Sportsmaster supplied Cadmus' Blockbuster formula to Kobra." Batman stated.

"Who combined it with Bane's Venom to make Kobra Venom." Wally added.

"Which the Brain used to create his animal army." Robin agreed.

"And upgrade Wolf." Conner petted the large animal.

"The Brain also used inhibitor collars like the ones at Belle Reve Penitentiary." M'gann noted.

"Phantom…is it possible that Undergrowth is on Kobra Venom too?" Artemis questioned.

"No idea. Ghosts are mostly immune to human drugs, but if it's strong enough…" Phantom looked up from his phone. "That would explain why Undergrowth become strong enough to attack multiple cities without spreading out from a base. Batman?"

"I had Green Lantern run a spot analysis." Batman brought up holographic data. "Undergrowth's cellular structure is infused with Kobra Venom variant."

"These cannot be coincidences." Kaldur noted. "Unrelated criminals cooperating with another worldwide."

"There's some kind of secret organization…" Phantom trembled. "An organization that's involved in everything…Even…Good God…The GIW war. If this organization is obviously trying to weaponize ghosts, just look at Undergrowth. That means they're responsible for the Ghoul Project which was possible because of the war which was possible because the Shadows stole everything from Fenton Works…It's all connected.

"That's a step I'm not willing to completely dedicate to yet, but it is certainly a possibility." Batman nodded.

"But who?"

"Er…I think I know…" Robin stated. "Someone's hacking into the satellite signals…all the satellite signals!"

Tap! Tap! Tap!

"Ladies and gentlemen…" The familiar clown face of the Joker appeared on the holographic screens. "We interrupt your regularly scheduled mayhem to bring you this important announcement."

The question of who was quickly answered. Atomic Skull, Black Adam, Count Vertigo, Joker, Poison Ivy, Undergrowth, Ultra-Humanite, and Wotan were all members of a group called the Injustice League. They were holding the world ransom with their combined powers. The really scary part? With their combined strength, Phantom was pretty certain that they could get away with it.

"Crap…this is them playing their hand." Phantom scowled.

"You're right. After India, they knew we would figure it all out and found no point in hiding it any longer." Kaldur suggested.

"Yeah? That was their mistake!" Wally grinned. "Right now, I saw we go kick some plant creature butt!"

"The Justice League will handle the plants. I have a different job for this Team." Batman spoke.

"No…You want us to handle them?" Phantom frowned. "You want us the find the control system where the real Undergrowth is and take it down?"

"Yes."

"You do realize what you're really asking them to do?" Zatarra noted.

"They're ready." Batman answered.

"Wow…" Wally was in awe.

"I…don't like this plan." Phantom spoke up. "Those are 8 heavy hitters and 7 of us. I don't like those odds…"

"You don't think we can do this?" Conner questioned.

"It's not that…." Phantom sighed. "But if I'm that far away from Amity Park…"

"We can do this." Artemis noted. "But we're going to need your help."

"Right!" M'gann smiled at Phantom. "What's the plan?"

"…Lord, I don't know…" Phantom frowned. "I'm going to need a few minutes. Not only that, I have to question…how long do we have? Undergrowth can do a lot of damage on his own. With the Injustice League's help? He could level cities with ease. How long can the League hold out?"

"I have no idea." Batman answered.

"I see, then-"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"Hello...Yeah, I know. We're going to stop them at the source…We can handle it, we just need time…Really? You sure?...What about Amity Park…Okay, I see…Alright then, I'll leave it to you. Bye." Phantom ended the call.

"What is it?" Robin questioned.

"Turns out the League's gonna have some help." Phantom noted. "After all, this is a ghost related incident. This is going to give us the time we need. But…where the hell are they?"

"I can answer that. Wotan's involvement means that mystic energy is involved." Zatarra answered.

"Crap…ectoplasm, Kobra Venom, and magic…" Phantom frowned deeply. "That's not a good combination. But if you can give us a location, then we can make this work…"

* * *

><p>"<em>Are you sure that you're okay with this plan?<em>" Plasmius' voice sounded in Spirit's ear.

"Yeah!" Spirit used her Spectral Claws to begin to cut through the vines. "We'll be fine!"

"_This is dangerous…"_ Even Vision seemed iffy about this plan. "_We're leaving you to defend Amity Park by yourself against an overpowered Undergrowth."_

"We can handle this!" Spirit looked over to her friends. They were all working together to fight off Undergrowth. The hardest part was protecting all the citizens at the same time. Undergrowth didn't care if he killed any of the people in Amity Park. "Besides you left RH, Wulf, and Cujo to help us!"

"RAW!" Wulf began to tear through the giant plant ghost's body.

"Cujo, take these guys a safe distance away. I'm going to keep looking for others." Red Huntress ordered.

"WOOF!" Cujo in attack mode obeyed.

"It's seven to one!" Spirit noted. She flew around the various vines, thorns, and explosions that were sent at her. The halfa girl was extremely grateful for her Premonition. Undergrowth seemed to be focusing on her most of all. He knew her relation to Danny, and was trying to get to him through her. "There's no way he can win!"

"_Do not get overconfident."_ Vision warned. "_Remember your training and be careful._"

"You got it!" Spirit cheered as she sent an ectoplasmic kick at the tree which was trying to grab her. It exploded in a green blast.

"_Stay safe, baby girl…"_ Plasmius cut the connection.

"So we're not getting help?" Youngblood used his sword to cut through the various plants that were attacking him.

"Nope!" Spirit answered. "The Council's going out to help the League with the other cities!"

"Can't the League handle it?!" Nyx's shadow energy constricted around the plants and began to crush them.

"They have proven that most of them can't handle ghosts." Raven answered simply. Her magic was working well against Undergrowth's plants. The unequal combination of ectoplasm, human drugs, and magic made the plants incredibly strong, yet also incredibly…explosive. Using magic on them was adding a spark to an incredibly dry forest.

"Ha!" Nyx laughed. "That's true!"

"This isn't easy, though…" Younblood flinched at the bleeding wound at his shoulder. "These plants are tough as nails and keeps regenerating!"

"I know!" Spirit answered. She knew that they couldn't hold out forever. Even attacking the roots didn't help. Eventually, they all would wear themselves out. This was especially true if they were forced to fight all out like this for the whole time. "But we have to hold on!"

"**Foolish weaklings!" **The plant ghost Undergrowth that was a huge combination of plants and vines shouted at them. "**Your luck is the only thing keeping you alive. Soon, you'll become food to my children!**"

"Shut up!" Red Huntress called. She shot at Undergrowth's head, but the damage was almost instantly healed.

"**Ha! Without Phantom, there's no way for you to hurt me!**" Undergrowth shouted. "**My regeneration makes physical attacks useless! Even your magic will prove fruitless against my new power!**"

"We'll see about that!" Spirit yelled.

* * *

><p>It turned out that Joel couldn't escape this day. The exits were sealed shut and even with the chaos, the guards were still armed and ready. Not to mention the cameras, alarms, and surveillance tech. Joel would have to spend weeks studying the layout to avoid everything and get out undetected.<p>

So, he was still stuck, but this gave him the excellent opportunity scout out the place at least. Joel quickly learned all the little details that he had been unable to see before. This would help with his future escapes. Especially because Joel now had a rough estimate of the total number of ghouls in the facility.

It was a lot.

If he opened those cages, they would go nuts. It would be simple. While the cages were resistant to ghosts, one being had shown that he was able to break the cages. Solomon Grundy was his key out of here. If he teamed up with Grundy, then he would start the prison riot with ease. Now he just had to get the giant brute to agree.

"Grundy." Joel whispered into the large metal cell that held Grundy. Unlike the other cages, Grundy's container was completely made of metal and the only opening was the door. Joel looked through the small window on the door to see Grundy being held down by chains and weights.

"Eh?" Grundy looked up tiredly. "Grundy…know you."

"Yes, it's Joel." Joel answered. "We fought once."

"Grundy…Grundy remembers that…" Grundy groaned. He was clearly out of it. The scientists were especially cruel to the large man. "Grundy…should be mad…but too tired…"

"I know, and I'm sorry. I didn't want to fight you." Joel stated. "But you didn't leave me a choice."

"Grah…" Grundy muttered.

"We need to talk. I need your help." Joel noted to the large being.

"Why should Grundy help you?"

"Because I want your help to get out of here." Joel answered. "I have a plan to escape, but I'm going need your help."

"Grundy can escape on his own."

"No, you can't." Joel's face was completely neutral as he said this. "I may have only won because I used your collar to my advantage, but they'll do the same as soon as you get out of line."

"Then what will small boy do about it?"

"I can create a key to unlock your collar." Joel answered.

"Really?" Grundy looked up with hope.

"Yes, but you have to agree not to attack me." Joel warned. "And if you betray me, I won't hesitate to leave you behind."

"Grundy understands…What is small boy's plan?" Grundy question.

"We're going to break all the cages and let all the ghouls out. That will distract everyone in this facitly. They won't be able to control us all." Joel explained. "Then, you bust down the doors and we escape."

"Sounds like Grundy has to do a lot of the work." Grundy noted.

"No, I can use my powers to create keys for some of the cages too. Also, I have a good picture of this place inside and out. Plus, I'm going to sneak into the main control room and tie up everyone in there." Joel mentioned. "That will buy us even more time. If we do this right, then we can get away without a scratch."

"Grundy sees…It good plan." Grundy agreed.

"It's the only one we got." Joel responded.

"But Grundy can't do this today…" Grundy mumbled. "Grundy is too tired…"

"I know. I'm still coming up with the fine details anyway." Joel nodded. "We will wait until we have the chance, and then we will act."

"But when?"

"I have no idea, but I'll tell you when the time comes." Joel answered. "Until then, just hold on. We're going to get out of here…together. I promise."

* * *

><p>'Why the hell do you guys listen me?!' Phantom yelled through the mental link. He was currently steering the Specter Speeder. It wasn't an easy drive, though. The jungle below them was actually trying to destroy them. The halfa had to constantly move to avoid the various plants of death.<p>

Luckily, he had Artemis and Kid Flash to help him. The other two young heroes were manned at the various new guns and weapons attached to the Specter Speeder. They were doing their best to keep the plants off him, and if it wasn't for them, then he would have been knocked down miles ago.

'Because you plans always work out in the end.' Superboy argued.

'Well, this one sucks…' Phantom noted.

'I agree!' Artemis shouted. 'We're going to be killed.'

'But this is so cool!' Kid Flash grinned. 'It's like a video game in real life!'

'Except we don't have extra lives!' Artemis glared.

'Still cool!'

Phantom's plan A was simple. Attack them from multiple sides. Phantom, Artemis, and Kid Flash would take the Specter Speeder from one side. The others would approach from the other side. Hopefully, this would divide the Injustice's League's attention and allow one of the groups to get to the base.

The halfa was just grateful that he had the Specter Speeder with him. The Portable Fenton Crammer was really a life saver. Good thing he forgot to take it back to Fenton Works, otherwise this plan wouldn't have a chance in hell of succeeding.

'How are you guys holding up?' Phantom asked through the mental link.

'It's not easy to get through these plants.' Miss Martian stated. 'They're everywhere. It's taking everything I've got just to keep moving forward.'

'We'll manage, though.' Aqualad noted. 'We have to get this done.'

'Just say whelmed. We can totally do this.' Robin smirked.

'Yeah, but just in case, I have a few back up plans.' Phantom noted.

'How is plan C going, anyway?' Superboy questioned.

'Well-'

BOOM!

"Crap! We're hit!" Artemis yelled. Red alarms blared as the hover craft shook and rattled.

"What hit us, though?" Kid Flash questioned.

"It's…Wotan…" Phantom watched as the wizard…who looked a LOT like Plasmius…gather another magical blast and shot it at them.

BOOM!

"AAAAHHHH!"

'We're going down!' Phantom mentally shouted as he struggled to keep the Specter Speeder.

'We are too! The Bioship is falling for some reason!' M'gann cried.

'It's Count Vertigo and Black Adam!' Robin explained.

'Crap! Plan B it is, then.' Phantom noted. 'With Undergrowth controlling the forest, no one will be able to sneak up normally. Just try to hold out for now. We just need five more minutes.'

'Got it!' Everyone shouted.

"Now's the time to bail!" Phantom grabbed Artemis and Kid Flash turned intangible. He watched as the Specter Speeder passed through them and crashed into the ground. The jungle instantly grabbed the hover craft and began to crush it.

'Why do all my favorite toys get destroyed?' Phantom mentally moaned.

"Ack!" Phantom cried in pain as a magical lightning bolt hit his back. As he fell to the ground, he added, "Dumbass magic…"

They quickly crashed into the ground. Earth and water blasted away from the newly formed crater. Artemis and Kid Flash were both fine, though. Phantom had made sure to absorb the majority of the impact. They weren't injured at all.

"You okay, Danny?" Artemis immediately stood and readied her bow.

"Yeah…give me a second…"

"You better hurry, bro." Kid Flash stood protectively over Phantom. "I don't think he's going to give us a chance to rest."

"Yeah…" Phantom pushed himself up. "You're right."

"So…" Wotan eyed the three teenagers below him. "The Justice League has sent children to fight for them. I feel insulted by their grave mistake."

"And the Injustice League sent you to deal with us." Artemis glared. "Unlike the Justice League, though, your group made the mistake, because we're gonna kick your butt."

"Oh, I doubt it." Wotan appeared amused. "The strongest out of the three of you is weak to my power after all."

"Dumbass magic…" Phantom muttered.

"But…You are mistaken about one thing. I didn't come to you alone."

"You're the only person I see here." Kid Flash argued.

Rumble!

The earth below them began to shake and crack beneath them. The jungle itself shifted into the form of Undergrowth. "**So this is where you were, Phantom! I was beginning to worry that I wouldn't get the chance to peal your skin from your body.**"

"Did you forget, Undergrowth?" Phantom's eyes turned neon blue as ice energy surged around him. "My powers beat yours."

"**Not any more! I have evolved!**" Undergrowth grinned. "**I shall shatter your ice, boy!**"

Vines and roots sprouted from the ground. Phantom instantly froze them before they could attack them. Unfortunately, like Undergrowth said, the roots and vines were not held long. The ice shattered off them in mere seconds. This did give the trio of young heroes the time to move out of the way, but Wotan was there waiting.

"Ah!" They all cried as Wotan blasted them into the water.

"You should have move faster, children." Wotan smirked.

"**Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha!**" Undergrowth laughed. "**With all my upgrades, there is no one that can beat me. There is no where that I can't be. There is no way…Wait?...This isn't right?!**"

"What is it, Undergrowth?" Wotan asked his newest partner in crime.

"**That Phantom is not the real one! It is a duplicate! I know that little rat's powers inside and out!**" Undergrowth growled. "**Where is the real one?**"

"Like we'd tell you!" Kid Flash glared.

"Glad you came up with a plan C…" Artemis noted. "This isn't going to be easy."

"I know…" The Phantom duplicate nodded.

"**Fools! I don't need you to tell me, I will sense for him!**" Undergrowth paused. "**There you are! He's by the control system! I need to go stop him!**"

"Go!" Wotan nodded. "I can handle them!"

"Oh…I doubt you can, buddy!" Kid Flash glared.

"But we'd love to see you try!" Artemis shouted.

* * *

><p>"The vines keep spreading!" Nyx complained. "They're getting to the people!"<p>

"Go help RH, Wulf, and Cujo then!" Spirit ordered as she tried to cut through Undergrowth again.

"I'm having too much fun! You go! Or Raven!" Nyx argued.

"I'm a little busy! I'm absorbing all the Joker Venom, remember!" Raven continued on absorbing the gas with her magic portal.

"I'll go!" Youngblood raced off to help the other three.

Things were not going all that well. Undergrowth's natural power had spiked up substantially. The vines and plants were going through the building like they were wet paper. Not only that, there was the constant problem of Joker Venom being released into the air. While the ghosts didn't need to breath, the humans were not so lucky.

In all, trying to keep Undergrowth in check while protecting the people was proving to be a task that required more than a few people. Spirit realized how smart is was for the Council of the Elite to go and help the League out. Not only did it build a bit of good will and showed that Undergrowth was a criminal in both worlds, it provided the League with the opportunity to keep the people safe. The Council's interference probably saved thousands of lives.

'Focus!' Spirit ordered herself. 'Can't think about them right now. I have my own problems.'

"**I found Phantom!**" Undergrowth cheered. "**He's not even here! That means I don't have to hold back anymore!**"

"What?!" Nyx's eyes widened.

"**I wanted to surprise him with this, but he'll find out soon enough!**"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The vines and roots began to explode all-around of them. All the young heroes were caught in the blast. "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

"**You like it?!**" Undergrowth laughed. "**You already noticed that my plants are a bit explosive because of the unnatural mix in energy. I already knew that! I can just blow myself up with you all with me! Then, I can regenerate!**"

"What?!" Spirit was in shock.

"**Can't do this in the other cites because of the ransom, but I can destroy this city!**" Undergrowth grinned. His large form began to glow. "**Goodbye meat bags!**"

"No, stop!" Spirit cried out.

"It's too late!" Nyx grabbed Raven. "Turn intangible!"

"But the city!"

"It's already too late!"

"**Grahahahahahahahahahhahahahahaha!**"

BAM! BOOM!

Spirit flinched at the noise. The city must be completely ruined after that. She didn't want to even look.

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" A deep voice bellowed out.

…Wait…Spirit knew that laugh…She opened her eyes. "Colossus?"

Above the halfa girl floated a ghost that stood nearly ten feet tall. He had massive muscles and deep red skin that showed over his shirtless body. The ghost had forgone any clothing above his torso, but had a loose black hakama pants. His black spiky hair rand down to the middle of his back. His crimson red skin was covered by blue tattoos that formed a swirling pattern. Various scars covered the ghost's body but the most obvious one was the scar running down from his shoulder across his chest to the middle of his ribcage

This ghost was Colossus. He was also known as the rival of the Ghost King and the Great General. Colossus was a monstrous powerhouse that used powerful shockwaves. In fact, he had used his own special shockwaves to destroy Undergrowth and smother his explosion.

"I have no idea what's going on! But, I do know that there's enough noise and energy around the world to wake the dead!" Colossus bellowed out. "How could I ignore such a call to battle!?"

"It's great to see you!" Spirit felt like crying in relief.

"And you, little warrior!" Colossus cheered. "I can tell that you've gotten stronger! Now…Would you mind telling me what the hell is going on?!"

"It turns out that Undergrowth-LOOK OUT!"

Undergrowth had reformed behind Colossus. He was ready to grab Colossus and explode. "**DIE!**"

"Too slow!" Colossus laughed as he sent out a shockwave that destroyed Undergrowth again and disrupted the roots of the massive plants.

"Holy crap…" Raven gaped. "Did he really just do that?"

"Yep."

"How strong is he?' Raven questioned.

"Without a doubt, he's the strongest ghost in the Ghost Zone by far right now…" Spirit smiled. "His raw power can even cause Vision's plans to crumble."

"Wow…glad he's on our side."

"Yeah…I think things just got easier for us."

* * *

><p>Phantom's plan from the start was simple. Make two big distractions from two different directions. This would divert the villains' attention away from him. It was rather dangerous for the others, but there weren't any real safe plans in this mission. The others didn't seem to mind, though, so it was good.<p>

The most difficult part of even attempting to get close to the control center was the overpowered Undergrowth could control the jungle around them. Thus, sneaking through the jungle was impossible, even for Robin. Also, Phantom didn't doubt that the Injustice League had some sort of detection for airborne threats. That left only one option…

Underground.

Phantom turned intangilble and flew through the earth. He was careful not to get too close to any of the roots. The halfa didn't know how sensitive they were to outside ectoplasmic energy, but he didn't want to take any chances.

He was close now. Once he got to the control center, he would unleash a sneak attack and destroy everything that controlled the plants. From there…it would be a game of survival. He would have to make sure to try and capture Undergrowth as soon as possible with the Fenton Thermos. In this jungle, he was the biggest threats…besides Wotan and Black Adam at least…

"Ack!" Phantom groaned as the roots and vines grabbed onto him. Despite his intangibility, they seemed to be able to grab him. The roots and vines then pulled Phantom up and out of the ground. In front of him was a large circular building with a glass ceiling and giant plant sticking out of it.

"**Fool!**" Undergrowth formed between him and the large control center. "**Did you really think that I wouldn't notice you?!**"

"That was what I was hoping for…" Phantom muttered.

BOOM!

"AAAAHHHH!" Phantom wailed as the vines holding him exploded. "Holy crap! That hurt like hell!"

"**Grahahahahahahahahahhahaha!**" Undergrowth eyed Phantom's smoking body. "**Like my new trick!?**"

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded as his wounds quickly healed enough so that they wouldn't be a problem. "It's pretty good, but I have a few tricks of my own."

"**But I know all of them!**" Undergrowth jeered as plants began to form all around them. "**And I know how to stop them!**"

Joker Venom was released all around them. Spikes and thorns appeared on all the plants. Some of the vines around him began to glow like they were ready to explode. In mere seconds, Phantom realized what Undergrowth was planning. The Joker Venon would stop the Ghostly Wail by preventing Phantom from breathing because he really didn't want to find out if it affects him. The spikes and thorns would continuously hurt Phantom and force him to waste energy to regenerate. Not only that…any explosions would set off a chain reaction that Phantom wouldn't be able to avoid.

That left hand to hand combat and his ice powers. He would have to work with that. Besides, ice was one of Undergrowth's weaknesses. No amount of upgrades and Kobra Venom would change that.

With a roar, Phantom charged forward with blazing blue fists. He tried to freeze all the plants, but while there was some effectiveness in stopping the plants, they continued to break the ice and continue to attack at the halfa. The sharp vines and roots forced Phantom to continuously use his regeneration ability to keep from bleeding too much.

More than once, he tried to get away, but Undergrowth showed him that wouldn't work. His intangibility proved useless against the plants. Also there was no way he could force his way out under these conditions. He was stuck…Unless…He used his regular ectoplasm.

BOOM!

"**Hahahahahahahahahaha!**" Undergrowth laughed at Phantom. "**You actually blew yourself up! That's hilarious! Are you that desperate?!**"

"Yes…" The smoking and wounded Phantom ignored his injuries as he floated above Undergrowth. "I am."

"…**What?**"

"I am desperate…" Phantom gritted his teeth. "Too much lies on my victory for me to fail now. I already know that Artemis and Kid are in trouble because my duplicate was just destroyed. The others are also in trouble too. Not to mention all my ghost friends around the world trying to fight your plants. They're probably barely holding on at this point. And Amity Park…I won't let you hurt it or anyone I care about any more!"

"**What?! How are you getting stronger?!**"

Phantom's energy spiked as his resolve protect his obsession rose. The halfa raised his hands above his head. A giant ball formed above him. The ball danced with green and blue energy combined. It would be both freezing and explosive. "Because I'm protecting what matters!"

"**Protecting what matters?! Fool! You think that's enough! I'm an S-rank ghost infused with Kobra Venom and outside magic infused in me. With the Injustice League's help, I can literally destroy both the Council of the Elite and the Justice League in one day. Do you really think that your strength can match mine?**"

"...Under normal circumstances, no. But the moment you attacked my friends and family you made me unstoppable." Phantom answered simply. With a swing of his arms, Phantom flung the giant ball of regular and ice ectoplasm energy at the control center.

"**Idiot! That won't work!**" Undergrowth got between the attack and the control center. He was certain that the attack wouldn't even hurt him.

He was wrong.

As soon as the ball of energy hit Undergrowth, he knew something was wrong. There was no explosion. In fact, the ball's momentum didn't even slow down. It cut through Undergrowth like a knife through hot butter. The energy left a gaping hole in the ghost's chest and continued down to the control center.

Then, it made contact.

* * *

><p>The effect of Phantom's attack was instantaneous. All around the world, people witnessed as the plants were suddenly affected. The plants suddenly stopped moving. It was like the plants were frozen. No, that was not an accurate example. It was more like they were paralyzed.<p>

Why was this a bad comparison? Because the plants were literally frozen not two seconds later. Ice covered the various plants and vines that covered the cities. It was almost like an instant ice age. Fortunately, though, it wasn't a long lasting ice age.

Seconds after the ice appeared, green energy spread through the frozen plants and vines. In small bursts, the ice disintegrated in a short burst of green. Then, the ice particles fell like gentle snow. It was a sign that the Earth was no longer in danger.

Everyone who fought knew what happened. No matter meta-human or ghost, they all knew that Phantom had won. It was a beautiful sight…

Unfortunately, the fight was not completely over. Young Justice was still in trouble.

* * *

><p>"<strong>No! My power source!<strong>" Undergrowth cried. "**Arg! It doesn't matter! I can still kill you without it!**"

"No…" Phantom pulled out his Fenton Thermos. "You can't."

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH…**" Undergrowth was sucked into the thermos.

"You lose, Undergrowth…" Phantom capped the thermos and put it away.

"Phantom!" Kaldur yelled as they approached. After being captured, the rest of Young Justice was taken to the control center by Wotan's magical cage. Luckily, the Bioship had recovered and managed to knock Wotan off balance to free them. "Are you alright?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Phantom quickly flew to his friends.

"You're wounded!" M'gann gasped.

"Don't worry about them!" Phantom pulled out his Portable Fenton Crammer and tossed the extra weapons he packed for Kaldur, Artemis, and Robin. "Worry about surviving right now! Remember to stay whelmed."

"Hahahahaha! Got it!" Robin smirked.

Superboy cracked his knuckles as he watched the rest of the Injustice League appear in front of them. "This is going to be fun."

"It's seven against seven." Kid Flash noted.

"Question is…" Artemis drew her bow. "Who gets who?"

"I call the ugly one." Phantom noted.

"Which ones the ugly one?" That response was rather unanimous from the rest of the Team.

"You think that you can handle us? Humorous notion, children." The blond man wearing a green cape named Count Vertigo noted.

"I can't believe they killed my baby!?" The red haired green skinned woman known as Poison Ivy growled.

"Don't worry…" Wotan scowled at the young heroes. "We will soon have revenge…"

"GRAH!" The white gorilla named Ultra-Humanite roared.

"Strategy 5, go!" Phantom commanded.

Young Justice then went to work. They all split into groups and tried to fight off the Injustice League. Victory was not the goal. All they really needed to do was to hold off long enough for help to arrive. There was no doubt that the Justice League was coming, not to mention the Council of the Elite. All they needed to do was to stay alive for a bit longer.

Unfortunately, it didn't look like that was going to be possible.

"Danny, look out!" Artemis shot an arrow behind Phantom. Her arrow exploded and temporarily slowed down Black Adam. Phantom was grateful. He was busy trying to hold his own against Wotan. The halfa was already tired and injured as it was. Add in trying to fend off a magic user, and Phantom was pressed past his limits.

"Get away from him!" Kaldur used his back up Water Bearers to grab Wotan's ankle and pull him away.

This allowed Phantom to turn and try to deal with Black Adam. The powerful man sucker punched Phantom as he was turning, though. He would have continued to hit Phantom, but Superboy intervened. The clone jumped at Black Atam and tackled him down. "Don't attack him from behind!"

"Ah!" Phantom groaned as a wave of nausea hit him. It turned out that Vertigo's abilities influenced him…good thing to know.

"Foolish boy, if it wasn't for you, then our plan would have worked." Vertigo scowled. "I shall take great pleasure in killing y-ah!"

"No you don't!" Kid Flash rammed into Vertigo and helped Phantom to his feet. "You okay, bro?"

"Thanks…I owe you one."

"Tsk! I owe you like a hundred. I think we're even." Kid Flash zoomed away to continue the fight.

"Grah!" Ultra-Humanite tackled Phantom through a tree as soon as Kid Flash went to fight with Vertigo.

"Ack!" Phantom struggled to get the ape off of him. "I know why SB hates monkeys now…"

"GRA-AAAAAACK!" Ultra-Humantie was flung away by M'gann.

"Danny!" M'gann knelt by Phantom. "You're hurt really bad. You need to rest."

"No time…you have to-"

"Move!" Robin used his exploding shuriken to stop Ivy's vines.

"Hahahahahahhahahahaha!" The insane clown known as the Joker went to stab at Robin with his knives. "I'd pay attention, bird boy!"

"Go, I'll be fine." Phantom ordered. "Help the others."

"O-okay…stay safe."

"You too…" Phantom watched her go.

The halfa then had a single moment of reprieve. It was then he noticed the situation. Despite all their training and growth, Young Justice, as a whole, was vastly outmatched here. These villains fought the League on a regular basis. They had years, decades, even centureies in Wotan's and Black Adam's cases, of more experience than the teens.

Phantom knew that they couldn't win in a direct fight. He just hoped that they would survive. The halfa knew now that this wasn't the case. At the rate things were going, someone was going to die. It was inevitable. This wasn't a fight that could be won without a casualty.

The only question was…who?

…It's unusual how emotions, attachments, and bonds work. People usually know who their friends are, and who their acquaintances are. The line between genially caring about others and merely knowing them is quite thin, though. Sometimes, people change their sides on the line without you even knowing it.

It is a long and sometimes painful process. Becoming true friends is a bond that should not be taken for granted. Danny knew this from a young age despite his desire to be popular in his Freshman year. Before…everything, he had only two friends in his life. They were the best friends in the world to him, though. He could trust them with everything. He could tell them anything. He could just be Danny around them.

After what happened with Sam…Tucker…Klemper…Danny doubted that he would find that relationship. It wasn't something you can just try and make after all. True friendship doesn't happen like that. It was something that just…happens.

Robin…

_A few minutes later, the rest of the team arrived. You can imagine their surprise when they saw Phantom and Robin laughing while rolling on the ground. Despite their teammate's prying, though, the duo refused to tell them what was so funny._

_It was an inside joke._

Kaldur...

_"Perhaps, but you were the one who set the rules." Kaldur smirked. "You must live with them."_

_"Technaclly, I'm dead." Phantom noted._

_"That explains why your reaction time is so slow."_

_"Oh! Low blow! Alright, then fish boy. Bring it!"_

_"Consider it brought."_

Conner…

_"High five!"_

_"Up top!"_

_At least Superboy seemed happy…_

_Phantom grinned at the clone. "And just way until I show you MMA fighting."_

Wally…

_"Next year, I'll have to make more duplicates." Phantom stated. "That way, I'll totally win."_

_"I'll have to work on my technique." Wally agreed._

_"Wait…You're actually going to make this an annual thing?" Superboy questioned._

_"Oh, completely."_

_"Of course!"_

_Artemis placed her face in her hands. "You're both so disgusting…"_

_"Thank you!"_

M'gann…

_There was a moment of silence. Then…_

_M'gann giggled. Phantom began to chuckle himself. Soon both of them were laughing uncontrollably. This continued for most of the day as Phantom and M'gann cleaned the mess they made. In all, they had enjoyed the day._

_Despite this, though, there was a new rule in the Cave. It was one that could never be broken. Ever._

_Danny Phantom was not allowed to touch the stove under any circumstances._

Artemis…

_"Are you just going to lie there all day?"_

_"I'm dead."_

_"Yeah, but it's just paintball. You don't have to take is so seriously." Artemis noted as she removed her protective goggles._

_Phantom sat up and looked down at his drenched paintball gear. "But that's half the fun."_

_Artemis snorted and helped her friend up. "If you say so."_

…Everyone…

_"Shut it! That's just way things worked out. I never meant to spend the day fighting Torch and the Brain…." Phantom grumbled._

_"You forgot that it was Valentine's Day, did you?" Conner questioned._

_"…Yes…"_

_"Ha! Lame!" Wally laughed._

_"Don't worry, Danny. I'm sure you can get a date next year." M'gann encouraged. Phantom could tell that she was joking, though._

_"Okay, all of you suck. I regret ever agreeing to rejoin the Team." Phantom frowned at them._

_"Sorry, bro. You're stuck with us."_

_In that moment, Phantom realized that Wally was right. He hadn't joked around in a group like this just for fun…in a long time. He really felt like a teenager again. It was…nice…_

_"Yeah…I'm stuck with you…"_

They were all true friends. Phantom cared for them more than he cared about his own safety. They may have had a few bumps along the way, but it all made them stronger and closer. Then…something along the way, they became so much more to Danny.

They were part of his obsession.

…And he wasn't going to let any of them die…

Pulling out the Portable Fenton Crammer, Phantom reached and grabbed the last resort plan. He never really intended to use this, but if it came to this…Then he was willing to accept this. He would put on the Helmet of Fate.

If…if he put on the helmet without committing to it, then Dr. Fate wouldn't help. Phantom's status as a ghost meant that magic wouldn't work if his will was against Dr. Fate's will. They would have to cooperate completely. That meant, he would have to get Dr. Fate to agree to help. The only way to do that was completely commit to this. That meant…if he put the helmet on, then he wouldn't be able to get out of it. He would have to be Dr. Fate for a long time, maybe even the rest of his life...It was doubtful that even Kent Nelson would help him...After all, Phantom always tried to keep his problems. His own honor would make him be a puppet for the rest of his life.

…He could live with that…

Placing his forehead on the metal he whispered. "Protect them….and I will be your vessel. Make sure they don't die and you can use my powers like they are yours…"

Lifting the helmet up, Phantom noted that all the chaos around him stopped for a brief moment. Everyone had wide eyes. Even the insane Joker somehow instinctively knew that if Phantom put that helmet on, then the Injustice League was doomed.

"Danny, no!"

Phantom ignored the warning, though. He merely smiled at his friends. "Sorry, guys. This is it for me."

Then, he placed the helmet on his head.

* * *

><p>"It seems that a lot happened in the short time I've been asleep." Colossus noted.<p>

"Yeah…A whole lot…" Raven muttered. "How the hell did you not wake up through any of that?"

"What?! Nothing was a world wide attack like this!" Colossus defended himself. "Wait…who are you?"

"Raven, I'm new."

"Well, good to know that even the next generation of women are busting my balls…" Colossus muttered.

"Raven!" Nyx hissed. "That's Colossus! He could kill you with a flick of the pinky finger! Not even I'm dumb enough to try and get on his bad side."

"Oh…noted." Raven nodded.

"That's all you have to say?" Youngblood questioned. "You insult the strongest being in the Ghost Zone and you say, 'Oh…noted'?"

"Yep."

"…Fair enough…" Youngblood nodded.

"It's been a long time…" Red Huntress looked up at the large ghost.

"That it has, Red Huntress!" Colossus grinned. "You up for a rematch."

"Hell no."

"Huh…" Colossus frowned. "For some reason, that's the answer I always get."

"That…cause…you…insane…" Wulf grunted out.

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Colossus laughed. "That's too true!"

Spirit chuckled as she pet Cujo. "It's good to have you back. If you're willing to wait, I bet that Danny will be back soon. He went to go and stop the source of the plants."

"A smart move! He truly is a worthy rival!" Colossus bellowed. "I can't wait to fight him again!"

"Um…do you mean see?" Youngblood questioned.

"I meant what I said."

"Well, don't worry." Spirit smiled. "I bet Danny will be back any minute."

"I'm sure…" Everyone except Red Huntress froze.

"Huh?" Red Huntress looked around at her allies. "What's wrong?"

"…There's something…" Nyx frowned. "Wrong…"

"I don't know what it is…" Youngblood muttered. "But I feel like…It's strong."

"Nabu?" Colossus seemed to sniff the air. "It feels like him, but…"

"I don't get what you're talking about…" Red Huntress noted.

"It's like…there's a flare…or a firework…or a beacon in the distance." Raven noted. "Something…massive…I don't know. You might not be able to feel it because you don't use magic or ectoplasm, but…it's there."

"I don't like this." Spirit frowned. Her instincts were screaming at her. Something was terribly wrong…

* * *

><p>Joel had long since returned to his cage. He managed to get everything he wanted to do done…besides escaping, of course. The entire facility was imprinted in his head. All the ghouls were accounted for. Grundy agreed to help.<p>

In all this was a productive day.

Now, he just had to finish up with the fine details. There were a lot of things that could go wrong. Joel would have to be able to account for them. One small stumble could lead to his death.

Not only that, Joel had to wait for the right time. There would come a time where the facility would act like it did today. Everything would go quiet again at some point. He just had to wait. It might take a while, but-

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"WRAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRR!"

"HARAAAAAAHARAAAAAAAAHARA!"

The entire Ghoul Project lit up. Every failed ghoul instantly reacted at once. It was like a bomb went off and the dogs were all barking. The difference was that the ghouls were acting even worse than that. They were screaming and yelling.

For once, Joel didn't blame them. He could understand their reaction. It was like an alarm was going off in the back of his head. It was screaming danger. Something powerful just appeared. It wasn't here, but still…It was unbelievably scary. Whatever it was could kill him with ease if it wanted to.

But also…it felt wrong. Joel was sad. He didn't know why, but he was. It was like a close friend was gone and he didn't even get a chance to meet that friend.

"What…just happened?"

* * *

><p>"That was rather easy…" Dr. Fate noted. His voice was the perfect combination of Namu's and Phantom's voices. "But…I think it's because of this power."<p>

The fight against the Injustice League had been easy after Phantom put on the helmet. Dr. Fate's immense power was greatly boosted by Phantom's ectoplasm. It was like a ton of gasoline was poured on a giant bonfire.

Dr. Fate used the shock of the Injustice League to his advantage. He easily knocked out or tied up the mortal members of the Injustice League with bursts of energy or ectoplasmic empowered golden chain. The others were quickly taken care of with the assistance of Young Justice. In all, the last bit of the fight was one-sided, but no one could argue why. The power rolling of Dr. Fate was immense.

"…" The members of Young Justice just stared at Dr. Fate. They didn't move. They didn't blink. They just stared in disbelief at the shocking fact that they just lost their leader.

"You're late." Dr. Fate turned to look at the approaching Justice League and Council of the Elite.

"…" Batman stared at the being of order. "What happened?"

"Everything is exactly as it seems. Phantom placed the Helmet of Fate on his head, and I defeated the Injustice League." Dr. Fate noted.

"And…that power we feel…That is you?" Zatarra questioned.

"Of course. This the power of perfectly combined ectoplasm and magic." Dr. Fate stated.

"…" Vision stepped forward. "Give him back."

"Excuse me?" Dr. Fate turned to the strategist ghost.

"Give. Him. Back." Vision ordered.

"No." Dr. Fate answered.

"He is not yours to take." Vison glared. "He is a member of the Council of the Elite, the leader of Young Justice, the hero of Amity Park. You have to right to take him."

"But I do." Dr. Fate stated. "He put on the helmet."

"Please, great Namu." Frostbite frowned. "The Great One is a good friend. We cannot leave him like this."

"And I respect that, but no. He made his choice." Dr. Fate mentioned.

"Why…" Kid Flash spoke up.

"Wally…" Artemis hissed.

"No!" Kid Flash glared at her. "I'm right on this one! Why did Phantom do this, huh? He's our friend! Our comrade! Our leader! He wouldn't just abandon us!"

"He didn't." Dr. Fate stated.

"Then what's this! Why won't you give him back?" Superboy glared.

"Because he gave me his word that he would allow me to use his power if I save you." Dr. Fate nodded.

"W-what?" Miss Martian looked close to tears.

"There was a good chance that one of you was going to die." Dr. Fate explained. "A VERY good chance. Phantom recognized this. Thus, he struck a deal with me. His life for yours."

"We never asked him to!" Artemis argued. "We could have handled it! We all would have lived if he fought beside us."

"The chances of at least one of you dying was 99%. The chances of many of you dying was 85%." Dr. Fate sighed. "This was the only plausible way for you all to live."

"Man…I don't…" Robin looked devastated.

"I knew it." Vision almost…growled.

"Vision…" Pandora stated.

"I knew this would happen." Vision glared at Young Justice. "I warned Phantom that this would happen. I told him that you would be his end. I should have forbidden him from being on this Team. That way he would be safe. Because of you, he's gone! He didn't even get the peace of death. Now's he's a puppet for a magician. You all should be-"

"Vision!" Fright Knight grabbed her shoulder. "That is enough. Lord Phantom has made his choice. Please, respect it."

"And you like this?" Vision hissed.

Fright Knight looked at Dr. Fate sadly. "No. I don't. But…it was my Liege's choice. That I respect. Don't take a sacrifice for an obsession lightly."

"Obsession?" Kaldur questioned. "Isn't that a ghost's purpose for existing?"

"Correct." Dr. Fate nodded. "And that's what drove Danny Phantom to this. His obsession is to protect what matters. He could not let his closest friends die because he chose his own life over theirs."

"I-I…W-we…"

Dr. Fate turned and began to float away. "Phantom wants to tell you that Kaldur is is charge now. Take care of them, he says."

"Danny…"

"And if you'll excuse me, I have one more message to deliver."

* * *

><p>Spirit felt a part of herself die when she saw Dr. Fate. Despite the change in clothes…despite the helmet…despite the immense power, she recognized him instantly. Those eyes…they just don't belong to everyone.<p>

Spirit knew about the Helmet of Fate. Danny had told her everything about his adventures in Young Justice. Thus, Spirit knew the dangers of putting on the helmet. At first, she was only a little miffed that Danny took such a risk back at the Tower of Fate. Now…

She was devastated.

"No…" Spirit ignored the eyes on her back as her tears began to fall. "He didn't."

"He did." Dr. Fate knelt down to Spirit's height.

"Why!?" Spirit sobbed. "Why the hell did he do this?!"

"To protect his friends." Dr. Fate explained.

"Ah…" Spirit looked at Dr. Fate desperately. "Please…give him back. He's my brother. I need him."

"I'm sorry. He gave me his word. His life for theirs." Dr. Fate noted. "He…says that he's sorry."

"Sorry…Sorry?!" Spirit shouted. "How can he just say that he's sorry!? He abandoned me to save a bunch of people who he was angry at for weeks!?"

"Dani…" Dr. Fate sighed. "There's nothing I can do. The world needs Dr. Fate. The only reason I'm doing this is because it was a part of the agreement we made. He wants you to continue on without him. He wanted me to tell you that he's proud of you."

"No!" Spirit latched onto Dr. Fate. "Give him back! Give him back! Give him back!"

"I can't…I have to go now…"

"No! Don't go! Please, I need my brother!"

"I'm sorry…" Then in a golden flash, he was gone. He left the Spirit sobbing in the street and feeling more alone than she had ever felt before.

* * *

><p><strong>Because of the nature of this chapter, I didn't want to do a long AN, but a LOT of you have asked the same questions, and I feel like they should be addressed.<strong>

**1. No, this isn't a trilogy. I like the number 5 a lot more than 3.**

**2. Yes, Starfire will appear in my series. That will be in the events of Season 2 of YJ, however. And yes, she will play a somewhat important role.**

**3. For some reason, a lot of people think I use a ton of OC's in my story. For the record, only Colossus, Torch (and his minions by extension), Vision, Nyx, and Joel are major OC's right now. Every other character has appeared in either DC or Danny Phantom in some form. Even Death is from the Sandman comics and Agent Z is based off the guy who appeared to be the Leader of the GIW in the show.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	16. Fate

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart." Marcus Aurelius

* * *

><p>Chapter 16: "Fate"<p>

(Sunday-October 10, 2010)

"Ah…" Jason Blood blinked as he saw Danielle Masters approach him in the park. "Miss Masters…what a surprise."

"Hey, Mr. Blood…" Dani gave a sad smile. "What's up?"

"Well, I am currently playing a game of chess with my friend…"

"Zzz…"

"Chester, wake up!" Blood snapped.

"Eh!? I'm awake Sarg!" The elderly man known as Chester woke up with a jolt.

"It's your move." Jason Blood instructed.

"Right, right…" Chester peered down at the chess board.

"So, what bring you here, Miss Masters?" Jason questioned as his friend examined the board.

"Oh…I just wanted to be alone and stuff. But I saw you, so I thought I would say hi." Dani explained.

"Ah, nice to know that not all my students are embarrassed by me." Jason laughed. "But I have to ask…what has you down on this beautiful autumn day."

"I-I'm not down." Dani argued.

"Please." Jason waved her argument off. "You have been acting differently all week. You never smile in class anymore. I also never had to confiscate any of your drawings or paper sculptures this week. I quite missed those this week. It always brightens my day."

"Yeah…" Dani clenched the notebook in her hand. "I haven't been in the mood lately."

"Are those your current drawings?" Jason Blood questioned with a frown. He peered at the drawing. "That's…dark."

"…Yeah…" Dani frowned. "I shouldn't draw when I'm not happy."

"And what happened to make you this way…Chester!"

"Wha?!"

"You fell asleep again!"

"Oh…Zzz…"

Jason Blood just sighed.

"Er..why are you hanging with such an older dude?" Dani questioned. "He's got to have a good thirty years on you."

"I…am older than I look." Blood rubbed his temples. "I have been around a long time and have seen a lot."

"So…you're an old wise dude, then?" Dani questioned.

"Yes."

"Then…can I ask you a personal question." The halfa sat down at a chess board that was right next to Jason and Chester. "I'd ask my family, but I can't get an impartial answer."

"I can't guarantee that I'll answer everything, but yes." Blood nodded.

"Have…you ever had a friend hurt you?"

"Yes." There wasn't even a moment's hesitation in that answer. "Many times."

"Oh…were any of those times unintentional?"

"Several." Jason stated.

"Okay…Have any of those times happened when your friend was trying to do the right things for others and succeeded, but ended up accidentally hurting you?" Dani inquired.

"Yes…I believe that happened once or twice." Blood nodded.

"…How…how did you deal with it?" Dani questioned. "I mean, I know that he didn't mean to hurt me, and that he actually helped a lot of people, but…I still feel hurt, and nothing I do can change it…"

"That is understandable." Jason chuckled. "We can't always control what we feel. Rationality cannot control matters of the heart."

"So…what do I do?" Dani asked.

"Have you tried talking to your friend?" Jason Blood suggested.

"Yes, and that…didn't work." Dani sighed.

"I see…" Jason frowned. "Then I would suggest drop kicking him."

"W-what?"

"That was a joke."

"…Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Dani laughed.

"I thought that would cheer you up." Blood snorted.

"Ah…thanks…"

"Anyway, I can't tell you what to do. All I can tell you that in hard times it helps to have friends you can rely on." Blood nodded to himself.

"I see…thanks, Mr. Blood." Dani smiled. That might help. Maybe if they all brainstormed together, then they could think of something.

"You're welcome."

"Hey…do you know kung fu?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well in a movie, the old wise dudes usually know something like kung fu." Dani explained. "I thought this might be the case."

"No, I'm afraid I have never learned any martial arts. I have practiced some hand to hand combat, though." Jason smiled. "But I'm more of a scholar than a fighter."

"Right…teacher…" Dani nodded. "What's your favorite subject…history?"

"No, although I'm fond of history, my favorite subject is something that most people would find…mythological."

"What is it?"

"Demonology."

* * *

><p>"Hello, child."<p>

Joel opened his eyes. "…Great One."

Ra's Al Ghul eyed the child ghoul in the cage. "It came as quite the surprise to hear that you of all people were the only person to successfully adapt to the ectoplasm."

"It was a surprise to me as well." Joel acknowledged. "I was certain I was going to die."

"But instead, you thrived. You showed what my companions and I completely believe. Adaptation. Evolution. Human superiority." Ra's noted. "I always knew you had talent. From the moment that I saw you in that dump they called an orphanage."

"Yes…Those were the first words you ever said to me…'You have unlimited talent'." Joel nodded.

"It was true now, and it's even truer now. You have become a superhuman. With your training and abilities, you can become more. You can become a god." Ra's explained.

"Where are you going with this, Great One?" Joel questioned.

"I still need an heir." Ra's noted. "It is something that I have wanted for hundreds of years, but I have yet to find someone with both the ability and the stomach for the Shadow's work. And with Batman refusing my offer…"

"You…want me to become the head of the League of Shadows." Joel's eyes widened slightly. He had not been expecting this.

"Yes, eventually. Joel, you have so much power, so much skill, and so much raw calculating intelligence." Ra's explained. "With you holding the reigns of the Shadows, you'll lead this world into a new age."

"One of death and fear." Joel noted.

"It will be necessary. Mankind will never be prosper how it is now. You need to cut out the tumors completely if you want get rid of the cancer." Ra's frowned.

"You call life a disease?" Joel eyed the master assassin. "How arrogant. Life is too precious and too rare to be forsaken with such coldness."

"Yet you don't even blink at the sight of death." Ra's argued.

"I never said that death is evil." Joel retorted. "Everything comes to an end, even life. But to give up on life so easily…that is wrong. Don't pervert life and death like you are some kind of god."

"Many have argued that I am a god. And what about you? You have the powers that are considered above the possibilities of man." Ra's pointed out.

"I never asked for power. I have never asked for skill. And I definitely never asked to be anything more than I am." Joel rationalized. "You were the one that took me from the orphanage. You were the one that trained me. You were the one that sent me here. It is you and the Shadows that have caused me pain. All I have ever wanted out of life was peace. I would have been content with a simple life. Grow up. Get married. Have kids. Grow old. Die. You think you gave me the gift of power, but instead, you gave me a curse. One that will make sure that I never find peace in this life."

"Impressive speech that could have been explained with a simple no." Ra's mocked.

"Alright then. No. I will never go back to the Shadows. After everything you've done, I'd rather die." Joel answered.

"I see…" Ra's sighed. "Children these days are so stubborn. I'm sure you'll change your mind after a few years in here."

"I won't."

"Until then, though, you have a fight against a new success." Ra's spoke as the guards opened the cage.

"…success?" Joel questioned.

"Yes, another ghoul has been successfully made. He will be your next opponent."

* * *

><p>"<em>How did you find us again!?<em>" Freakshow glared at the incredibly powerful being in front of him.

"_You make it easy, Freakshow._" Dr. Fate noted. The ectoplasmic magic user glared down at the ex-circus ringleader. "_Using that little trinket leaves a trail. It's so faint that everyone else wouldn't notice it, but with my new power, I can. Now hand over the Gauntlet."_

"_Never!_" Freakshow held up the Reality Gauntlet. It began to glow as Freakshow prepared to fight the magician. "_Lydia, attack!"_

Lydia did just that. She rocketed at Dr. Fate with rapid speed. Her tattoos came to life and attacked as well. Dr. Fate was completely unfazed by this. He merely raised a hand and sent a large golden blast of energy at the ghost. Green sparks danced around the golden blast. This caused the energy to both expand and to speed up significantly.

Lydia was shocked by this. She wasn't given the chance to dodge, though. The circus ghost didn't have the reaction speed to move away from the giant blast. She was sent flying back from the massive blast as all her tattoos were destroyed by Dr. Fate's attack, and she was left burnt and smoking in a crater.

"_Lydia!_" Freakshow shouted. He canceled the attack he was forming and crafted a shield around Lydia. "_You'll pay for that Nabu!_"

"…That's strange…" Kent Nelson noted as he stood by the seated Danny Phantom.

Phantom was sitting crosslegged on the ground. The single spotlight in the darkness around him allowed the halfa to see his companion as of nine days…Nine long days… "What is?"

"I'm surprised that Freakshow actually cares about her." Kent noted.

"Yeah…It kind of is surprising, but considering their history, it makes sense." Phantom turned his head back to watching Nabu control his body to fight Freakshow. The ex-ringmaser was barely surviving against the ectoplasmic powered lord of order. It was only the Reality Gauntlet's unique powers and Freakshow's creative use of the Gauntlet that allowed him to barely hold off Dr. Fate. He wouldn't last long, though, if he didn't have the access code.

"History?"

"After my last run in with them, I decided that it would be good to learn more about Freakshow. A lot wasn't surprising. He was born into the circus business. His parents used ghosts to entertain people, and in most cases favored the ghosts over him." Phantom stated. "From Freakshow's record, he did a lot to try and gain his parent's attention. A lot of it was illegal. He probably would have been sent to prison a long time before he met me, if it wasn't for Lydia."

"Oh?"

"Lydia was a human performer for Circus Gothica. She sympathized with…Fredric. She encouraged him and showed him that someone did care. As you can imagine, the attention deprived Freakshow quickly fell for the girl. And it looks like she fell for him to." Phantom sighed. "But like everything in life, tragedy strikes out of nowhere. There was an accident. Lydia…died because a ghost couldn't be controlled. I think that was when Freakshow first stepped into madness."

"I see…but Lydia's a ghost." Kent mentioned.

"Like you know, love transcends death…" Phantom noted. "I think she stayed behind because she knew he needed her."

"I think you're right…" Kent watched as the injured Lydia burst through Freakshow's shield to defend him. She pulled him out of the way of Dr. Fate's many golden chains. The ghost sent her regenerated tattoos to hold off Dr. Fate as Freakshow used the Gauntlet to transport them somewhere else. "If they weren't the enemy, then I might feel touched."

"Yeah…" Phantom frowned. "That's the way I feel about most of my enemies…"

"The world is never as black and white as we want it to be." Kent reasoned.

"Now that I do know." Phantom sighed.

"..."

"..."

"...It will take some time for Nabu to find those two again." Kent noted after a moment of silence.

"That it will…" Phantom looked back up to the soul of the older man. "...Look, I don't want to be rude, but I have to ask. Why are you still here? Nabu has a new host. You're not needed here anymore. You should go be with your wife.

"I don't feel right leaving." Kent shook his head. "You shouldn't have the helmet on. It's not your destiny."

"I don't believe in destiny. We make our own choices." Phantom remembered the fiasco with Dark Dan. "And I chose this path so that my friends could live. I don't regret it."

"You do know that you could get out of this in a moment." Kent rationalized. "If you stop complying with Nabu, then he'll be forced to take the helmet off."

"I know, but I won't do that. I promised him that he could use my body as his vessel if he protected my friends." Phantom nodded to himself. "I won't break a promise. He held up his end of the bargain, so I'll hold up mine. This is about honor."

"For honor, you would give up your freedom, friends, and family?"

"My freedom, yes, but no…I would never sacrifice what matters most to me." Phantom explained. "Nabu knows that he needs to protect my Obsession if he wants to use this body. If he doesn't, my powers will weaken. Either way, they're safe. Young Justice has Aqualad to lead them, and Amity Park hasn't needed me in a while."

"And you're just willing to accept this? You'll accept being a puppet? Because I could have a word with Nabu about this."

"Like I said, I believe in choices. This was my choice. Trying to convince either of us out of this is pointless. Namu has his vessel, and I have my obsession and honor. Everyone wins."

"I don't think that's true…"

* * *

><p>"Okay…I asked you all here to talk about the important matter of my brother." Dani addressed her friends.<p>

"Right!" Youngblood nodded. They were all spread out throughout Dani's room. She had plenty of space for them. "The fact that he's freaking all powerful now."

"I think she means that he's trapped as Dr. Fate." Nyx argued.

"But you have to admit, the power coming off him is amazing." Youngblood stated. "I was half expecting him to do a Kamehameha Wave."

"…Fair enough."

"Er…" Victor eyed his friends. It was still weird to see his friends when they weren't disguised as humans. "Should I really be here? I don't know too much about this."

"Too bad. You're a part of this now." Rachel sighed. "Once you're in this group, there's no getting out. Trust me, I've tried…"

"But still…I don't have powers or anything…"

"Please, Vic!" Dani gave him large puppy dog eyes. "I need all the help I can get, and you're really smart!"

"Er…" Victor felt himself cave into the will of the cute girl in front of him. "Okay…But what are we supposed to do?"

Even after the chaos of everything that happened during Undergrowth's attack with the Injustice League, the ghost made it a priority to talk to Victor about what he had learned. Vision has very calmly threatened…er…explained to Victor that he can't tell anyone what he had learned, and if he did, there would be terrible consequences. Needless to say, Victor did not feel any need to spread the knowledge of the truth of the Phantom Family.

"I don't know! That's why I called you!" Dani rolled her eyes.

"Well, I don't know what we can tell you." Rachel stated neutrally. "The Helmet of Fate cannot be removed without Dr. Fate's consent."

"It's funny, though…" Nyx leaned back on the couch and snorted.

"What? You think this is funny?" Dani frowned.

"Just the irony." Nyx mentioned. "The Fate Changer becomes Dr. Fate. It's kind of funny."

"Fate Changer?" Youngblood raised an eyebrow.

"W-where did you hear that name?" Rachel questioned.

"Don't know. Heard it a long time ago. Someone told me that someone named Phantom will be the Fate Changer. Thought it was a dream until I began to hear about Danny Phantom." Nyx mentioned nonchalantly. "That's why I came to Amity Park in the first place."

"It is?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yeah, I wanted to see what the big deal was about, but then I ran into the Girl Scout, and I forgot…" Nyx shrugged.

"Okay, that's really interesting, and I would like to come back to that later, but right now…MY BROTHER!" Dani scowled.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever…" Nyx rolled her eyes.

"Well…if no one can take the helmet off but Dr. Fate, then you have to convince him to take off the helmet." Youngblood suggested.

"If it was that simple then I would have just did that…" Dani sighed.

"Dr. Fate know how much you care about Danny." Rachel rationalized. "But it doesn't matter to him. He's thinking of the big picture. It's not about the individual, it's about the world."

"Then you should convince him that the world needs Danny more than Dr. Fate." Youngblood chuckled.

Everyone stared at him.

"What?"

"That's…actually really smart." Nyx blinked.

"I'm surprised." Rachel noted.

"Gee, thanks. I know where I stand with you guys now at least…"

"Nevertheless, Youngblood's right. Danny Phantom is a hero. Almost everyone looks up to him. And people think of him as the bridge between the Ghost Zone and Earth." Victor noted. "Without him, the ghosts and humans could begin to fight again."

"Yeah!" Dani jumped to her feet. "I just need to show Dr. Fate that using Danny as a vessel will bring more problems in the world than it solves."

"But how are you going to do that?" Youngblood questioned. "After all, things have been fine lately. Vision has even had Amorpho impersonate your brother to keep the peace."

"It isn't the same thing, Charlie." Victor stated.

"Call me Youngblood in private. I hate using that name when I don't have to…" Youngblood frowned.

"Right, I forgot…"

"Dani?" Rachel looked at her friend. "What do you plan to do?"

"…I think it's time to call the Council of the Elite."

* * *

><p>"…You…" Joel frowned at the large man in front of him. It was the guy that arrived with Grundy. He had changed, though. Now, he was a lot paler. His mustache and unkempt beard were pure white. His orange jumpsuit was in rags. Not only that, the previously dark eyes the old GIW leader were now neon green. "Agent W."<p>

"What?! It's Agent Z you little moron!" Agent Z glared at the boy.

"You're the one who managed to become a fully functioning ghoul?" Joel raised an eyebrow.

"Not completely…" Agent Z grunted. "But I'm well enough to remain more than a rabid animal. To have ghost ectoplasm pumped into me…It's disgusting! But I persevered. I still have a job I need to finish."

"I see…" Joel frowned. "How ironic, the man who tried to kill all ghosts has become a ghost himself."

"As if!" Agent Z hissed. "This…is just an upgrade. They've made me stronger. Now, I'm powerful enough to kill Phantom."

"You couldn't do it before. How do you plan to do it now?" Joel was honestly curious.

"The element of surprise!" Agent Z growled. "He won't be expecting me like this."

"You've tried that multiple times before." Joel reasoned. "What makes this different?"

"This time I have powers of my own. I don't have to rely on technology anymore." Agent Z grinned as his fists began glow green.

"I see…" Joel frowned. Lately, he'd been noticing something weird. All the ghouls in this facility had the same…smell. At least, that's what Joel thought of it as. He didn't actually smell anything with his nose, but that was how it felt. Every one of the ghouls in this place had a similar essence, even Joel and Grundy. It had been bothering him for a while, but he didn't know why. Maybe because the 'smell' was a lot like the one he had felt over a week ago.

With Agent Z, though, it was stronger. In an instant, Joel realized what it was. Agent had the look of great anger on his face. The deeper the look went, the larger the 'smell' became. That meant…the 'smell' was anger. Joel could sense the ghoul's emotions…or at least anger right now. But like with what happened to Joel when he first discovered his powers, this anger wasn't natural. Ectoplasm was intensified by emotions, but not all of the anger belonged to them. It belonged to the person who had the energy before.

This was the leftover anger of war.

"You need to calm down." Joel tried to reason. "If you aren't able to control your ectoplasm, and you continuously release angry energy, then you'll only hurt yourself."

"Shut it, kid." Agent Z growled. "I have a lot of aggression I need to get out, and you're the perfect punching bag."

"…You're letting the emotions control you…" Joel sighed. "Then you leave me no choice but to go ghoul." White rings appeared around Joel and changed him into his ghoul form.

"Oh…" Agent Z grinned. "This is going to be good."

* * *

><p>"…This is an unusual sight." Dr. Fate noted. "The Great General Colossus is asking Dr. Fate for a favor."<p>

"It is unusual, isn't it?" Colossus laughed. "But I asked to do this myself."

"And why is that?" Dr. Fate questioned.

"I wanted to observe you for myself. I didn't get to last time I saw you." Colossus grinned. "And you're just what I expected. A force to be reckoned with. A fight with you would be marvelous."

"Is that why you want me to come with you? You want to fight?" Dr. Fate questioned.

"Of course not!" Colossus was insulted. "What honor is it to defeat my greatest rival when he is weakened?!"

"…Excuse me?" Dr. Fate was confused. "You just said that I was a force to be reckoned with."

"Yes, Nabu, you are." Colossus snorted. "But while you are strong, you have left Phantom weak. You can imagine my inner conflict. On one hand, you are actually strong enough to challenge me. On the other hand, your strength comes at the cost of Danny Phantom. Your existence has left him as nothing but a husk. Because of this, I could never fight you. There would be no honor in defeating Phantom like this."

"I see…Then what do you want from me?" Dr. Fate questioned. "Why do you want me to come with you?"

"The Council of the Elite wishes to speak with you." Colossus noted.

"Why?"

"Hahahahahahahahahahahaha! Don't act like you don't know!" Colossus roared.

"…I see…" Dr. Fate crossed his arms. "And why should I go with you to a meeting that will accomplish nothing but waste my time."

"Because Phantom is still somewhere in you." Colossus smiled wildly. "And he wouldn't ignore this call."

"…You make an excellent argument." Dr. Fate sighed. "Fine, let us go."

"Great!" Colossus grinned. "Come, Frostbite lent me the Infimap to find you. It will take us to the meeting."

"As you wish." Dr. Fate approached the man. "This meeting will change nothing, though. The world needs this new power that I have now."

"Please." Colossus rolled his eyes. "Don't overestimate yourself. You may be one of the strongest beings alive, but it still doesn't compare."

"To what? You?"

"No, Phantom's true potential."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure that this is going to work, Danielle?" Plasmius questioned his daughter as they stood in the Council's meeting hall.<p>

"No, but this is the best plan I've got." Spirit rationalized.

"It's better than nothing." Vision sighed. "Perhaps all of us together can convince Nabu to let go of Danny. Lord know I've tried everything else."

"Don't fret, love." Plasmius embraced Vision. "We all know that you're doing the best you can."

"The ghosts are getting restless…" Vision noted. "Even if Amorpho fools the majority of the humans, it does not trick the ghosts. Danny was a pillar for the Ghost Zone. Many of the ghosts looked to him to set the example that we can cooperate with the humans. Now that he's gone because he decided to help humans…there is unrest."

"They won't do anything." Plasmius noted. "It would be foolish to cross the Council."

"Yes…ruling by fear. It always worked, but it never breeds happiness." Vision closed her eyes sadly. "That is the history I have always known. You follow the rules because of the fear of the repercussions. Pariah Dark did it, and I've done it. I though for once things would change. I had hoped that an age of hope and mercy was approaching."

"That's what we need to tell Dr. Fate." Spirit smiled. "We need Danny."

"Spirit…forces of justice and order do not care about things like hope and mercy." Vision frowned under her veil. "Justice is exactly that. It is just. It is fair. Forgiving someone for a crime isn't in the equation. To show mercy is to give someone forgiveness that they don't deserve."

"Dr. Fate will only care that there is order. As long as the forces that bring justice follow the rules and basic morality of society, then he doesn't care what the people act of." Plasmius explained. "It makes no difference to him if people follow the rules out of fear or out of moral rightness. It is the same way with the Specter, and, to a lesser extent, Pandora."

"…You guys are downers, you know that?" Spirit snorted. "This will work. I know it!"

"Not everyone has your optimism." Vision noted.

"Well, maybe people should think like me. In the most trying times, I've learned that thinking that things will become worse will make them worse. You need to think positive, or things will never change." Spirit nodded to herself. "Sometimes, you have to have trust and faith that things will just work out. But you still need to work to accomplish miracles. I'm done moping around. Now's the time to work for our miracle."

"…" Plasmius smiled. "You're right, Danielle."

"When did you become so wise?" Vision had a glint of amusement in her eye.

"What?! I was always this wise!" Spirit rolled her eyes. "Just like the time I was in a staring contest with my reflection. I knew I could make her blink first. I should have recorded it, though. No one believes me about it."

"…And it's gone." Plasmius snorted.

"It will come back when it's needed." Vision smiled under her veil. "And that might be soon. No matter what, it will take a lot to convince Nabu to give up so much power."

"We can do it. After all, you're looking at the girl that convinced Vladimir Masters to play dress up." Spirit smirked proudly.

"But you hate playing dress up." Vision giggled.

"That's what makes it even funnier." Spirit explained. "Now, that I did record. If you want, I could show you the tape after we get Danny back."

"You told me that your phone wasn't recording!"

"And you believed me?"

* * *

><p>"Ah!" Joel yelled out as Agent Z slammed his face into the ground.<p>

"You're a good fighter, boy. I'll give you that." Agent Z smirked. "But I was a military man for years, and then I trained every day to exterminate the ghost threat. Give it a few more years, and you might be a challenge, but right now…not so much."

Joel quickly realized that Agent Z was a lot different than the opponents he fought so far while in the Ghoul Project. The failed ghouls were just mindless beasts. Yeah, they were powerful, but that meant nothing to the boy with both power and skills. Grundy was a bigger challenge than the others. His strength and endurance were incredible, but Joel's skill, new weapon, and plan to use the inhibitor collar helped him defeat the massive brute.

Agent Z though…He was a man of great skill, cunning, and natural human strength. Joel instantly realized that in skill level, he lost. Agent Z had decades more training than him. So, he had to rely on raw power. That did not work either. While Agent Z was still knew to harnessing his powers, he had enough control to push Joel to the limit.

He would have to do something soon.

"Sorry, but I'm not the mercy kind of person against ghosts." Agent Z held up his hand. Ectoplasmic goo shaped around his hand and hardened into an axe.

"Funny…Because you're only alive right now because of the mercy of a ghost." Joel slammed his fists on the ground. Burst Gauntlets formed around his hands. In a blast of green energy, Joel sent both of them flying up into the air.

No longer trapped, Joel turned in midair and tried to punch Agent Z away. The ex-GIW leader already flew back to doge this, though. He created enough distance to be safe, and smirked at the boy. "Not bad…But not great either."

Joel reabsorbed the Gauntlets. Instead, he formed a simple metal staff. He had no idea what Agent Z's stamina was. If the older man could outlast Joel in a fight, then Joel would have to be as conservative as possible. The Burst Gauntlets required massive amounts of energy to maintain for a long period of time. Quick uses were fine, but that was it. It was a complex weapon, after all.

"A bo staff? That's it?" Agent Z laughed. "I feel insulted."

Agent Z punched forward. Joel was shocked to see that the ghoul's arm turned green and gooey. This allowed the fist to spring forward at dizzying speeds. Joel barely had time to deflect the fast blow. In the blink of the eye, the fist had returned. Then, Agent Z's other arm extended. Joel once again barely parried it. Then, the wave of fists began. They appeared in a blur. Joel desperately began to block the barrage of fists.

After a minute, though, a fist managed to slip through. Joel grunted as the blow hit his shoulder. The Numbing made sure he didn't feel the damage, but the damage was still there. His right arm was now slightly slower.

Realizing that this would only continue, Joel began to force his way forward. He spun the bo staff around in a flurry of motion. The majority of the fists were blocked. A few slipped in, but Joel merely ignored these. When he finally got close enough, Joel tried to counter attack. He sung the bo staff at Agent Z's head.

The ex-GIW leader ducked under the attack, and tried to begin his assault again. Joel blocked the blows and attacked again. This cycle continued for a few moments longer. Neither combatant managed to get the upper hand. Thus, in the next moment, both fighters jumped back to gain some distance.

Joel frowned. His bo staff was a mess. That was some energy he wouldn't get back. But that wasn't the biggest problem. His strategy wasn't working. He would have to think of something else.

Agent Z groaned. Despite his high pain tolerance, the bo staff was a hard weapon. He could feel his hands sting from the hits that they took during the confrontation. If he continued like this, he would break his hands. He needed to think of another tactic to gain the upper hand.

In blaze of green, both fighters flew at each other. It was time for the next strategy.

* * *

><p>"I am here…" Dr. Fate stood at the foot of the table of the Council's meeting.<p>

"Yes, thank you for coming." Vision nodded in acknowledgment to the lord of order. "I know that this came unexpectedly."

"Not as unexpectedly as you may think…" Dr. Fate's combined voice of his and Phantom rang out. "I predicted that this would eventually happen. Although, I didn't think that you would resort to a direct confrontation until at least a month."

"I was not the one who called this meeting…" Vision looked over to Spirit.

"Yes…Vision had other things that she wanted to try first, but I always liked the direct approach." Spirit stood an looked over the various members of the Council of the Elite. "Thank you for all coming. I know that it is unorthodox to meet this quickly without a…You know what, I hate talking like that. Yeah, there's no stupid emergency, but I needed everyone here for this."

"It is a pleasure, Lady Danielle." Fright Knight stated to his master's sister.

Frostbite grinned. "Glad to be here I am!"

"I do think that this meeting is necessary." Pandora stated.

"I was interested is seeing the new Dr. Fate up close." The Ghost Writer stared at Dr. Fate. "Fascinating…"

"Of course, you'd say that…" Torch grumbled. "But Torch has a lot of work to do…"

"Torch…" Dora eyed the fire ghost.

"But Torch still knows this is long overdue." Torch frowned at Dr. Fate. "One of us has been taken after all…And to think, if DP was here, the Council would be full."

"Technically, Danny Phantom is here in body. It's his soul that isn't in control." The Spectre frowned. He was an extremely pale man. He was wearing a green cloak with the hood up only revealing his glowing green eyes and pale face.

"Can he still see and hear us, though?" Colossus questioned. "If so, the listen up! When you're out of there, we need to spar! Let me see how much you've advanced!"

"Colossus…" Vision scolded. "Now is neither the time nor the place."

"Fine! Fine! Whatever!" Colossus grumbled.

"Anyway…" Spirit spoke up again. "I thought that it would be good to address the elephant in the room. Danny Phantom is now being used as a vessel for Dr. Fate."

"Indeed…" Plasmius frowned. "It is a problem that needs to be fixed."

"That is not for you to decide Plasmius." Dr. Fate stated. "Phantom made his choice."

"Yeah…DP did put the helmet on willingly…" Torch scratched his head. "But Torch doesn't understand why he doesn't just fight back? DP's a ghost, and an S-rank one at that. If he wanted too, he could mess Dr. Fate up and get his body back. And he already got what he wanted from Fate…So the best option is to fight back."

"The only explanation is that Phantom isn't willing to fighting back…" Scribe the Ghost Writer adjusted his glasses. "Isn't that true, Nabu?"

"Yes. Danny Phantom has allowed me complete access to his powers and body as long as I work to fulfill his obsession." Dr. Fate explained. "If Amity Park is in trouble, or if Young Justice desperately needs my help, I will be there."

Pandora frowned. "And that was part of the original deal you made? You protect Young Justice, and you get his body as a vessel?"

"Yes, it was a noble sacrifice." Fate nodded. "He cared more for them than himself."

"No one is questioning the honor of Phantom's choice." Colossus crossed his arms. "It the rationality you are using to keep a hold of him that confuses us."

"Yes…" The Specter nodded. "That's why I'm here right now. Phantom is the one that connects these two planes of existence. If the humans figure out that he's gone, and we start fighting again…then I won't be able continue to live in the human world."

"Don't be so selfish, Spectre." Pandora glared. "Some of are actually concerned about the poor boy."

"To answer the question, though…." Dr. Fate addressed the Council. "Don't you have a stand it?"

"Amorpho? Yes. But he is hardly a king." Fright Knight argued. "Eventually, even the humans will figure it out. Lord Phantom has distinct powers and fighting abilities that Amorpho lacks. And then, if the humans figure out that we've been tricking them…"

"The League obviously knows." Dr. Fate stated. "It wouldn't be that bad."

"Even the greatest of leaders sometimes needs to succumb to the will of the masses." Plasmius reasoned. "If enough people are angry at us, then there might be war again."

"Then merely admit that Phantom is gone, and that I have taken his place." Dr. Fate retorted.

"It's not that simple, Lord Nabu." Dora spoke up. "Phantom is the example that the ghosts can be good. He's a hero to both worlds. His mere presence ease tensions. He has set the precedent for forgiveness and mercy. People follow him willingly. He is the key to peace."

"Very true…Torch would have just fried that man...Agent Z." Torch nodded with a deep scowl. "And Torch thinks that Torch can speak for all of us when Torch says that none of us are exactly…merciful and kind to our enemies."

The entire Council was silent. Even Spirit wasn't sure what she would have done in Danny's position. She had been willing to kill Agent Z a mere few minutes before Phantom had the GIW agent as his mercy.

"So this is about having a poster boy?" Dr. Fate questioned.

"Of course not!" Scribe glared at the lord of order. "Do not think that we don't all care about Phantom personally, but it's true that he is important as an icon just as much as a friend…Personally, though, I have always viewed him as an intellectual equal. We have had plenty of discussions on topics which he was curious about."

"Yes!" Fright Knight shouted. "He is my liege and my master! The true king that leads a dark soul into the light!"

"The Great One is a friend of mine." Frostbite nodded. "Not only did he stop the Ghost King, but he is also a brother of cold and ice. Multiple times, he has proven himself as a great friend and leader."

"He's such a good example for everyone." Pandora noted. "Phantom has always strived to do what is needed to be done despite his own pain and suffering. He is a man worthy of respect."

"He saved me and my people…" Dora added. "I owe him everything."

"DP is Torch's equal." Torch nodded.

"Hahahahahahahahahaha! He is my greatest rival!" Colossus laughed.

"Without Daniel…" Plasmius looked over at Vision. "Many of us would have never found happiness or love. He changed all of our lives…"

"Yes…He is like a son to me." Vison closed her eyes painfully.

"You see!" Spirit yelled at Dr. Fate. "Everyone needs Danny! Without him…none of us would be here. If you keep him from us…from the world, then things will only get worse."

"Yes, I know that." Dr. Fate nodded.

"What?"

"Young Justice already tried this. They begged and pleaded with me to give their leader back…I was quite moved. And I know how much Phantom is needed. I have seen into his memories. I have observed this world. Danny Phantom has earned my respect in ways that few beings have." Dr. Fate explained.

"Then…why won't you let him go?"

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Young Justice." Dr. Fate crossed his arms. "The world needs Dr. Fate just as much as it needs Danny Phantom. Not only that, Phantom has greatly boosted my power. Together, we have the strength to protect this planet. I cannot give that up. I cannot accept a weaker vessel. So, even when the members of Young Justice volunteered to take his place, I refused. The only vessel that I will accept to take Phantom's place is a ghost. Not only that, it needs to be an S-rank ghost."

Everyone was silent.

"So…if you truly want Phantom back, one of you must sacrifice yourself for him. Are any of you willing to do that?"

* * *

><p>"Grr…" Joel grunted out when Agent Z's ectoplasmic enhanced punch landed in his stomach. Luckily, the Numbing's influence allowed Joel to concentrate long enough to use a Burst Gauntlet empowered punch to land across Z's face.<p>

Both combatants were sent flying into opposite walls. They landed with a crash.

"This isn't working…" Joel muttered. At this rate, he was going to get killed. Agent Z had landed a lot more hits in than him. It was only a matter of time before he ran out of gas.

The biggest problem was that Agent Z's powers seemed to be just as strong at far range as they were at close range. Joe's weapons were mostly close range oriented. He had to get in close to use them. That wasn't working in this fight. He needed a weapon that could work well in both far range combat and close range combat.

The chain might work, but…that might not be enough for close range combat. Maybe something close to it, though. Something that had a chain, could work in close range combat, and could possibly be extended. Maybe he could modify something like…

Nunchaku.

"Raw!" Agent Z jumped to his feet. He sent an extended ectoplasmic kick at Joel. Joel flew out of the way to dodge. This wasn't the only attack Agent Z did, though. Another wave of punches and kicks were sent at Joel from across the room. Joel continued to fly around the room in order to dodge the attacks.

As he did this, Joel focused the energy in his hands. Like with the Burst Gauntlets, the Pendulum Nunchaku formed in his hands. The black pieces of metal were held together by thick green chains. Swinging the nunchucks around, Joel began to get a feel of his new weapon.

With a swing of his arm, Joel sent his right nunchuck in an arc. As it swung, the nunchaku's green chain extended. In an instant, the weapon was long enough to fly all the way across the room. The ectoplasm made weapon hit Agent Z in the face and stopped the barrage of punches and kicks. In a blur, the chain shrunk back to normal.

"Okay…" Joel noted as he blinked at the weapons. "That worked better than I thought."

"RAW!"

"…Maybe a little too well…" Joel frowned as Agent Z gave into the rage.

Joel's eyes widened as Agent Z's hands increased in size as they flew towards the younger ghoul. The increased mass of the fist caused the power behind the blow to increase multiple times over. This was shown when the giant fist crashed into the metal wall and created a huge dent in the metal wall. The increase in power came at the cost of speed, though. Joel easily dodged the fist.

Like before, Agent Z sent several attacks at Joel. These varied from Z's fast extending punches, to the giant fists, and even regular ectoplasmic blasts. Joel either used his Pendulum Nunchaku to block the blows, or dodged them. As he moved his way towards Agent Z, Joel used his nunchucks to hit Agent Z from a distance.

"Stop it!" Agent Z roared.

Joel didn't stop, though. After his final strike, his left nunchuck wrapped around Agent Z's arm. Agent Z merely scoffed at this. His limbs could turn into ectoplasm and extend. This simple chain couldn't hold him…

Except it did. For some reason, Agent Z couldn't focus his energy to his arm. It was like it was a normal arm. He had to get free immediately. If not, then Joel would take advantage of his momentary weakness.

…Like he was doing now…

With a large tug, Joel pulled Agent Z toward him. While the ex-GIW leader was flying through the air, Joel used his other nunchaku to trap Agent Z's other arm. Using his ability to float, Joel flipped over Agent Z. As he did this, the chains extended even more. Joel wrapped it around Agent Z's body, effectively trapping him.

Standing behind the tied up Agent Z, Joel kicked the older ghoul's knees. Now that the Agent was kneeling, Joel planned to completely subdue Agent Z in order avoid any more violence. Before he could do this, though, Agent rocked his head back. His neck turned to ectoplasm like his arms and hit Joel square in the nose.

Crack!

Despite his inability to feel pain, Joel was still disoriented when Agent Z broke his nose. He was forced to let go of the nunchaku. Without Joel's energy and concentration, the nunchaku were greatly weakened. With a roar, Agent Z broke through the chains holding him. Turning around to the downed Joel, Agent Z smirked.

"Looks like you lose. Don't worry, I won't make this painful. You gave me a good…a good…gack!" Agent Z spat out green blood. Trembling, he slumped to the ground and wheezed.

Getting up, Joel examined his foe. He was prepared in case this was a ruse. It was doubtful, Agent Z had him at a moment of weakness. He would have nothing to gain from such a ploy. Besides, Agent Z obviously wasn't faking. In fact...this reminded Joel of what happens to him if he pushed his powers too far.

"…You used too much energy." Joel realized. Of course…Agent Z didn't know how to control his energy like Joel did. It was the small difference in control that turned the tide of this battle.

"Ack…ah…" Agent Z glared at Joel before he slumped into unconsciousness.

"…I guess I win…" Joel sighed as he looked at downed man. This gave him no go, only sorrow. "Good for me, I suppose…"

* * *

><p>The entire Council was silently watching Dr. Fate. The realization of what Dr. Fate wanted caused every ghost to pause in thought. Besides this, though, no one reacted to Dr. Fate's terms.<p>

"So?" The mixed voice spoke. "Is that a no?"

He received no response.

"I understand." Dr. Fate nodded. "A ghost wouldn't be willing to give up his or her own obsession for another. This result was predictable."

"I'll do it." Spirit spoke up. "Give me the helmet."

"Absolutely not!" Dr. Fate snapped.

"Oh…so there is some of Phantom still in there." Pandora noted.

"…" Dr. Fate glared at the tall female ghost. "It is not that. Spirit is strong, but she does not have the raw power of an S-rank ghost."

"Of course…" Plasmius looked to the lord of order. "But what about me?"

"No." Vision hissed to the eldest halfa. "You will not do that."

"Ordinarily, I would agree with you, my dear. This time, though, I must refuse." Plasmius eyed Vision. "I…owe a large debt to Daniel. Not only that, I'm responsible for him. His parents entrusted his safety to me, and…I have never done a good job of that. I always let him make his own decisions, but this time I'll intervene."

"I refuse to lose either of you." Vision glared.

"Be still, Lady Vison." Fright Knight stood. "I shall be the one to take Lord Phantom's place. I have sworn myself to serve him. From the beginning, I've been prepared to die for him. This is merely a small sacrifice for the king."

"Believe that will work I don't…" Frostbite frowned. "You already wear a helm, old friend. And it is one that cannot be removed."

"…"

"I don't, though." Frostbite noted. "I can take the Great One's place."

"It is doubtful that it will even fit you, Frostbite." Pandora noted. "Many of us are much different than the average human. Colossus and I are far too large for the Helmet of Fate. And your head isn't shaped like a human's. Plus, I doubt it would even fit over your horns."

"Then that leaves me as the only option." Plasmius intervened.

"Except that you are an extremely high profile person in the human world." The Ghost Writer mentioned. "You cannot simply disappear. Your influence and wealth will be necessary for the ghosts as time goes by."

"I always intended for Daniel and Danielle to take over for me one day." Plasmius argued. "Why not now?"

"Because they aren't willing or ready for such a thing." Scribe retorted.

Plasmius merely frowned.

"Torch is sorry…" Torch spoke up. "But Torch is not willing to make that sacrifice. Torch respects and likes DP…somewhat…but Torch has Torch's own dreams and minions to look out for. And Torch thinks that the Ghost Writer is the same way…"

Scribe sighed. "I'm sorry…"

"It's fine…" Spirit nodded solemnly. She never expected everyone to make this sacrifice for Danny. It was too much to ask.

"Then me." Vision stood. "I shall be Dr. Fate."

"No!" Pandora snapped. "The Ghost Zone needs you most of all! Without you, we will not survive even with Danny. Danny may represent the goodness of the Ghost Zone, but you represent the power and authority we hold. You are the one that holds the cards against the Justice League. You are the one who could convince or blackmail any human to make sure of our safety. Losing you would be just as bad as losing Danny."

"Then that's it then?" Dr. Fate interjected. "All of you are incapable of using the helmet, invaluable to the Ghost Zone, or unwilling to be Dr. Fate?"

Everyone was once again silent.

"I see then…I suppose that I shall take my leave then."

"No. Wait. I can be Dr. Fate." Dora stood and glared at Namu. "I am not invaluable, and I am not unwilling. I owe everything to Danny. He gave me freedom. He gave me hope. He gave me life! I cannot allow him to be trapped like this."

"You are not an S-rank ghost." Nabu argued. "Not without that amulet of yours at least. And you know you can't use that and the helmet at the same time."

"I know, but I'm still a somewhat powerful ghost on my own." Dora argued. "I'm well above average."

"Still...It is not an equal trade."

"Everyone needs Danny Phantom!" Dora shouted. "You have made your demands known. You wish to have an S-rank ghost as your vessel, and Phantom is the only option for that right now. But can't you see that by keeping Danny, you're hurting so many people. I know that the world needs Dr. Fate. I understand that you no longer wish to be pushed to the side like you don't exist. I-I really do…know..."

The entire room was silent for Dora's speech.

"Before Phantom, Spirit, and Klemper helped me, I was miserable. I contemplated suicide on a daily basis. The only thing I ever wanted was the right to make my own decisions, but it was something that I could never obtain. My brother kept me under his thumb for 1,500 years. There was not one moment where I was happy. Every night, I cried myself to sleep, because I never had a glimpse of hope.

"But then…my brother was defeated." Dora was crying tears of joy. "I know they only came to save the girl I kidnapped, but they didn't have to save our realm! They could have abandoned us to suffer for the rest of eternity. Instead, they gave us freedom and a future. For the first time…I had freedom and joy. It was something that I never wanted to give up."

"Then why offer to trap yourself now?" Dr. Fate questioned.

"Because I owe Danny and Dani everything. Because they once saved me. Because Danny doesn't deserve to have his life take from him because he wanted to do the right thing again. Because this is my choice, and I refuse to abandon a friend who needs me!" Dora screamed. "Yeah, I may not be S-rank, but are you really going to be this person, Nabu? Are you going to take everything from the boy that has already given so much for peace!? I know you want to have freedom… that I understand! But please…just this once, be lenient. If you take me as your vessel, you may lack this ungodly strength; but you'll be free, and Danny will return. Please…the world needs both of you."

Dr. Fate stared at Dora for a moment. "…You are right. This is not the situation to be so picky. If you willingly put my helmet on, then I will let Phantom go. Just know, though, Phantom won't allow me to go without a vessel. He has already given his word that I will have a vessel, and he won't break a promise. There is no way for you to back out of this."

"I know…" Dora nodded.

"So be it." It was then Nabu removed the helmet from Phantom's head. In an instant, Dr. Fate was replaced by Danny Phantom once again.

Once he was free, Phantom spoke. "Dora…you don't have to do this…"

Dora approached Phantom and took the helmet. "I know. But this is my choice, and I can't let yourself sacrifice yourself like this…Besides, I have learned something in my time in the modern era. Woman can be doctors too now."

"That…is such a corny joke." Phantom gave her a sad look.

"Well…" Dora smiled at him. "I learned my sense of humor from you."

Phantom actually snorted at this.

"Is...there any way that I can talk you out of this?" Phantom questioned.

"No."

"I see..."

"Here..." Dora handed him her amulet. "I trust you to keep this safe, my friend."

"I will...I promise.

Dora then turned to Vision. "Lady Vision...please look after my people...They need guidance."

"You have my word, Dora." Vision nodded respectfully.

"Thank you."

Finally, Dora turned to Torch. "Torch…I'm sorry…But, I…"

"You don't have to say anything. Torch understands." Torch gave her a sad smile. "Torch…has never been one to hold someone back. Torch accepts you decision because this is what you want."

Dora walked over to him and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you. You're such a good man. I…I'm just sorry that this has to happen to you again."

"Torch…will miss you."

"And I you." Dora smiled.

With that, Dora placed the Helmet of Fate on her head.

* * *

><p>"Thank you for all your help, Amorpho." Phantom shook the ghost's hand as the shape shifting ghost was preparing to return to the Ghost Zone.<p>

"It was fun…but stressful." Amorpho noted. "I don't envy your life, my friend."

"There's some good parts. Like the people." Phantom smiled at his sister.

"I can see that." Amorpho laughed. "Still, I'd prefer to stick to the pranks."

"Yeah, I bet." Phantom snorted. "Stay safe, Amorpho."

"You too, Phantom."

"He's a nice guy. Weird, though." Valerie mentioned.

"Yeah…All of my friends are like that, though." Phantom noted.

"Gee, thanks…"

"Everyone's going to want to see you, Danny!" Spirit beamed up at her brother.

"I'm sure…" Phantom moved his arms in a circle like he was testing them. "Give me a minute, though. I want to get a feel of moving my own body again."

"Alright! I'll go get everyone. Come on, Val." Spirit motioned for Valerie to follow her.

"In a minute, Dani." Valerie smiled. "I want to talk to Danny for a minute."

"Okay, whatever." Spirit shrugged. "Come soon, though."

"I will." Valerie chuckled as Spirit left.

"You want to talk, eh?" Phantom turned back to being human. It had been nine days since he was back in human form. It would take a minute to adjust. "Is that why you came so quickly?"

"Yeah…I knew you would be swamped by people soon, and I needed to get this off my chest before I lost my nerve." Valerie answered.

"Oh, okay…" Danny cracked his back. "What's up?"

"I just…I'm sorry." Valerie frowned. "It seems that you're the one always making the biggest sacrifices."

Danny was silent.

"The reason I started being the Red Huntress again was because I knew I couldn't sulk about not helping out in the war anymore. Everyone needed my help, and I couldn't sit on the sidelines anymore." Valerie sighed. "If I did…I was sure that I would lose another friend."

"Valerie…"

"I thought I knew what loss was when I first became Red Huntress." Valerie shook her head in shame. "But all I lost was fake friends, stupid money, and some stuff. I was such an idiot! Why was I mad about losing stuff like that?"

"You didn't know any better."

"That's no excuse." Valerie noted. "I still had my Dad after all. And now, things are better than ever financially since my Dad's big wig teenage boss gave him a huge raise…But back then I was still trying to kill you because I thought you ruined my life."

"That's water under the bridge."

"Danny…you've done so much for me." Valerie recognized. "And I couldn't let you and your family continue to fight without help. That's why I came back. You needed me, and I wasn't about to let you sacrifice or lose anything else because I wasn't willing to do anything. So I promised myself that I would always be there for Dani and you."

"I know, Valerie." Danny smiled.

"But…It wasn't enough. You still almost threw your life away...again." Valerie took a deep breath. "I was so sad after it happened. I thought I failed, but then I realized…I couldn't have done anything anyway. Even if I was there in person to help you, it still would have happened. In the end, what's meant to be, will be."

"No, we choose our own paths." Danny returned.

"And we've chosen the path of the vigilante." Valerie state. "It's a dangerous life that we picked. Things will happen that are outside of our control. We can't have regrets. We have to live life like there's no tomorrow."

"Um…Okay?"

"So…I wanted to say this. Danny…I love you."

"W-what?"

"I've felt this way a long time." Valerie smiled at Danny. "We've fought side by side. We know each other's lives and personalities better than most lovers do. And…there's always been a spark…even if it was started by Technus."

"Val…I just broke up with Ember."

"I know." Valerie nodded. "But I had to tell you this today, because tomorrow may never come."

"…I do care about you, Val." Danny noted. "Hell, I always wanted to date you. Even back…when we broke up. I was going to give you a corny ring and ask you to be my girlfriend."

Valerie's eyes lit up.

"But…I'm not ready to get in another relationship." Danny explained. "Not now at least. I can't give you what you want. I need time. I know I may not have that time, but that doesn't change what I need."

"Okay." Valerie nodded. "I understand. But I had to say something."

"I get it." Danny smiled. "Come on, I'm sure Wulf and Cujo are tired of waiting. And then I have to go tell my Team. They need to know."

"Right…"

* * *

><p>"Hey…kid…" Agent Z called from a few cages away.<p>

"Yeah?" Joel responded, but did not open his eyes.

"That was one hell of a fight." Agent Z mentioned.

"I suppose it was." Joel frowned. "But I don't particularly enjoy combat."

"But you're talented as hell at it." Agent Z snorted.

"Not something I wanted…" Joel sighed.

"Hmm…" Agent Z raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Why didn't you kill me? You had the chance after I collapsed."

"I do not believe that it is right to take the life of others." Joel opened his eyes and looked at the ex-GIW agent.

"My death would have made your life a whole lot easier, though." Agent Z suggested.

"Maybe, but it wouldn't be worth it." Joel suggested.

"You're putting a whole lot of value in the life of a man with ghost DNA running through his veins." Agent Z mentioned.

"Even ghosts have the value of life…despite what you might think."

"As if!" Agent Z growled. "They're all vermin to me."

"And why's that?" Joel was honestly curious.

"Because they are! They take and take from humans like they're better than us!" Agent Z snarled. "Don't you get it!? They. Are. Dead. That means, that they should be gone, but instead they come back and take from the living! Our lives, actual life, doesn't matter to them! To ghosts, humans are just their unevolved predecessors! It's like us with animals. They find us entertaining, but after they don't really care. Our lives are meaningless to them."

"It sounds like this is coming from personal experience." Joel noted.

"It is! You…they…I…" Agent Z sighed. "You know…the Guys in White weren't always meant to fight and kill ghosts. At first, we just wanted to find a peaceful solution. Try and talk to them. Reason with them. And, at the very worst, close the openings between our worlds."

"That…I did not know." Joel blinked. "What changed?"

"We had this one ghost captured. We tried to talk with it. We treated it better than most hotels treat their guests. But it didn't want to listen. It said that it shouldn't have to lower itself to the level of ants." Agent Z explained. "We continued to try…until it escaped and went on a massacre."

"I see…"

"It…it got my family." Agent Z trembled. "My children…died because that ghost. They died because I didn't put it down like the animal it was! If I just killed it when we found it they would still be here! Dammit!"

Joel was silent.

"Gah!" Agent Z was…actually crying. "I wasn't the best dad in the world. I worked a lot and was tired when I was home, but I did it so that my kids could live well and follow their dreams. I told them that I loved them…every day. God…I miss them so much…"

"…I'm sorry…" Joel stated honestly.

"It's not your fault kid…Despite all of this, you're just a human with some bad luck." Agent Z wiped his eyes. "But it was that ghost's fault. After we recaptured it, I made sure it died slowly and painfully. People said I was wrong, but…it killed my family! I could never let that go! That's why I hate ghosts! They took everything from me!"

"You can't blame an entire race for the actions of one being." Joel noted.

"But I can. And I did. They all would be dead if it wasn't for Danny Phantom." Agent Z growled.

"You have to be careful about that anger, Z." Joel mentioned. "These powers respond to emotions. If you let your anger run loose like you did in your fight, you'll become unstable rapidly."

"Yeah…you're right…" Agent Z took a calming breath. "You know what…I like you kid. You have a good head on your shoulders. A lot different than my son was. What's your name?"

"Joel."

"No last name?"

"Never had one."

"Ah…" Agent Z nodded. "You probably know me by my title in the Guys in White, but my real name is George Zempell."

"I see…" Joel nodded slowly. "It's nice to meet you I suppose. Or…at least it will be when my bruises and broken nose heal."

"Right…" Agent Z chuckled. "Say, Joel…You've been here a long time, right? You think there's any way out of this hell hole?"

"Actually…I might have a way."

* * *

><p>"Hey guys!" Phantom waved at the members of Young Justice.<p>

They stared at him.

"I came by as soon as possible, but you weren't here." Phantom approached the teens that were standing out of the Bioship. "By the way, Black Canary and Zatara are super pissed. What happened?"

"You're…not Dr. Fate." Kid Flash mentioned.

"Thank you, Captain Obsious." Phantom smiled. "I got out."

"How?" Kaldur questioned.

"A friend…gave me an assist." Phantom answered. "I thought you guys might want to know that I'm free."

"Are you kidding me?" Superboy was in shock. "You're free…just like that? And you're acting like it's not a big deal."

"Man, we thought you were gone…" Robin mentioned.

"Don't worry." Phantom grinned. "I'm back for good-Woah!"

"I'm so glad!" M'gann hugged her friend. "We thought that we would never get you back!"

"Glad to be back." Phantom chuckled as she let go. "Sorry for making you worry. I-OW!"

"You dumbass!" Artemis punched him the ribs. "None of us asked you to do that!"

"Not so funny when it's happening to you, huh?" Kid Flash smirked.

Artemis glared at him.

"Shutting up now…"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Phantom waved her off. "I know you didn't ask, but you didn't have to."

They all smiled at that.

"Um…Am I intruding here, because I feel like the outsider here…you know, even more than before with the mental conversation thing." A young woman with dark black hair, fair skin, and dressed in a magician's outfit spoke up.

"Oh…" Phantom blinked when he saw her. "You must be Zatanna. Zatara was just yelling to me about you. Something about being grounded for life…"

"Told you..." Zatanna sighed as she glanced at Robin.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, because I don't think that I will see you for a long time after this…" Phantom heard Zatara yell into the docking bay.

"Crap…Thanks guys for the fun night, but I think I got to go…" Zatanna began to walk toward the door.

Phantom watched as they said their goodbyes to the girl. "I'm guessing that I missed something…"

"Yeah, well, I think you got to tell us the full story about the Dr. Fate thing, Bro." Kid Flash swung an arm around Phantom's shoulders.

"How about we swap stories?"

"Sound good." Aqualad smiled.

"I can make some cookies." M'gann smiled.

"Now that sounds good, I'm starving." Robin noted.

"Ditto." Supberboy grunted. "The whole Red Tornado thing was exhausting."

"Red Tornado?" Phantom questioned.

"It's a long story." Artemis mentioned. "It may take a while to tell."

"Don't worry." Phantom smiled. "I've got time."

* * *

><p><strong>End part 1 of 2 in Absolution. This marks the halfway point for the story.<strong>

**I was really surprised by the reactions from the last chapter. There were more reviews from last chapter than any other chapter in both Obsession and Absolution. Maybe I should do more controversial stuff...And just so you know, this was my plan from the beginning.**

**For the record, do not get used to me updating every weak. The amount of response I received from the last really pushed me, but I doubt that I will ever update within a weak again in this story. It takes a lot of time to write a 10,000 word/30 page chapter and then edit it. The earliest I will usually update is two weeks, and the latest is one month. Although, the two weeks plan has been working out well so far.**

**Seriously, though. Did you really think that I would have Phantom be Dr. Fate for all that long? Nope. I couldn't give up the chance to write my version of "Failsafe."**

**So, Guardians of the Galaxy...It was everything I wanted it to be and more. I loved the comedy, action, and characters. I think it's the best of the post-Avengers movies. In fact after the Avengers, it might be my second favorite Marvel movie. In fact...I want to see it again, and I just watched it a few hours before finishing my editing of this.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	17. Shattered

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Where there is love, there will also be pain and suffering." Unknown

* * *

><p>Chapter 17: "Shattered"<p>

(Saturday-October 16, 2010)

Danny Phantom, in his limited knowledge and wisdom, actually thought that today would be an easy day. When he woke up that morning, he knew that there wasn't a high chance that anything real would happen. Batman had scheduled a mental simulation today, so there wouldn't be a mission unless it was a catastrophe. Not only that, with Colossus active again, Danny was completely certain of Amity Park's safety. It would be safer to light a match with a gas leak than attack Amity Park now.

So, it was safe to assume that today would be uneventful. At least, until Phantom learned what the simulation would be about. They were going to be put into a scenario where Young Justice would fight and struggle to survive and defeat the enemy. Yeah, like Phantom hadn't been through enough situations like that before…

Nevertheless, this would be a good learning experience for the others. You can't always win. Sometimes, you just had to settle for making the enemy lose. This was probably to safest way to show them without someone dying, so Phantom was happy to do this. Perhaps he could even put them in a situation where they would have to fight without him…You know, for experience.

The first thing that happened during the simulation was that some of the heaviest hitters of the League were killed by a bunch of aliens with disintegration rays. In real life, to see Superman perish that easily would probably have hurt their fighting spirit, but they just watch silently. After all, none of this was real.

After that had happened, the rest of the League desperately tried to fight off this new alien threat. Slowly but surely, each member of the League was disintegrated one by one. Eventually, it came to the point that only Red Tornado was alive.

Apparently, Young Justice had tracked Red Tornado down only a few days earlier. They found not only Red Tornado, Red Torpedo, and Red Inferno, but also found an Android named Red Volcano. After a long fight with the earth controlling android, Young Justice found victory with the help of the other Reds who, besides Red Tornado, sacrificed themselves to save the world.

But…while Phantom could understand that Red Tornado never turned evil and that he helped save the world, he couldn't just let what happened go. It wasn't the betrayal that got to him. It was the fact that he never got his fair fight with Red Tornado. That didn't mean that he enjoyed watching Red Tornado get killed, though.

It didn't matter too much, though. After all, none of this was real.

When there were no League members left, it was time for Young Justice to begin their counterattack. A quick scan of the planet showed that a scout ship of the extra-terrestrials was at Superman's fortress of solitude. To counteract the invaders, Young Justice decided to decommission the ship, dissect it, and create new weapons to fight the aliens.

That was when things started to go downhill…

'Wolf…' M'gann mentally mumbled at seeing the Team's pet die.

'There was no indication of feedback…' Robin examined his wrist computer. 'Gah…I'm sorry…'

'…Can't do anything for him now.' Superboy rationalized.

'Get that cannon hooked up to the Bioship.' Phantom ordered to M'gann and Superboy after Superboy ripped the weapon from the ship.

Decked out in winter stealth gear, the team had quickly taken down the lone ship while disabling its communication system. Phantom was suddenly glad that they had spent so much time training in stealth. Their sneak attack made so that no one reinforcements could come find them.

…Or, that's at least what he thought…

'Crap!' Phantom mentally roared as the two other alien ships flew to attack them. 'Is the ship ready, Miss M?'

'No, not yet!' M'gann noted. 'And I can't do anything until it is!'

'Okay! I'll try and fight them off! Artemis, give me some long distance support, everyone else get ready to go as soon as possible!' Phantom ordered.

He took flight. The halfa flew around the ships dodging the beams. His distraction allowed Artemis to take down one of the ships with one of her explosive arrows. The other one crashed and landed by Artemis. Phantom saw this and was already moving toward her. Even if this was a simulation, he wasn't going to let a friend die in front of him.

'Artemis, behind you!' M'gann warned.

Phantom ignored this and flung himself at Artemis. She had already drawn her bow and was preparing a counter attack. That wouldn't do anything, though. The beam was strong enough to take down nearly indestructible members of the League after all.

The halfa grabbed onto the archer and tackled her forward. This got them out of the way of the beam. There was a problem, however. In his lunge, Phantom had left his left arm lagging behind him. He didn't think anything of it at first. His focus was completely on Artemis right now. He did notice, however, when his arm was gone.

The beam didn't hit him fully. It only hit his arm. Just like with the League members, the appendage was quickly disintegrated. There would have been blood, but the heat had forced the wound to burn shut. All that was left was a lump.

There was no pain, though. Phantom knew that this was just like a dream. Even subconsciously, he knew that his arm was still there in the real world. It was the same way with Amity Park. The city was probably in ruins by now, but Phantom's subconscious knew that his real family was safe and sound.

After all, none of this was real.

"DANNY!" M'gann screamed as Phantom and Artemis crashed into the snow below them.

Until it became real, that is. Because as soon as Miss Martian screamed like that, all the reasoning and subconsciously knowing that this was all fake was gone. To Phantom, this was reality now, and he would have to live with it.

* * *

><p>First there was the surprise. Then, came the shock. Finally, the pain hit the halfa. His left shoulder seared in pain.<p>

"Ahhhhhhh!" Phantom screamed in terror and pain. His right hand reached up and grabbed the injury. The wound was already burned close, so there was no blood. There was only pain.

Trembling, Phantom looked down at where his left arm used to be. It was gone. The appendage was merely a memory now. Just like everything else seemed to be lately.

"Danny! Oh, God!" Artemis looked in horror at her friend.

"GAH!" Phantom shouted. He tried to move, but couldn't. His body was too shocked by the sudden loss to listen to him yet.

Luckily, Aqualad had stepped in. He used his Water Bearers to manipulate the water and ice. The lifted the alien ship into the air and crushed it. Phantom would have appreciated it if he could actually focus what was happening around him.

"Danny!" Kid Flash zoomed up to them and examined the wound. "Oh, crap…"

"Ugn…Tell me about it…" Phantom grunted. "Wally, help me up, bro."

"Right, right…" Kid Flash flung Phantom's remaining arm over his shoulder and helped him up.

"You…you didn't have to…" Artemis was staring at the wound in horror as they slowly walked back to the Bioship.

"Oh, just shut up and accept my act of selflessness…" Phantom smirked despite the pain.

"Danny!" M'gann and the others stared in horror at their leader.

"Those bastards…" Conner growled.

"Don't act like I'm dead." Phantom snorted. "It's just a flesh wound."

"But…your arm…" Robin muttured.

"It's just an arm. It's a small price to pay for a friend." Phantom smiled.

"…" Artemis looked at her feet.

"We need to get you into the Bioship." Kaldur noted. "You need medical attention."

"Yeah…I really do…"

* * *

><p>"Uh…Would you give me some space?" Phantom requested after his shoulder had been cleaned and bandaged. Artemis continued to stare at it, though.<p>

"Sorry…sorry…" Artemis took a step back.

"It's not a problem." Phantom grunted as he turned and address the Team. "Okay. Now that we have their weapon designs, we need to create as many of them as we can…"

"Right, perhaps it would be wise to deliver the schematics. The news has reported that the military is held up there." Aqualad suggested. "Plus, it will send a message that there are people still here to defend the planet."

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. "But we need to spread the weapon designs as far as possible. Robin, send the schematics to any lab you can get a hold of. The whole world needs to be working on this. Be careful, though. We don't know if the E.T.'s can intercept our signals or understand us. Make sure to encrypt the message."

"Right." Robin noted.

"And make sure to send it to…Amity Park." Phantom went pale. "Amity Park. Oh, crap! How…why the hell did I ignore it until now! I know I sent a message to them about our plans but…"

"Bro…we all want to go to our home cities." Wally reasoned. "But we can't…not even to check up on our families."

"But this is different…My family is made up of extremely powerful ghosts. Not only that, the equipment and ghost portals there might even the odds against the E.T.'s." Phantom reasoned. "The resources there are invaluable right now."

The logic in his arguments were sound. Amity Park was where they could get to the Council of the Elite and the rest of the ghosts. They would be needed to win this fight. Nevertheless, everyone knew that this was also an excuse. Phantom would say anything to go to Amity Park.

"Well…I think we can go a bit without you." Superboy reasoned.

"But…can you really go there like that?" M'gann stared at his wound. "Can you fight?"

"I still got one arm, two legs, and thirty-two teeth." Phantom grinned. "I definitely can still fight."

"You cannot go alone." Kaldur looked at his friend and leader. "I shall go with you."

"No. You're in command while I'm gone." Phantom argued.

"Robin can lead for the short time that we're separated. Besides, I'm the only one that can use magic to stop your intangibility." Kaldur sighed. "Thus, I'm the only one that can literally drag you away if things…don't go well."

"…I see…" Phantom frowned. "And are you okay with this, Robin?"

"Yeah, just go. I got this." Robin smiled.

"Alright." Phantom nodded and stood. "You better hold on tight, Kaldur. I only got so many limbs left to catch you with if you fall."

* * *

><p>Part of Phantom really wished that he decided not to go to Amity Park. He knew that it wouldn't be good. The halfa thought that he would find his family and friends fighting for their lives. What he didn't expect was to see a completely barren wasteland. In fact, it reminded him of…<p>

Fiery white hair. Blue skin. Red eyes. Forked tongue. Twisted laugh. Destruction. Nothing left. Death…

"Danny." Kaldur hissed.

"Huh?" Phantom blinked at his friend.

"We need to keep moving. Perhaps there are…survivors." Kaldur looked around at the fallen buildings and complete destruction.

"Survivors? In this?" Phantom muttered numbly.

"There is always hope, my friend." Kaldur noted.

"…Fine…" Phantom nodded. "Let's keep looking…"

Finding survivors was difficult, however. The entire city looked like it came crashing down. E.T. ships were everywhere. Phantom and Kaldur invisibly flew over the city. They looked everywhere, but they couldn't find anyone. Until they spotted a red and black dot, that is. Red Huntress was found. There was a little problem, though. She was trapped under a lot of rubble, about enough to crush a car...

"V-Mmhh." Kaldurs hands crashed onto Phantom's mouth to stop his shout.

"Shh…" Kaldur whispered as he pointed to the nearby ships. "We can't let them find us."

"Fine…" Phantom gritted his teeth.

They stealthily worked their way over the fallen heroine. It was a painfully long process for the halfa. His eyes were locked solely on this injured, possibly dead friend. Despite his urgent need to help her, Phantom gritted his teeth and moved as slowly as possible. Each ticking second seemed to kill a small part of Phantom.

When they arrived, Phantom turned them visible and whispered. "Val. Valerie. It's me. It's Danny. Please...say something..."

"Guh…" Red Huntress opened her eyes. Her visor was completely shattered. The suit she wore was in ruins. The lower half of her body was completely covered by large slabs of concrete. "Danny? You're safe…"

"Yeah, I am. I came back to help." Phantom trembled. "I'm here to save you."

"It's…too late. They aliens instantly knew that this city was dangerous. The energy scale if off the charts, right? There…were so many of them…" Valerie was crying now.

"Shhh…" Phantom took her hand with his remaining arm. "It's okay. Let me get you out of there."

"No…the ruins will crumble and draw their attention." Red Huntress coughed. "It'd be stupid to do that for a corpse…"

"You're not dead yet!" Phantom was about to turn intangible.

"No…" Valerie looked at his stump. "You're already hurt by them. You can't chance anything."

"Dammit…Please…Let me save you."

"Danny…you don't want to see what's under this rubble. There's probably so much blood and gore…" Valerie muttered.

"No…Just let me…"

"It's okay, Danny…" Valerie gave him a bloody smile. "Go. Go to basement in Fenton Works. That place was the meeting point. If anyone was alive then they'll be there."

"What about Masters Mansion and Axion Labs?"

"Gone…Nothing left. I saw…my dad and Plasmius die in those spots…" Valerie's eyes flickered.

"No…" Phantom felt his eyes tear up.

"Bye Danny…" Valerie muttered. "I love you…"

"No! Not like this! Not again!" Phantom shook his friend. "Wake up, Red! Wake the hell up Dammit...Don't leave me like this...!"

"Danny…" Kaldur placed a hand on his shoulder. He had been respectfully silent during her last moments, but he needed to speak up. "She's gone."

"Dammit…" Phantom cried as he was pulled away from her. "I'm so sorry, Valerie."

"Come. We need to keep moving." Kaldur stated to his friends. "Mourning needs to be saved for after we defeat the enemy."

"Yeah…you're right…"

* * *

><p>"Danny!" Spirit lunged to her brother and held him tight. She was sobbing violently as she screamed incoherent things.<p>

"Spirit!" Phantom hugged his sister. "Thank God…"

"…Daniel…" Vision looked up. She was seated across the basement. Her robes, headdress, and veil were ruined. This allowed everyone to see her tired and depressed appearance. "You came…"

"Of course!" Phantom nodded. "We got the schematics for the weapons."

"Good…good…" Vision stood. Her golden hair flowed down her back. Her tan was now covered in filth and dirt.

"My Liege!" Fright Knight knelled before Phantom. "I'm so glad you're safe."

"Friend!" Wolf licked Phantom's face.

"Gack…Good to see you too…" Phantom looked around at the basement as he held Spirit. "…Are you four all that's left?"

"Yes, Lord Phantom…" Fright Knight stood. "No one else survived."

"My friends!" Spirit sobbed. "Raven...Nyx...Youngblood... T-they…They all…"

"I'm so sorry, Spirit." Phantom whispered to her.

"And you!" Spirit stared at his stump.

"I'll live." Phantom explained.

"Hello…" Kaldur stepped forward. "I…I'm glad that you survived."

"Is this all that survived from your team?" Fright Knight questioned.

"No, the rest went to the Hall of Justice. We're going to meet up with them there." Phantom explained.

"Alright then…A plan…" Vision nodded. "That's…That's good."

"Are you okay?" Phantom questioned.

"No…I'm not…" Vision sighed.

"Saw…Plasmius…die…" Wulf grunted lightly.

"GAH! Daddy!" Spirit sobbed.

"I see…" Phantom frowned as he eyed the frowning woman. She looked…broken. "I'm so sorry, Vision, but we need to keep moving."

"I know…" Vision mumbled. "But if we try to leave, they'll find us. All four of us together would attract the aliens. If Wulf attempts to create a portal, they will find us. And the Ghost Portal is nonoperational. When they destroyed the top of the building, they destroyed the power. The basement only survived because of the reinforcement. Our combined signatures are hidden here, but if any of us use anything other than basic powers…"

"I see. I could use a Fenton Thermos to capture you all and sneak away." Phantom suggested.

"They would sense the energy. If we do anything, they'll move." Fright Knight warned.

"…Then we have to move fast." Phantom reasoned. "Fastest thing we can do is have Wulf create a portal. We all jump through and close it after."

"But it needs to be closed at all cost." Vision warned. "If the aliens get through…"

"Wulf will go first. Make sure the portal gets closed."

"Got…it…" Wulf nodded.

"Vision and Spirit will go next." Phantom explained. "I'll buy you all time."

"No! I won't lose you too!" Spirit held on to him tightly.

"I won't leave without you, my Liege." Fright Knight noted.

"And I won't let you sacrifice yourself again." Kaldur stepped forward.

"You'll listen to what I say!" Phantom barked. "I have the least to lose, right now! I'm the one armed guy! My fighting ability is a lot lower without both my arms. If anyone should take the risk, it's me. I'm the least useful."

They were silent.

"Kaldur...Fright Knight...Go after Spirit and Vison." Phantom ordered.

"Fine."

"As you wish."

"Good. Wulf, do it."

Vision was right. As soon as Wulf opened the portal, they were hit. The alien ships tore through the reinforced basement, and began to attack. Wulf, Vision and Spirit quickly made it through the portal. Phantom was preparing for a Ghostly Wail to fight back the ships. That would cut them down.

Before they could do that, a beam was shot at him. Phantom was fully prepared to die, but it didn't happen. To his surprise, the Fright Knight stepped up and guarded him. The beam fully engulfed the ancient knight and killed him in an instant.

Despite all reasoning and logic, Phantom stopped his Ghostly Wail to yell, "NO! Fright Knight!"

Before he could react, Phantom felt a hand grab the back of his trenchcoat. It was Kaldur. The Atlantian flung the ghost back, to the entrance of the portal. Phantom was quickly caught by Spirit and pulled into the portal.

"Kaldur!" Phantom screamed as he fought to get back through the portal.

"I'm sorry, my friend." Kaldur smiled as the ships sent beams at him. "I couldn't let you do it."

Wolf began to close the portal. If the beams made it through the portal, they would all be killed. It had to be closed now. Before the portal closed all the way, though, Phantom saw Kaldur as he was completely disintegrated by the beams.

"KALDUR!" Phantom screamed. "Damn you! It should have been me! Kaldur, you moron! It should have been me!"

* * *

><p>"Danny!" M'gann cheered as Phantom stepped out of the portal and into the destroyed Hall of Justice. Wulf was right behind him. Spirit and Vision had left to rally the remaining ghosts. Many of them were still alive. Luckily, Colossus was in the Ghost Zone when the aliens attacked. The portals were destroyed before the old warrior could make it to the city. That meant that had a secret weapon ready to go. This was good. They would need all the help they could get.<p>

"It took you long enough." Superboy noted.

"Yeah…sorry…" Phantom muttered.

"Bro…what happened?" Kid Flash questioned.

"Everything…" Phantom sighed.

"Where…Where's Kaldur." Robin questioned.

"Gone." Phantom bowed his head. "He took my place..."

"No…" Artemis spoke with wide eyes.

"I'm so sorry…" Phantom closed his eyes in pain.

* * *

><p>'It's not like the Zeta tubes.' Phantom argued. 'Even if the radiation is the same, I've felt the beams. They are meant to kill.'<p>

'But…'

'I'm sorry, Wally.' Phantom mentally sighed as they examined the scans from the Bioship. 'But they're gone.'

'…Dammit…But Manhunter.'

'That…I can't explain.'

After Phantom had arrived, he had learned that Martian Manhunter had somehow survived. Everyone was suspicious at first, but M'gann quickly confirmed that it was her uncle. That was good enough for Phantom and the others. But…how did he survive?

Wally suggested that the beams the aliens used only teleported people, but Phantom knew differently. He felt it firsthand. He observed it. He knew that those people were dead.

"Crap!" Phantom yelled as alien ships arrived and began to attack. "Wulf! Portal time!"

"RAW!" Wulf began to tear through one of the ships. He had jumped a head without thinking. He was acting completely off his anger, adrenaline, and instincts.

"Wulf! Get away from-"

Zap! "RAAAAAAAAA-"

He was gone.

Phantom gritted his teeth. He dug his finger nails into his palm hard enough to draw blood. All he wanted was a single moment to mourn. It wasn't going to happen, though. Not until the aliens were killed.

'We're coming to help!' Superboy mentally shouted.

'Negative! We can't win this!' Robin responded. 'Miss Martian, camo the Bioship!'

It was too late. One of the dozens of enemy ships had decided to attack the Bioship. Like everything else the beams touched, the ship was gone in a flash. With it, was their hope of getting out of here…

"Retreat into the Hall!" Phantom yelled to his teammates and military soldiers.

They moved as quickly as possible. When inside, they retreated even further into the cave. The two Martains had to be carried, though. Mental backlash from the Bioship's death had caused them to collapse.

"We need to get to the Cave!" Phantom roared. "Manhunter, can you grant us access to the Zeta Tubes here?!"

"Yes…but only one at a time." Martian Manhunter nodded.

"That will have to do." Phantom grunted. He looked over to the soldiers. These were all good men, but what could they do against this new threat? The halfa couldn't risk the lives of Earth's only hope to save them. Even if he left some children orphaned or some spouses widowed…He couldn't let his Team die. "Get the Team set first! I'm sorry, General, but-"

"No explanation needed!" General Eiling nodded to him. "You're all too important assets to lose. Just go!"

The computer scanned Martian Mahunter. "Override: Martian Manhunter 07."

**Recognized. Access granted.**

The doors to the Zeta Tube slid opened. The members of Young Justice were quickly scanned and readied to go. Phantom went back and allowed his friends to go first.

**Robin B01**

"Bro, get over here!" Kid Flash yelled to his friend as the Boy Wonder teleported away.

"Get going!" Phantom yelled. He was by the soldiers. The halfa was trying to use his ectoplasmic blasts to hold the aliens back. "I'll buy you time!"

**Miss Martian B06**

"Like hell!" Kid Flash zoomed by his friend and grabbed him as the female Martian disappeared. "Come on!"

**Artemis B08**

Boom! The wall was blasted through by the space ships before Artemis could Zeta. Everyone near the front of the library was sent sprawling. Phantom was even stunned by the blast. He was burnt by the explosion and cut by the flying pieces of concrete.

"Gah…" Phantom groaned in pain.

"Get up, bro." Wally stood and pushed Phantom to the tube. Superboy grabbed the halfa and began to help him to the tube.

"I have to help Wally!" Artemis tried to run past Martian Manhunter and back to help the speedster.

"Just go, Arte-" Kid Flash never got to finish that sentence.

Zap!

"WALLY" Artemis cried out as the speedster was killed.

"Go!" Superboy flung her into the tube. It instantly teleported her to the Cave. "Now you, Danny."

"Wally…" Phantom trembled.

**Danny Phatom B04**

"Come on!" Phantom grabbed Martian Manhunter and dragged him into the tube. "We can't lose you!"

**Superboy B05**

The clone quickly followed them. Almost all of them had made it back to the Cave. There was a high cost, though. They had lost a dear friend and sacrificed dozens of soldiers for their own lives. It wasn't a decision that any of them would soon forget.

* * *

><p>"<em>Sup? You reached Ember McClaim. If you're selling, I ain't buying. But if it's anyone else leave a message at the beep. Make it short, though. I'm a busy person.<em>"

"Ember, it's Danny. I'm…just worried." Phantom spoke into his phone. "There's been no news about you. If you get this message, call me back, okay? Please…just be safe. Okay…bye…"

Phantom hung up and dialed another number.

"_Who are you and how did you get this number!? Just kidding, it's Jennifer. I'm doing stuff right now. Leave a message, and maybe I'll get back to you. Or not. It depends on my mood._"

"Jen, hey it's Danny…I know that you probably won't respond to this. Hell, I don't know if you're alive, but…I had to try at least. Everything's gone to hell. There's so few of my friends left…I need to know that someone's still out there." Danny sighed. "Stay alive, Jen. I'll see you later…"

Phantom hung up. "Damn…"

"…You okay?" Superboy approached Phantom. He most likely heard everything Danny said.

"No…I was trying to get a hold of some friends, but…they're most likely gone." Phantom clenched his phone tightly.

"I'm sorry." Superboy placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks…how's Artemis?" Phantom questioned.

"Not good." Superboy shook his head. "Wally's death…really got to her."

"It got to all of us…" Phantom frowned.

"Okay!" Robin looked away from the virtual computer. "I got in contact with every hero, vigilante, and person with powers we know. They'll be here soon. We just need to key them into the system."

"Good." Phantom nodded. "Okay…It's time to make a plan."

"Yeah…" Artemis nodded as she was walked over by M'gann. "Those pieces of scum are all dead."

"You okay?" Phantom questioned.

"Of course not, idiot. But I'll be better when I have a few dozen burning E.T. ships at my feet..." Artemis scowled darkly.

"I see..."

"What do we do?" M'gann questioned. "You have to have a plan, right?

"I was hoping Vision would contact me…" Phantom frowned. "The Ghost Zone filters all of our leftover energy and transmissions. That's why it gets such good reception. But no one on their end has responded. And without Wulf or any working portals, I can't go there…"

"It's just us, then?" M'gann questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom sighed.

"So we don't have a master strategist…What do you got, Danny?" Conner questioned.

"All the E.T. ships come from the mother ship. That is where the commands and communications are sent from. Destroying that is our safest bet to win. At the very least, the aliens will be crippled beyond repair. At the best, they all die from the backlash or just retreat." Phantom explained.

"Sounds good." Superboy noted. "But how are we going to take down a ship the size of Smallville?"

"We blow up the core." Phantom looked over to Martian Manhunter. "Weird question, but do you know anything about the layout of the ship? You were hit by their beams. Maybe it was mental powers that allowed you to survive or something, and you just got teleported instead."

"No…I'm sorry." Martian Manhunter shook his head as he stood from his seat.

"Well damn…" Phantom sighed. "We're going to need a distraction. I'll stay outside the ship and fight. If I have no idea how much time I can give you with only one arm, but I'll do the best I can."

"You can't do that." Robin shook his head. "You're our leader. We need you alive. If you lose you, then…"

"You'll lead." Phantom placed a hand on Robin's shoulder. "You can do it, Rob. I'll leave it to you."

"You really think that we're just going to let you sacrifice yourself again for us?!" Artemis glared at him. "No way."

"I have the most diverse powers." Phantom noted. "I can buy the most time."

"You won't be able to do too much damage with one arm." Conner crossed his arms. "I'll do it."

"NO!" M'gann glared at her boyfriend. "You can't!"

"She's right. You wear the shield." Phantom noted. "People are going to be looking for the hope Superman gives after this. You're going to have to step up."

"What about you? You could step up after this is over." Superboy argued.

"No…Not after Amity Park…" Phantom frowned. "When this is all over with, I'm done. Either I'm dead or I'm going to retire."

"You can't actually be planning that!" Robin hissed.

"I am." Phantom nodded. "You can only lose so much…"

"But…" M'gann frowned.

"We can argue about that later." Conner glared at Phantom. "You're set on being the distraction?"

"Yes."

"So am I. I guess it will be both of us, then." Conner noted.

"I can do it on my own. All I need to do is buy you guys a few minutes." Phantom argued.

"And I can help you double that time." Superboy smirked at his friend. "Sorry, Danny. That is all I'm willing to compromise."

"…Fine…" Phantom sighed.

"But Conner…" M'gann stared in shock at her boyfriend.

"Sorry, M'gann. I have to do this." Superboy explained. "It's what Superman would do."

"…Okay. We have a plan." Phantom looked at his Team. "We need to get ready. Robin and Artemis, start prepping the bombs. M'gann and Conner…Let's set up a message. We need to tell the world that there are still people fighting for them."

* * *

><p>"…And though we know all seems lost, the one thing the aliens cannot destroy is hope." M'gann spoke to the camera.<p>

"Hope survives because the battle is not over. Not as long as even one of is willing to fight." Superboy added.

"Even if some of us fall, new heroes will rise to carry on the fight." Artemis spoke. "The thing about the people of Earth is that we never give up. We always keep fighting to preserve life and to stop evil."

"Things might seem hard now. So much has already been lost, but we can't let that stop us." Robin stated. "The people that are gone would want us to continue the fight. To carry on their wills. We don't have to do it alone, though. Together, we are strong enough overcome any obstacle."

"It's always darkest before the dawn." Phantom noted. "But…if there's one thing that I've learned is that the fight…the struggle…You have to see it through to the end. Hope can overcome the storm. Don't give up. We are here. We will fight. And we're going to make those aliens regret ever coming to our planet. The people of Earth will survive and will win this war!"

They never knew it, but this message was met with cries of agreement and encouragement. People yelled. More people cried. Everyone, however, was inspired. They all knew that they would win this war or die trying...

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you don't want any help?" Red Arrow questioned.<p>

"Want? Yes. Need? Yes. Can we afford it? Hell, no." Phantom shook his head. "We can't lose everybody to this."

"What do you mean?" The black haired Atlantian named Garth questioned. He was a friend of Kaldur before...before the Atlantian hero passed.

"If things go south…If none of us make it back…" Phantom stated.

"You'll make it back." Zatanna interjected. "You've made it through worse, right?"

"…No, nothing was this bad." Phantom sighed. "Not even the GIW War was this bad."

"But…You cannont just plan to die like this." Tula, the red haired female Atlantian who was a friend with Kaldur before, stated.

"Not planning on it, but I need a backup plan just in case." Phantom noted. "Just…be ready. I tried to send the plans for the alien death beams to different places, but I have no idea if any of the weapons were created yet. If none of us make it back, you guys need to be prepared."

"…Yeah…I get it…" Rocket, the dark skinned, brown haired girl wearing alien tech and dark clothing, frowned. "But I don't like this."

"Welcome to my life." Phantom grunted. "And if you receive a message from the Ghost Zone, accept it. Vision will be on your side."

"Okay. I'd accept the villains of Belle Reve as allies at this point." Red Arrow frowned. "Ghosts? I'd feel like cheering. We could use that sort of firepower."

"And…if I don't make it back. Tell Spirit that I love her. She's always been like a sister to me, and I don't know where I'd be if she never helped me." Phantom instructed. "If it wasn't for her…I would have given up a long time ago."

"…Okay…We can do that."

* * *

><p>It is an unusual feeling to go into battle knowing that you're going to die. For many, it would be terrifying. The knowledge that soon you would no longer be on in the land of living would cause most people to cry, scream, and beg for the chance to live longer. After all, death was a scary thing. It was a journey into the unknown. There was no saying what exactly would happen. It is understandable that some people would freak out.<p>

Yet, Phantom did none of these things. He had went through this once before after all. He never thought that he would survive through the GIW War. Not only that, he learned what Death really was like. In fact, he met the living persona of Death herself, and learned of his unusual connection to her. Perhaps that was why he wasn't scared in the least. Death wasn't punishment, it was relief.

As he watched Miss Martian and Martian Manhunter fly into the mother ship, he merely began to think. It hadn't even been a full day yet, yet everything had changed. Amity Park was in ruin. The majority of his friends and family were dead and gone, and there was a good chance that even more would follow them. There was nothing he could do about it, too…

It made him feel numb.

'We're in position.' M'gann mentally stated.

"Superboy." Phantom looked over to his Kryptonian friend. "You're up."

"Right!" Superboy jumped up into the air and onto the ship. He grabbed onto a nearby cannon and began to tear it out of the ship.

'Careful! Don't disconnect the power source!' Robin mentally commanded.

"Alright you glorified trespassers, you want to see how a real alien fights?!" Superboy shouted. He began to use the cannon to fire beams at the other weapons on the ship. Like everything else the beam touched, the other weapons were quickly destroyed. This caused the entrances to the ship to open to allow the ships to fly out. 'Now or never!'

'Right!' Phantom grabbed onto Artemis who grabbed Robin. 'Hold on! I only got one arm to do this!'

They took off in the direction of the mother ship. Phantom quickly placed them on one of the launching pads. 'Stay safe!'

'We should be saying that to you.' Artemis noted.

'Go, SB and I will buy you as much time as we can.' Phantom began to float away.

'Goodbye, Danny.' Robin noted as the two non-superpowered teens ran into the ship.

'…Goodbye, guys. Make sure to live through this…' Phantom turned and began to fly to go help Superboy. As he flew, he ignored the mental dialogue that came through the mental link. Right now, he had to stay focused. He couldn't allow himself the opportunity to hear the voices of his friends one last time...

The halfa arrived just in time to see Superboy get blasted back by the ships. The cannon in his hands was quickly destroyed, and the clone was sent rolling. He quickly got to his feet, but wasn't fast enough. A ship behind the clone was about hit him with the desenegration beam when Phantom intervened.

"Stay focused!" Phantom pulled Superboy out of the way.

"Thanks!" Superboy grunted.

"SB, double!" Phantom spun Superboy around and flung him to a nearby ship. The Kryptonian clone hit the ship and caused it to go crashing down. He then jumped from that ship and jumped to another. Like the ship before it, that ship was ruined and sent crashing down.

Phantom wasn't idle as this happened. He created an ice broadsword and used it to freeze the controls on one of the other ships. This caused the one ship to be sent crashing into another. Both of the E.T. ships were sent falling like the others.

"Gah!" Superboy landed. "Nice one!"

"Thanks!" Phantom grabbed him and began to fly to avoid the beam. "Bet I can take down more than you!"

"You're on!"

* * *

><p>'There's good news and better news.' Phantom noted through mental link.<p>

'What are they?' Superboy had grabbed another cannon and was using that to attack again.

'I stopped one of the ships.'

'I already did that to like five.'

'But are you driving one of them?'

'…No.'

'Then I win!' Phantom smirked. He had created an artificial limb made of ice. It didn't work well, and was jagged and sharp in all the wrong places. It worked well enough to allow Phantom to drive the alien ship. Luckily, he had studied the scans of the ships and learned the basics of how they worked. This wasn't too much harder than driving the Specter Speeder.

Zap! Boom!

"I am loving this!" Phantom grinned. The designation beam cut through the other ships like butter. Phantom's attacks caused the ships to turn their attention to Phantom. This gave Superboy some room to use his canon. This tactic was working for now, but the aliens would quickly adapt. The halfa might have to abandon the ship soon-

Zap! Boom!

'Crap! It hit my engines! This thing is going down!' Phantom gritted his teeth. 'I need to evacuate.'

Phantom fazed through the ship and allowed it to plow into another one. He pointed and laughed. "Ha ha!"

As he flew back to assist Superboy, he mentally questioned the others. 'How is it going?'

'The bombs have been planted.' Robin noted. 'We're leaving now!'

'Good! I'll grab Conner and-Shit!' Phantom cursed. Superboy was been pressed back. He was completely surrounded. 'Conner hold on! I'm coming to help!'

'No…it's okay…' Superboy dropped the canon and looked up to Phantom. He was surrounded at all sides and the beams were already firing. The Kryptonian was as good as dead. 'It's been an honor, Danny!"

"Conner!"

Zap! Boom!

…He was gone…

"Damn it!" Phantom felt tears build up again. How many times had he cried today? He lost count...

Zap! Boom!

"Ah!" Phantom yelled as a beam hit the spot right next to him. The explosion sent him sprawling and rolling. He soon came to a halt, though. His body was burnt and injured.

Phantom tried to force himself up. He had to keep moving. The others might need his help to escape. Unfortunately, Phantom couldn't move. His body wasn't responding. Was he that badly injured? No…his powers weren't responding right. Something was wrong…

Flopping onto his back, Phantom looked up to the ships. They were all charging beams and were getting ready to fire at him. To Phantom, everything was moving slow. He wished it didn't, though. He didn't want to prolong his suffering…

Was this really it? This was the point where he was going to die? Damn…he thought he would go out in the middle of battle. To be killed was injured and helpless on the ground…that was not how he envisioned his death. He wanted to go out with a fight.

That didn't seem to be the case, though. He was going to die without a fight. He wouldn't get to die an honorable death…

Boom! Crash! Bam! Boom!

"Danny." Vision grabbed Danny and lifted him up.

"…Vision?"

"We need to get going!" Vision began to fly away from the mother ship.

"The ship's about to explode…"

"I know, but we had to save you." Vision looked behind at the others. "Retreat!"

"Right!" Frostbite nodded.

"Already?! The fun just started!?" Colossus frowned as he looked at the destroyed ships.

"Torch actally wants to leave. Torch has no desired to die!" Torch began to follow after Vision.

"…" He was safe. Once again, he escaped death by the skin of his teeth. Now relieved from the stress of the moment, he finally allowed himself a second to rest. Phantom closed his eyes and allowed himself to pass out.

* * *

><p>BOOOOOM!<p>

Phantom woke with a start. "What!? What happened!?"

"Danny!" Both M'gann and Spirit were kneeling over him. The halfa was laid out on the ground. Vision must have laid him down after they got away. A quick look around told Phantom that the other ghosts were there. He did notice that there were two missing faces that he had wanted to see.

"Robin and Artemis?" Phantom questioned.

M'gann shook her head as tears began to fall.

"…I should have known…" Phantom deflated.

"We won, though." Vision noted. "The mother ship was defeated."

"But the cost was too high." M'gann cried.

"…I'm sorry." Vision sighed. "It took longer than I expected to get everything organized. We had the same plan as you. Attack the mother ship, but you beat us too it. If we just arrived earlier…"

"It's not your fault. I…Oh, dear God…" Phantom's eyes widened. His jaw dropped. Another mother ship was flying down right next to where the other one was. "There's more of them!"

"What do we do?!" Spirit cried.

"…We end this." Martian Manhunter stood behind M'gann. He grabbed onto her shoulder and was about to punch down to the small of her back. He was stopped, though. "GAH!"

Martian Manhunter yelled in pain. Electricity surged through his body. It caused him to skake and tremple as he stepped away from M'gann. He couldn't make sense of it, though. None of the ghosts were attacking him. How…

"Idiot…" Phantom forced himself to a sitting position. "Did you really think I would trust an man I saw die before my very eyes? Sorry, but I made sure to place a chip on you that would shock you as soon as you intended to do something bad to a member of Young Justice."

"No…" J'onn muttered as soon as the shock stopped. He was smoking and burned. "You don't…This is…simulation…"

He fell to the ground with a thud.

"Uncle J'onn!" M'gann tried to go to her uncle but was stopped by Phantom.

"Don't…" Phantom stated. "He's not the real J'onn you know. The aliens merely sent a really good duplicate."

"No…" Tears ran down M'gann's face. She hugged Phantom like a life line. Danny was the last person she cared about that was alive on this planet. "I can't believe it…He was dead this whole time."

"…What do we do?" Phantom looked to Vision. "I never planned for a second ship."

"But I did." Vision sighed. "I thought something like this would happen. That was why it took me so long to organize everything. We were lucky that I kept the Guys in White design for portable Ghost Portals."

"What do you…Holy crap…" Phantom's eyes widened.

All around the area, ghost portals began to open. There were hundreds… no, thousands of them. In an instant, floods of green began to poor out from the portals. Waves of ghosts flew out and towards the second mother ship. The sky was filled with green lights and explosions.

"How?" Phantom questioned.

"The aliens didn't make any demands. They never gave the chance to surrender. All they did was kill and destroy. Both our world and the human world are connected. If one is completely destroyed, then the other will go." Vision explained. "Not only that, even if the earth wasn't completely destroyed, there's a good chance that the aliens will try to invade the Ghost Zone at some point. It wasn't too difficult to convince most of the ghosts to fight using that logic."

"Pretty awesome, huh?" Spirit grinned.

"Yeah…" Phantom tried to stand. "I have to go help-Gah!" He couldn't force himself up. He was too exhausted and injured.

"No. Stay and rest." Vision smiled down at the teen. "You did an excellent job. I'm proud of you. Let us handle the rest."

"Phantom…Danny…" Colossus looked back at the down halfa. "My only regret is that we never got our final fight. Grow strong and surpass me, young warrior."

"The greatest of pleasures and honors it was to meet you, Great One." Frostbite smiled. "Make sure to live and to make your legend grow. I have no doubt that you will save the world again."

"Make sure to tell people about Torch." Torch noted. "Tell them Torch went down in a blaze of glory."

"No!" Phantom reached out for them as the left. "Don't do it! There's no way to win!"

"Danny…Spirit…" Vision knelt down by the two halfas. "Thank you. You…meant more to me than you could ever know. I always wanted children after all…"

"Vision…Don't go." Phantom begged.

"I have to." Vision looked over to the crying Spirit. "Get these two out of here, Spirit. And stay safe as a favor to a foolish woman who has always been stuck in her ways…"

"Vision…" Spirit hugged the older female ghost.

"It's okay. This is the choice I made." Vision took off her veil and smiled. "Now go. I must join the others. They have no hope of winning without my directions."

"Right…" Spirit turned to M'gann. "Come on, Martian. We need to get Danny out of here."

"Yes…" M'gann wiped her tears. "Let's go…"

* * *

><p>"No!" Phantom struggled against the girls. "I can't leave them!"<p>

"Danny…We have no choice. You can't fight." M'gann explained.

"Then just throw me at the aliens!" Phantom cried. "I can't leave behind any more of my family!"

"I know this is hard!" Spirit wiped the tears in her eyes. "But…I won't let you die again!"

"We can't abandon them!" Phantom shouted. "I can feel it! Death is near!"

"What are you talking about?" M'gann questioned.

"I can tell when ghosts die!" Phantom screamed. "I can feel when they-AH!"

There went Frostbite…

"I'm sorry, Danny. But you need to stay still so we can get you away." Spirit noted.

"No! Not again! I can't stand it!" Phantom flailed around.

Torch was gone…

"He's hysterical!" M'gann yelled.

"Crap…We need to knock him out!" Spirit frowned. "It's the only way to stop him."

"NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO!" Phantom yelled.

Colossus had passed as well…

"Danny!" M'gann's eyes widened as Phantom pushed them away. The halfa felt to the ground with a thud.

"Please Danny! Don't linger on what's gone!" Spirit begged. "We're still here! We won't leave you. Please, just-"

"VISION!" Phantom tried to crawl back to the mother ship. "NO! NO ONE ELSE! NO ONE ELSE! NO ONE ELSE!"

…Vision's signature disappeared…

Phantom froze. "No…They…They're all gone…"

There were still ghosts there, but none of them were part of his obsession. So many were gone now…Vlad, Vision, Pandora, Cujo, Wulf, Fright Knight, Kaldur, Dani's friends, Colossus, Torch, Frostbite, Kaldur, Wally, Conner, Robin, Artemis, and everyone in Amity Park…They were all gone. Most of his obsession was gone…But there were two left.

"GO!" Phantom looked to them. He couldn't let them die too. "YOU'RE RIGHT! WE NEED TO GO!"

"Right!" M'gann picked up Danny. Her Martian strength allowed her to easily pick up the one armed teen. "Let's go, Spirit."

"Right, we-LOOK OUT!"

M'gann and Phantom froze. A red light shinned behind them. One of the mother ship's beams flew through the sky. It probably wasn't aimed at them. Either the beam went through the target or completely missed and was sent their way accidentally. Both of the remaining members of Young Justice stood in its path. They couldn't force themselves to move. Soon, they would both be hit and die.

"NO!" Spirit lunged and pushed them out of the way.

Time came to a halt as Phantom realized what happened. Spirit had taken their place. That meant…NO! NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO…

"Bye, Danny. I love you."

Then, time started once again. She was gone in a blaze.

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

* * *

><p><em>What? What was going on? He couldn't think straight. Hell, he couldn't think at all. It was all a blur.<em>

_Who was he again? He didn't remember. It was like everything was a blank. Everything was erased._

_He tried to remember. He thought long and hard about who he was. It took a while, but he remembered his name. He was Danny. He was Phantom. He was a vigilante hero._

_Danny lived in Amity Park with his friends and family. They were all very happy. Despite the constant fights, they were all happy and loved each other. Life was good._

_Yes…that was who he was. Not only that, he had a group of good friends that didn't live in Amity Park. They were heroes too, though. All of them hung out and fought evil together. They had some hard times and fought a few times, but they were all very close._

_This was his obsession. The people that he loved were what mattered most to Phantom. He would protect them because of this. They mattered more to him than anything else._

_He wouldn't let anything happen to them. No matter what occurred, Phantom would fight to save them each and every day. That was gave his life meaning. That was why he was still here. It was all for him. It was all for the love and joy that he shared with them._

_Right now, he couldn't do that, though. This was a dream. Yes! That was why everything was a giant blur. Danny must just be sleeping. It wasn't a very good dream, though. For some reason, his chest hurt and tears were rolling down his eyes._

_Smack!_

_Something had just hit his face. It felt like a hand. Now there someone was yelling at him to snap out of it. The words sound like sobs. They were begging and pleading at him to do...something. It was all lost on him, though. Everything in his sight right now was blurs. His ears were buzzing. The world around him was meaningless._

_It didn't matter, though. Soon, he would wake up. Then, he could spend more time with them. He could live with the people that mattered to him. Yes, all he had to do was wake up._

_Tomorrow, when he woke up, everything would be great. Danny just knew it. He couldn't wait to wake up._

* * *

><p>Smack!<p>

"Danny! Danny! Wake up!" M'gann pleaded at the catatonic ghost.

Phantom didn't respond. He was merely staring dumbly at the spot where Spirit had died. Tears stained his face. Despite M'gann's pleas and smacks to his face, Phantom didn't even blink. It was like his mind had shattered.

He was broken.

"Come on!" M'gann began to drag him away. "We need to leave!"

'…'

'…'

'…Daniel…'

'…' Phantom didn't respond to the mental intrusion.

'You must wake up, Phantom.' Martian Manhunter spoke through the mental link.

'…' Once again Phantom didn't respond at all.

'You must listen to me. My body cannot move, so you must complete my mission for me.' J'onn instructed. 'You must kill M'gann. That is the only way.'

'…No…' Phantom's mental response was nothing more than a faint whimper.

'You don't understand! This is all a simulation! When you lost your arm, M'gann's metal powers made you forget that this is all fake. All of this is false! Everyone you know and love is still alive.'

'…No…'

'If you don't, your team might receive permanent mental scars!' J'onn shouted. 'The others are in comas as we speak!'

'…No…'

'Think about it! Why weren't you concerned from the beginning?! Why did Amity Park's safety not cross your mind until you lost your arm!?'

'…'

'This is all an illusion! To end this, you must shock M'gann out of the simulation. If you kill her, then everything will go back to normal.'

'…No…can't…all…that…left…'

'I know. You think that she is all that is left of your obsession, but she's not! The rest are alive!'

'…'

'Please! For them! You must do this!'

'…I…'

'**Do it!**'

Under normal circumstances, you could never convince Danny to hurt a member of his obsession on purpose. It would go against everything he stood for. Now, though, his mind was too weak. It easily gave in to the demands of the mental intrusion.

"…M'gann…" Phantom whispered.

"Yes?!" M'gann stopped and looked desperately at Phantom. "What is it?!"

"I…I'm sorry…"

"None of this is your fault, Danny!" M'gann cried. "No one is to blame, but the invaders."

"Not for that…" An ice broad sword formed in Phantom's hand. "For this…"

He stabbed the sword forward.

Squelch!

The look of betrayal and terror was the last thing Phantom saw before everything faded away...

* * *

><p>"AH!" Phantom flailed around and fell off the metal slab that was raised in the meeting hall of Mount Justice.<p>

When he crashed onto the floor, Phantom groaned and began to push himself up. Both his arms grabbed the metal slab and pulled him up…Wait…Both his arms?

Phantom starred in shock as he moved and flexed his left arm. A few seconds ago, it had been gone. Now, it was completely restored. "What…the hell?"

"You're all alive!" M'gann cheered from her slab.

Phantom looked up. It was true. Every member of Young Justice was alive and moving. In fact, Captain Marvel was helping Wally up, while Red Tornado was helping M'gann. It was impossible, though. They had all died.

"Danny…" Dr. Fate helped Phantom stand. "It's good to have you back, young hero."

"You…you died too…" Phantom muttered.

"No, I didn't."

"What happened in there?" Batman asked as he assisted J'onn.

"The exercise…it all went wrong." J'onn noted.

"Exercise?" Robin questioned.

"Try to remember." Batman looked to the Team. "What you experiences was a training exercise. Manhunter psychically linked the seven of you within an artificial reality. You all knew this going in. What you didn't know was that it was a train for failure exercise. No matter what the Team accomplished, the scenario was designed to grow worse. Still, you were aware that nothing was real, including the deaths of the entire Justice League."

"That is why you hardly grieved, even when Wolf was disintegrated before your eyes." Manhunter stated. "But all that changed, when Phantom lost his arm. Though consciously, Miss Martian knew it was not real, her subconscious mind could not make that distinction. She forgot it was only an exercise, and her subconscious took control, making you all forget too."

Everyone looked at M'gann. "I-I'm so sorry."

"This isn't her fault!" Superboy interjected. "Why didn't you stop the exercise!?"

"We tried." Manhunter explained. "But M'gann had a…death grip on the scenario. It was so bad, the Phantom's body began to act as though the arm was gone. Your energy stopped flowing to your left arm. If it continued, your arm might have deteriorated. I realized that I would have to wrest control from Miss Martian's subconscious from within.

"But upon entering the reality, I was overwhelmed by your collective emotion. There was…too much noise to think clearly…to remember why I was there. The deaths of Aqualad, Kid Flash, and Superboy helped, but only when the mother ship exploded and Robin and Artemis were silenced did my mind clear enough to remember my true purpose. To shock M'gann out of the exercise before your comas became permanent.

"Unfortuantely, Phantom…intervened." J'onn sighed. "If he didn't have a mental breakdown because of the deaths of his friends and family, I doubt I would have convinced him to turn on M'gann. Luckily, his mind was weak to my influence at that point, and you all were awakened. My deepest apologies. I had no idea that a training exercise could be so dangerous…so damaging."

At this point, Captain Marvel stepped in to comfort M'gann. Batman and Red Tornado caught the collapsing Manhunter, and they began to speak. Phantom didn't care about any of this, though. He now knew and could see that his friends here were alive. This meant that what Manhunter said was true. Everything that happened wasn't real.

Thus…Amity Park was still intact. His friends and family were still alive. Dani…was safe.

"Danny…You need to rest. You can't-Wait!" Dr. Fate tried to stop Phantom, but the halfa pushed her away. He ran for the Zeta Tube. Everyone turned to watch as he left. They all knew where he was going. That's why they were all silent. They knew that Danny Phantom was returning to Amity Park.

**Recognized: Danny Phantom B04**

…And they didn't know if he would ever want to leave after this…

* * *

><p>Dani yawned. "Well…today was uneventful."<p>

It had been a pretty relaxing day for Dani. She had slept more than usual that morning, so she started the day in a good mood. After a light breakfast, she did some training with Vision and her Dad. Then, she spent the majority of the day playing with her friends. After dinner, her entire family, minus Danny, decided to sit down and watch a movie.

"Indeed. It was a nice break." Vlad was on the couch sitting next to Vision. His arm was wrapped around her shoulder and she was leaning on him.

"Where is Danny, though?" Vision questioned. "Shouldn't he be back by now? The training exercise shouldn't have lasted that long."

"My guess is either they did really good or really badly." Dani noted. "Either they succeeded and it went overtime, or they failed and are getting chewed out by Batman."

"Bark!" Cujo spoke up from his spot on Dani's lap.

"See, Cujo agrees. What about you, Wulf?"

"Zzz…" Wulf was passed out in a nearby recliner.

"…I'm going to take that as a yes." Dani smiled.

"Either way, he should have called." Vision frowned.

"He'll be fine, love." Vlad noted. "He's a tough one after all."

"I know, but…I get the feeling that something is wrong…" Vision mentioned.

"I can call him if you want." Dani pulled out her phone.

"Yes, that would be good-"

Bam!

Everyone turned to the entrance to the living room. Someone had barged through the front door. It was soon revealed to be Danny. He was sweating profusely and appeared to be in a panic. His eyes bounced around the room rapidly. A look of great relief appeared on his face. "You're all alive!"

"Of course we are, Daniel." Vlad noted. "Why wouldn't we be?"

"You all died!" Danny looked close to hyperventilating. "I felt it. But…"

"Danny?" Vision untangled herself from Vlad and stood. "What happened?"

"The aliens! The disintegration rays! Amity Park was in ruins! You all…" Danny began to cry.

"Danny?" Dani stood and approached her bother. "You're not making sense. Does this have something to do with…" She paused when Danny crashed to his knees and stared at her intently.

He reached out and gently touched her head. "You're real…You're alive…"

"I am, but-OOF!" Dani was interrupted by Danny pulling her into a hug.

"You're alive! I thought I lost you!" Danny's words came out through sobs. "And…it was my fault! If I just left with you instead of wanting to go back, you wouldn't have died! I should have put you first! You're my sister, and I was being selfish."

"Danny…" Dani was thoroughly confused.

"Please, forgive me! I'm so sorry! I never wanted to hurt you!" Danny trembled and sobbed desperately. He held onto her like a lifeline. "I'm sorry! Don't leave me again! Don't die!"

"…Shh…" Dani hugged him back. She didn't know what was going on, but she knew her brother was in pain. "You have nothing to be sorry for. I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you. I'm your sister after all."

"Dani…" Danny closed his eyes painfully. "Don't let this be a dream…Please…"

"It's okay. It's okay. I'm here…" Dani began to rock Danny back and forth.

Everyone watched silently as Dani continued to comfort her brother. They didn't know what they could say. None of them had ever seen Danny like this. Sure, they had seen him cry and get upset, but they had never seen him like this. He looked like a shell of the person who had left this morning. They didn't know what had happened, but they knew it had to be bad, because...

Danny Phantom was now broken.

* * *

><p>…<strong>Wow…I did not plan for it to be that intense…I think I got carried away here. But this was why Danny couldn't be Dr. Fate for too long. I hope I didn't mentally scar you too much.<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	18. Demons

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell." Buddha

* * *

><p>Chapter 18: "Demons"<p>

(Saturday-October 23, 2010)

The past week had been very long for Danny. It was not that things became any worse…like that was possible now…It was more that things never got better. The memories were still fresh in his mind. Not only that, they seemed to bring up the older painful memories. Every single second was filled with constantly thinking about what happened and the choices that Danny had made up to this point.

He couldn't concentrate on anything else. Conversations sounded like buzzing in his ears. His inventions seemed to become pointless in his mind. Even flying…the single thing that always brought Danny a sense of freedom and joy…did nothing to take his mind off things.

The halfa felt like he was wallowing in his own misery, and there was no way out. There was no light at the end of this very long and dark tunnel…

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Danny looked at his phone and sighed. He had to answer this. "Hello."

"_Phantom, this is Red Tornado."_ The android's voice spoke over the phone.

"Yes, I know. Is there something you need?" Danny continued to stare forward at the piece of stone in front of him. He hadn't been here…since he first Dani, but this was the only place that he could be truly alone anymore…

"_You were informed of your session with Black Canary today, correct?"_ Red Tornado questioned.

"Yep."

"_Then you realize that you're late?"_

"Yep."

"…_You are not coming, are you?"_ Red Tornado inquired.

"Right on the nose. I don't need therapy." Danny muttered. He had enough of that crap with Jazz…

"_The other members of the League believe differently."_ Red Tornado rationalized. _"I can't force you to come, but it might help the other members of Young Justice to see you again. You haven't been in for anything other than practices."_

"Don't feel like it." Danny knelt down and put a hand on the stone…on the grave.

"_I see…Then I shall inform-"_

"_Daniel, this is Dr. Fate. You need to come talk to Black Canary." _The wizard stated.

"Need? There's a lot of things that I need, but talking isn't one of them." Danny snorted. "Talking about my problems won't make them go away."

"_Don't act that way with me. I have been one with you multiple times before. I know how your mind works. I know how this is affecting you._" Nabu noted. "_You need help, and I doubt that you've spoken to anyone about what really happened."_

"My family did ask, but I kept the details to a minimum." Danny mentioned. "They aren't pushing, so why are you, Nabu? Or is this Dora speaking? Because this sounds more like her than you."

"_Because I have seen your memories and you state of mind. A tragedy like this…you can't take it. Come in and talk to Black Canary. It will help._" Nabu spoke calmly.

"Ah…no." Danny was tracing the words on the grave.

"_Please, Danny._" Black Canary spoke this time. "_If you don't want to do it for you, at least do it for your friends. What kind of example are you setting?_"

"Example? You act like I make all their decisions. They're big boys and girls. They can make their own decisions." Danny grimaced. "So if you'll excuse me, I'm going to be hanging up on you mid-sentence now."

"_Danny, don't hang up the pho-"_

Beep!

"Told ya…" Danny mumbled and sat down in front of the grave. Beside the one grave were two others. They were all family related and had been buried next to eachother.

Jack Fenton

Madeline Fenton

Jasmine Fenton

"Everything's all gone to hell…" Danny groaned. "It happens…every single time, you know…Every time things seem to get better, something happens to make it worse, and I don't think I can handle anything else…In fact, I'm sure that I can't handle anything more. The fight's been beaten out of me."

He received no answer from the graves.

"…What am I going to do? Who can I tell about what's really happening?" Danny questioned. "I know I can't hide it forever, and soon people will begin to notice. Vision probably already knows, even though I've been careful…I mean, come on…what will talking about my problem do? I want to get my mind off of this crap. Talking about it will only make it worse."

Danny looked to Jazz's grave. "I know what you would say. I need to let it all out, right? Bottling it all up won't fix anything. But…that's the problem. I'm not bottling anything up. What you see is what you get right now. And I looked in a mirror. I look pretty broken and uncaring…So, what the hell do you do when you know what you're problem is, and know that no words can fix it?"

Silence.

"Yeah…That's what I thought you would say…"

* * *

><p>Knock! Knock! Knock!<p>

"Rachel!" Dani shouted at the door to her friend's apartment. "You there?"

The door opened to reveal Rachel Roth's mother Angela Roth. The woman looked like an older version of her daughter with the dark hair, pale skin, and violet eyes. "Hello, Danielle."

"Hey, Miss Roth." Dani smiled. "Is Rachel here?"

"No, I'm sorry. She left already." Angela Roth seemed to be confused. "I thought she was going to meet you…"

"Really? That's weird…" Dani paused. "I thought she was sick."

"What would make you say that?" Angela questioned.

"Well, yesterday she was acting all weird. She looked super cold because she had her hood up the whole day and was pulling the sleeves over her hands." Dani explained.

"I see…"

"Plus, she seemed super pale…well, paler…and sweaty." Dani noted. "I told her that she should go home early, but she didn't want to go to the nurse for some reason…Are you okay? You're giving me this weird look…"

"What? Er…No, everything's fine…I'm fine." Angela tried to wave her off.

"Then why are you lying to me?" Dani glared.

"Huh?"

"Your left eyebrow twitches slightly when you lie." Dani stated. "I noticed it a while ago, but never mentioned it. But now, you're lying about my friend. Why?"

Vision had taught Dani a great many of things. To add onto the strategy and battle tactics Dani had learned, Vision also made a great effort to teach Dani how to read people. Dani learned to predict their actions without her Premonition, to read what emotions they were feeling, and even different ways to tell if they're lying. She wasn't perfect at this yet, but she could easily tell when a worried mother was lying.

"I…" Angela actually felt uncomfortable under the girl's glare. The child's eyes seemed to stare into her soul. The blue eyes temporarily flashed green. "Er…I'm just worried because if Rachel's sick and is running around. She might get even worse…"

Angela's left eyebrow twitched ever so slightly.

Dani smiled. "Oh, okay! Sorry, I think my Dad's just getting to me."

"It's okay. I think we're both worried." Angela smiled slightly.

"Well…if Rachel's not here, I should be going. I have to meet my other friends. Maybe Rachel's there." Dani stated.

"Maybe…"

"Bye Miss Roth."

"Goodbye Danielle…"

Dani dropped her smile as she began to walk away. Angela Roth obviously didn't want to tell her the truth. It would be dumb to push the matter and get on Angela's bad side. At the same time, though, something was up with one of Dani's closest friends. She couldn't just ignore this. Especially because this was the second time in a week that someone close to her was hiding something important from her. Danny refused to speak to anyone about what happened during the training exercise. Despite his complete breakdown, he was completely tightlipped.

Perhaps the only person Danny spoke to was Fright Knight, and that didn't help. The ancient ghost would rather cut off his own tongue than tell one of Danny's secrets if the halfa didn't want them told. It must be bad, though, because even the Fright Knight looked deeply troubled. This wasn't even close to as bad as Danny was acting, though. He was completely closed off. The half-ghost often refused to speak with others and didn't do much than wander around town and hide in his room.

Needless to say, this did not please Dani. She did not enjoy being out of the loop. Yet it was happening again, but she refused to accept it. If she couldn't find out what was wrong with Danny, then she would just have to settle with Rachel.

So, to get away from the worried mother, Dani decided to copy Angela. She lied. None of her friends were waiting to meet her. Victor was having a family day. Youngblood decided to play ninja and was in the Ghost Zone training in stealth…something in retrospect Dani might need, but Youngblood wanted to do this alone. Plus Nyx was grounded for putting cherry bombs in the school's toilets…

'Wish she told me about it.' Dani grumbled mentally. 'I would have helped…'

It was not the time to dwell on this, though. Her instincts were telling her that something was wrong with Rachel. The magic user needed the halfa's help with something. Dani knew this. She could feel it in her gut. The only problem was that she didn't know where Rachel was…

For now.

Dani pulled out her phone and called Wulf.

"…Hello?..."

"Wulf, it's Dani." Dani spoke as she exited the apartment building and headed into a nearby alley. "I need you to get Cujo and come meet me at Fenton Works."

"Okay…but…why?" Wulf grunted out.

"I need your help finding someone." Dani stated. "You think you can track Rachel?"

"Of course."

"Good…"

* * *

><p>"I think we almost got everything planned…" Joel mention to Agent Z who was a few cages away.<p>

"Maybe…" Agent Z muttered. "But I still don't know. I would feel better if we could take out the control center immediately after we begin. I have the feeling that they will notice if we both escape our cages at the same time."

"Then I will go ahead and give you the signal when I get there." Joel shrugged.

"No…There's still a chance that won't work." Agent Z noted.

"There's always a chance this won't work." Joel mentioned.

"Perhaps, but I want our chances to be as high as they can get." Agent Z sighed.

"What do you suggest?" Joel questioned.

"…Sabotaging the control center before the day of our plan would work." Agent Z realized.

"And risk getting caught?" Joel questioned. "If that happens, then we'll be locked up completely like Grundy."

"Not if we do it when security is lightest." Agent Z noted. "I noticed that when one of us fight, most of the security migrates around the arena. They want to keep an eye on the only two active ghouls. My next fight is in an hour. When that happens, you can sneak into the control room and upload a virus."

"A virus, huh?...Well, my training did require me to learn the basics of computer programming to get close to assassination targets, but I'm not very skilled at it." Joel frowned.

"It won't be all that complicated. I had a virus code hidden in my files that I encrypted on my online files…you know, in case someone tried to hack them." Agent Z smirked. "If you upload that using my passwords and instructions, you can actually delay it so that it will remain undetected and inactive until the day of our plan."

"…You actually thought all that through?" Joel questioned.

"I'm a paranoid SOB, kid." Agent Z snorted. "I think of every possibility with the information that I have. Trust me, if I just had a little more information in the GIW war, then we would have won…"

"But you didn't." Joel reasoned.

"That was because of the ghosts Vision and Danny Phantom." Agent Z growled. "From what I saw of the news reports, Vision's the leader of the ghosts and Phantom is the motivational speaker. If they didn't team up, I would have won."

"…I can't argue with that. Your plan was solid, and their victory almost cost Danny Phantom his life." Joel reasoned. "But…The Master…Ra's Al Ghul is a genius strategist in his own right. Not to mention his companions…"

"We'll have the element of surprise, though." Agent Z chuckled. "If there is one thing I know about attacks, plans, and fighting is that the element of surprise can defeat anyone if used correctly. If you don't see the attack coming, then you can't stop it. Catch a man off guard, and he'll crumple to the ground like a wounded dog."

"…Good point." Joel nodded to himself. "The only people who know about this plan are you, me, and Grundy. That will make it so no one could stop us if we do this right."

"We could be the cause of failure if we don't do this right." Agent Z retorted.

"Fine. Tell me what I need to do."

* * *

><p>"<em>What do you mean that you're giving up on the project!?<em>" Dr. Roquette hissed through their video chat.

Danny glanced tiredly at the computer screen in his room. "I'm not giving up on it totally. I'm just leaving the rest to you. I've done my part of the work."

"_Do you think this is a game?! Do you realize what our work could mean for this world?! If you don't add your assistance to this project, the progress could be pushed back by a decade!" _Dr. Roquette glared.

"I'm sure you're exaggerating my importance." Danny sighed.

"_And I think you're undermining yourself!_"

"Sorry, but this isn't up for debate." Danny shrugged. "I'll send the rest of my notes and research, but after that I'm done."

"_You can't-_"

"But I am. Goodbye, Doctor." Danny ended the video conference.

The halfa sighed. That didn't go well. His call to Dr. Strange had been a lot cheerier. Granted, almost all the progress in their joint study in Zeta radiation was done, but Strange was more respectful in their discussion. He was a rather cheery person, though. Under different circumstances, Danny would have enjoyed to continue his work with the other scientist…

"What are you doing?" Harriet's voice sounded from his doorway.

"Making some video calls." Danny mentioned. "I was just about to call Mr. Fox."

"Okay…Better question. What the hell are you thinking!?" Harriet frowned as she stormed into his room.

"I didn't invite you in…" Danny sighed.

"You think that matters to me?" Harriet spun Danny's chair around and glared at him. "Now answer me."

"…I'm thinking that I'm done with this crap." Danny mentioned. "I don't want to be the inventor phoenix guy anymore. It's stupid…"

"Stupid…" Harriet scowled. "What's exactly so stupid about all the work you've been doing to make live's better."

"The fact that it's coming from some wanna be kid who's actually a C student." Danny stated.

"I…have seen you do a lot of things that no C student could even dream of." Harriet explained. "You have made some amazing things. You have a talent that very few have, and you're just going to give that up?"

"Yep."

"Why?" She hissed.

"Because I don't feel like doing this anymore. I don't have the passion for it." Danny noted simply.

"Don't have the…passion…" Harriet seemed confused. She took a few steps back and sat on his bed. "Okay…What happened?"

"Nothing." Danny answered simply.

"That's a bunch of bull. Something happened. You haven't been talking to people in a week! Silas is worried. Mr. Masters is worried. Hell, I've even gotten messages from Valerie Grey saying that she's worried. She says you're avoiding her like the plague." Harriet starred at him. "Now, tell me, what the hell happened?"

"…You really don't want to know." Danny sighed.

"Oh, come on, kid. I've been a reporter for years. I've reported on some of the worst things you can possibly think of." Harriet stated. "You can tell me about this."

"No…I can't…" Danny looked away.

"…Damn, you're stubborn like your old man…" Harriet sighed. "And like your mom too…Fine, you don't want to talk, I'll stop asking about it. But you can't just drop everything and everyone like this."

"I'm fifteen. I think I can." Danny shrugged. "Isn't like I got to work for a living, and I want some time to myself…"

"Fine, I get it." Harriet conceded. "But don't close the door on the energy project yet. You'll regret it."

"I really don't think I will." Danny stated. After all, he just closed the door on the artificial limbs project, and his loss of an arm during the simulation was still fresh in his mind. This just showed how much he stopped caring anymore.

"Fine then. As your publicist, manager, assistant…and whatever else I am for you, I forbid you to drop the clean energy project with Wayne Industries."

"You forbid me?" Danny raised an eyebrow. "People don't get to forbid me anymore. Not even Vlad or Vision do that to me."

"Yes…" Harriet looked away for a moment. "But…while I don't know what's going on, I know that eventually you'll get over it. And when you do, you'll wish you didn't act like such a little dumbass. I owe it to your parents to at least try and help you."

"…Fine…" Danny conceded. "I'll keep working on the energy thing. Can't say I'll make a whole lot of progress, though."

* * *

><p>"…Are you sure this is where Rachel's at?" Spirit blinked.<p>

"Yep…" Wulf stared forward.

"Bark!" Cujo responded.

"…Okay then." Spirit looked up at the large old building. It was something you would see in horror movies. The bricks were old and cracking. Cobwebs lined the walls. The roof looked close to caving in. Not only that… "This is my history teacher's house…"

"What?" Wulf questioned.

"This is the address of Jason Blood, my history teacher." Spirit stated.

"…Why know that?" Wulf questioned.

"I looked it up in case of I ever wanted to learn kung fu."

"Kung fu?"

"Well, he said that he didn't know any martial arts, but I think he was lying. So I looked up his address just in case I ever wanted to do some old fashioned training like in the Karate Kid…You know, the good one. Not the one with Jaiden Smith in it…" Spirit frowned. "I didn't like that remake…"

"…Okay…" Wulf had no idea what she was talking about.

"Bark!" Cujo growled at the house.

"What is it, Cujo?" Spirit questioned.

"Bark!"

"Wulf, do you smell something?" Spirit questioned the warewolf ghost.

"No, but…something wrong…" Wulf snarled. "Air… heavy and dark…"

"Huh…" Spirit looked at the building. "It can't be a ghost. My Ghost Sense would have gone off…"

"Bark! Woof! Snarl!" Cujo changed into his large battle mode.

"Not ghosts!" Wulf barred his teeth. "Worse!"

"What? Is the Shadows again? Freakshow? Zombies?!" Spirit questioned. "Please let it be zombies!"

"No…Demons…" Wulf's claws extended.

"Demons?" Spirit snorted. "What do you mean by demons?"

'Jump on girl's head. Bite ear. Tear off.' Spirit's Premonition rang through her head.

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"What the hell?!" Spirit swatted at the pink furless monkey that had tried to jump on her. She grabbed the thing and flung it to the building. The pink monkey thing with wide eyes and large ears went tumbling away.

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" The thing jumped to its feet. It was taller than Spirit, but not up to Wulf's height. It was slouching, though, so Spirit couldn't get an accurate guess. "She's good. Better that I anticipated!"

"BARK!" Cujo looked ready to attack.

"Wait, I need answers first." Spirit commanded.

"There's more…" Wulf grunted.

"Very good…" Another pink being appeared. This one was crawling on the roof. It seemed to have circle…or ring tattoos all around its body, even on its pointed ears. "This one is very perceptive, Ghast."

"Perhaps too perceptive…" One more pink creature jumped out of the shadows. It had a flat face, pointed ears, and green hair like a mohawk. "To realize that we're here…They must have excellent instincts, Abnegazer…"

"Then what do you suppose we do, Rath?" The being…demon…called Ghast questioned.

"Same thing we always do…" Rath smirked evilly.

"We tear off their limbs and cram them down their throats!" Abnegazer cackled.

"Oh, you can try!" Spirit's hands began to glow green. "But you'll only get hurt!"

"Bark!" Cujo slobbered.

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHh!" Rath's eyes went wide. "I finally notice it…They're ghosts!"

"Ghosts? I thought they all stayed in the Ghost Zone?" Ghast questioned.

"Things must have changed while we were trapped by that foolish Etrigan…" Abnegazer realized.

"You know what?! I don't even care what you wierdos are talking about!" Spirit glared. "But I do care about Rachel! Where is she! The girl with pale skin and purple clothing!"

"…The girl…The Gem…the portal…" Ghast mumbled.

"They know of her?" Abnegazer questioned.

"Not for long…" Rath noted. "Soon, these ghosts will be put to rest and the Gem will be subdued…After all, Etrigan is now under the control of the almighty Trigon!"

"RAW!" Wulf roared. "I sick of them! Tear apart!"

"Wait!" Spirit called. "I get that you don't like their vibe, but we still need to make sure that Rachel is-"

BOOM!

A wall at the side of the house exploded out. Out of the wall came a blurs of yellow and black. Like a rocket, both blurs of energy went flying into the sky. Despite how fast this happened, Spirit still recognized the energy of her friend. Part of that rocket was Raven…

"Rachel!" Spirit called out to her friend. The blur was flying away towards the city…

"Don't turn away!" Wulf warned.

'Stab hand forward. Hand pierces chest. Blood splatters.' Spirit's Premonition warned.

Spirit spun around the attack with complete grace. In response, she jumped up and rammed a foot into the demon's head. It was sent flying into a nearby tree which dented with a crack.

That attack has been surprisingly fast. These guys weren't pushovers. They had to be dealt with first before the ghosts could go after Rachel and the other blur. Spirit's group realized this immediately. This was a fight that they couldn't ignore.

"Fine! You want to fight!" Spirit glared as she activated her Spectral Claws. "We'll fight!"

* * *

><p>"Okay…" Joel blinked as he stared at the various computers in front of him. "So…this is complicated."<p>

After Agent Z had been taken for his fight, Joel put their plan into motion. Like the last time he escaped his cage, Joel created a double to fool any passing guards. He then created a key and sneaked out of his cage. It took a bit more work this time to move around because the guards were still somewhat heavy. Luckily, his time with the Shadows paid off, and he stealthily made it to the control room.

Most of the scientists and guards were gone to either watch Agent Z fight, or to take a break. There was still one guard in the corner with a computer, but he seemed completed focused on it and was wearing headphones. He might be playing World of Warcraft. As long as Joel was somewhat quiet and didn't make any sudden moves to draw attention, then he would be fine.

Approaching the nearest computer, Joel got to work. He immediately followed Agent Z's instructions on how to get to his encrypted files online. Fortunately, everything worked like Agent Z said it would. It took little effort to download the virus to their system. While it was loading, though, Joel took a quick moment to examine some of the files in the Ghoul Project's systems while he had the chance.

This both out of curiosity and necessity. After they escaped, Joel knew that all he, Agent Z, and Solomon Grundy would need help. Both Joel and Agent Z wouldn't stay stable forever, and Solomon Grundy would need medical attention. Joel's first instinct was to go to Amity Park and find Daniel Fenton. He might be able to help the stability, and Grundy might be able to find refuge in the Ghost Zone from there.

Agent Z wouldn't want that, though. While he had no personal grudge against Fenton, the ex-leader of the GIW might not give up the chance to attack Danny Phantom. So, either Joel would have to find a new solution, or they would have to part ways after they escaped. It didn't matter to Joel either way, but…ghouls have to stick together…maybe…possibly.

"…What?" Joel's eyes narrowed. What was this? This wasn't files one possible ways into the Ghost Zone or things that could help the ghouls…these were links to separate files.

Possible prospects of the Ghoul Project

Daniel Fenton- age 15, status: active, summary: expertise in ghosts and ghosts weaponry could help further the Ghoul Project

Danny Phantom- aged unknown but appears teenage, status: active, summary: powerful ghost with unusual body chemistry could possibly be used to help stable ghosts and keep ghouls in line

Red X- aged unknown, status: unknown, summary: mercenary with great skills in hand to hand combat and ectoplasmic weaponry could possibly be hired to control and enforce ghouls

Spirit- age unknown but appears child age, status: active, summary: moderately powerful ghost with great potential and connection to Danny Phantom

…This went on for a while. Joel had heard of a lot of these people. They were quiet famous. Not only that, there were files on him, Agent Z, and Grundy. Many of these files went to great lengths in describing the knowledge acquired on the subjects. It would take time to go through all these notes and files.

They might be useful after their escape. All of these people were possible sources for help after they left the Ghoul Project. Not only that…the files on the ghouls themselves might be necessary considering their statuses as unstable beings. These might be a clue on how much time they had to come up with a plan after the escape.

They needed these files…

Joel frowned. He decided then and there that he would print as many of these out as he could. The ghoul would have to hurry, though. Agent Z couldn't stall forever.

* * *

><p>Crash! Bang! Smash!<p>

"…" Phantom looked up. He was lying on his back with a sword pointed to his throat. "Well…that didn't go well…"

"No, it did not, my Liege." Fright Knight muttered sadly. He moved his sword away and sheathed it. The knight then extended his hand to help his lord up.

"Gah…thanks…" Phantom state as he was brought to his feet. He peered at the broken sword in his hand. "This ice broad sword thing rarely seems to work anymore, you know. It keeps getting broken."

"It has nothing to do with the sword." Fright Knight answered.

"True…" Phantom sighed. "A sword is only as good as its wielder."

"…And does this have anything to do with…your training exercise?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Yeah…I think it does…" Phantom sighed and dropped his broken sword.

"…You don't wish to speak of it anymore, though." Fright Knight stated. "I can tell that."

"And you're not going to push this?" Phantom asked.

"Of course not." Fright Knight shook his head. "I trust your judgement. If you don't wish to speak of this, then I will respect that. The servant should never question his master in such personal matters. I will wait until you are ready."

"…But you do think I should about this." Phantom realized. "Because others think so as well. I got a message about a meeting with Black Canary a few hours ago…"

"Of course, I believe you should speak about it. But no one can force you, my liege." Fright Knight explained. "Although…Black Canary might be a good option for you. An objective listener wouldn't be as emotional as some of your family and close friends."

"You make an excellent point, but…"

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Phantom pulled out his phone. "Somethings going on…"

"Ghost attack?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Nope."

"Supervillian attack?"

"Not according to this report…"

"Then what is it?" Fright Knight asked.

"Apparently a giant yellow fish man is fighting Raven downtown." Phantom raised an eyebrow. "It doesn't seem to be a ghost, though, and I have no memory of this guy being in the Leagues data base."

"He could be new…" Fright Knight noted.

"True, but…something seems off about this." Phantom frowned. "Either way, contact Red Huntress for backup…I think that should be enough for this guy. No need to bring in too many big guns for one guy."

"As you wish, my Liege."

* * *

><p>"Holy crap!" Spirit cried as she moved to avoid Rath's clawed swipe at her head.<p>

"Gahahahahaha!" Rath chuckled as he continued his assault. "Surprised!?"

Spirit actually was surprised. These three may appeared to be weak, but the truth was that they were a force to be reasoned with. Despite their skinny, almost bone-like, frames, these demons were both fast and incredibly strong. If it wasn't for Spirit's Premonition, she might have been hit by now.

"Raw!" Wulf clawed at Abnegazer. He was a lot stronger than the demon, but Abnegazer was faster than him. The demon managed to get a few small cuts on Wulf's body, but Wulf managed to get one large swipe at Abnegazer's chest. Black blood was flowing down the demon's chest.

"Gack!" Agnegazer stumbled back. "No! How-AH!"

Wulf tackled the demon to the ground. From there, he began to beat Abnegazer with his right arm as he held the demon down with his left arm. It looked like Wulf's suprerior weight and strength would make it so that the demon couldn't escape. It would soon be knocked out if no on interfered.

Luckily for Abnegazer, someone did interfere.

Ghast jumped on Wulf's back. It began to choke and claw at Wulf's face. This caused the werewolf ghost to let go of the demon below him. Wulf howled in pain and began to claw at the demon behind him. He wasn't given the chance, though. Abnegazer grabbed Wulf's massive arms and began to kick at the ghost's chest.

Seeing that his friend and fellow canine was being double teamed, Cujo forced himself to his feet. The poor ghost dog was cut and bleeding because of his battle with Ghast. The demon had proven himself to be more cunning then what the dog originally thought. Despite his pain, Cujo forced himself to jump back into the fight.

"WOOF!" Cujo barked as he lunged at Ghast. The huge dog floated up and attacked the demon. Cujo's large teeth sunk around Ghast's torso. Black blood flied out from the new bite wounds. Ghast cried out in pain and let go of the werewolf ghost.

Pulling Ghast away from Wulf, Cujo slammed the demon onto the ground. He didn't let go, though. Cujo continued to lift the demon up and slam Ghast into the ground. Through all this, the demon could do nothing as the ghost dog slammed into the ground and then flung him around like a rag doll.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ghast cried. He was then flung away by Cujo. With a crack and a crash, the demon smashed through a tree and caused it to fall over.

While this was happening, Wulf managed to gain the edge on Abnegazer. Because the demon was holding onto the werewolf ghost, it was quickly caught before it could escape. Wulf punched Abnegazer vertically into the air. It flung up high and came crashing down. Before it hit the floor, Wulf grabbed the demon. He held Abnegazer's arms in his right hand and Abnegazer's legs in his left hand. He then began to pull.

"OOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!" Abnegazer groaned. It was then that the Wulf stopped pulling and rammed the demon downward. The demon landed with his back straight into Wulf's knee.

"Damn…" Rath hissed. "My brothers aren't doing well. Best kill you now and help them."

"Funny…I thinking something similar…without the killing thing, though." Spirit smirked.

"Stupid ghost!" Rath sent several attacks at Spirit. She dodged each of them. "You've been forced to dodge all this time! You can do nothing against."

"Not entirely true…" Spirit snorted. "There may have been some close calls, but there's a reason I haven't attacked yet. I wanted to learn your attack pattern."

"What the hell are you talking about?!"

"Oh…nothing…" Spirit closed her eyes and stopped her Premonition. "Right kick. Claw at my head. Tries to bite my right shoulder. Left kick."

Just like Spirit said, Rath did exactly what Spirit said as she said it. Of course, Spirit dodged each blow. The demon was shocked. "What?!"

"You're too predictable. I may not be able to predict what my teachers will do. But you aren't that refined." Spirit opened her eyes and activated her right Spectral claw. "Like right now, you're going to over extend your arm."

Just like Spirit predicted, Rath overextended his right arm. It was momentarily left open and weak. Spirit quickly took advantage. Like a whip, Sprit swung her Spectral Claw at an angle.

"GAH!" Rath cried out in pain. He jumped back and clutched his bleeding right shoulder.

"And now you lose…" Spirit smirked.

"Foolish ghost, you think a single scratch…What?!" Rath couldn't move his right arm.

"Figure it out? I cut through the tendon in your shoulder." Spirit explained. "You won't be able to move that arm for a while."

"Gah! You bit-Ah!"

"Language!" Spirit chided as she kicked Rath in the face. "I'm just a little girl after all."

"Like hell…" It hissed. "And they call us demons…"

"Sorry, but…what is that?" Spirit's eyes widened as grey skinned gargole like creatures began to fly from the mansion and into the sky. "More demons…I need to stop them before they get to the city. Who knows what they can cause."

"Don't turn your back on me!" Rath lunged at Spirit his left claw was extended and ready to strike.

Slash!

"GAH!" Rath cried in pain. Spirit had ducked under his attack and cut his other shoulder.

"Fine." Spirit frowned. "I'll deal with your ugly mug first…"

* * *

><p>"So…how the hell did you hide all those papers?" Agent Z asked from his cage.<p>

"One of my powers is that I have a pocket dimension where I can keep anything I want." Joel answered seriously.

"…Really?"

"Of course not, what are you stupid?" Joel raised an eyebrow.

"…Shut up, kid…" Agent Z grumbled.

"To answer your question, though, I'm just really talented at hiding stuff." Joel looked through the files. "Hid them under my prison jumpsuit and used duct tape that I created to hold them to my body."

"…You could have just made a special vest or something…" Agent Z reasoned.

"Well I'm sorry I didn't use my powers correctly." Joel shrugged nonchalantly. "I had something else on my mind than just designing fashion."

"I can never tell if you're serious or making fun of me, you know that?" Agent Z muttered.

"Yes, but I assure you that I'm always serious." Joel stated. "You would know if I'm making fun of you, baldy."

"…What was that last thing?" Agent Z questioned.

"I said, you would know if I'm making fun oy you, buddy." Joel resaid.

"…Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"…Stupid brat…" Agent Z sighed. "So did you download the virus?"

"Yes, and I set it to October 31 like we planned." Joel paused in his reading. "Are you sure that the whole Halloween thing will really help?"

"Trust me, that Hallow's Eve thing actually works. Ghosts tend to be stronger and more impulsive on that day." Agent Z explained. "I've done my research."

"Fair enough." Joel continued to read.

"So…anything good in those files?" Agent Z questioned.

"There are some things, yes." Joel nodded. "It seems that the Great One and his associates are greatly interested in to Phantom, Spirit, Daniel Fenton, and anyone associated with them."

"Really?" Agent Z was interested in that.

"Yes, it appears that a lot has happened since I have been locked up. Even more than that staged prison break at Belle Reve…" Joel frowned. "The young partners of the Justice League have formed a team with Phantom, Red X interfered with the Rhelasia conference, and Fenton seems to have bunkered himself in Amity Park…"

"Those last two aren't big news now, but the Phantom thing…" Agent Z grunted.

"Other things…" Joel muttered. "They're investigating who Red X is…They're interested in Spirit's massive leaps in combat experience…Apparantly, there's a ghost named Nyx that they are extremely interested in...And they're making plans to get Daniel Fenton to work with them by using bribes, promises, and continued seduction…Continued, eh?"

"Hmm…" Agent Z stroked his chin. "What about us?"

"…Nothing on Grundy that I didn't know already." Joel stated. "They're trying to duplicate my Matter Maker ability, without success…Oh, and I apparently have a year to live before I dissolve."

"What?" Agent Z's head snapped to Joel.

"Yep. In one year, I'll be dead by their data." Joel noted.

"…And you aren't feaking out?" Agent Z questioned.

"No. Why would I be?" Joel questioned.

"…Because you're going to die…" Agent Z reasoned.

"I have time to find a solution. Panicing won't do anything to help." Joel responed calmly.

"Ha! You're such a weird brat…" Agent Z chuckled. "What about me?"

"…You…have until December…" Joel read solemnly.

"Of course I do…Well, I can't freak out if you didn't. It'd make me look sad." Agent Z gritted his teeth. "That gives us a month after we escape."

"That is does…" Joel nodded. "We will have to make the most of it."

"Right…make sure to get rid of those papers, by the way." Agent Z noted. "We don't want to be caught."

"I'm already on it. I decided to eat them." Joel mentioned.

"What? Why?" Agent Z gave him an odd look.

"Because I'm hungry and these papers taste a lot better than the crap that they're serving us…" Joel said with his mouth full.

"…Good point. Hand me some of them, would you?"

* * *

><p>(Play: This is Gonna Hurt by Sixx A.M.)<p>

Crash! Crack!

"Ahhhhhhhhkkkkkkkkaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyy…" Phantom pushed himself out of the concrete. "This is not going like I planned."

After arriving at the scene where Raven and the thing were fighting, the Fright Knight instantly recognized the creature. According to the ancient knight, the yellow being with horns, fish-like gills, and sharp teeth was named Etrigan. The red spandex, black cape wearing being was a demon of old that apparently appeared around the time King Arthur and Merlin. Apparently, it used to fight for the side of justice and was extremely powerful, so no ghost bothered to try and kill it.

Not only this, the demon tended to disappear for long periods of time. It was rare to see it for more than a few days, then it disappeared. This is the first time that it went so berserk like this and attacked innocents like this. This meant that something was really wrong.

Despite Etrigan's power, Phantom was sure that if he, Fright Knight, Red Huntress, and Raven worked together, then they could easily subdue this demon…if that was what it was. Phantom was still somewhat skeptical, though. He had never met a demon before and wasn't sure if they really existed. This guy could just be a powerful sorcerer for all he knew.

Either way, though, he knew that this guy would a challenge for ghosts. Unfortunately, they couldn't all fight together. Several other…demon gargoyles…they weren't ghosts, that's all Phantom knew…appeared and began attacking the town. He sent Red Huntress and Fright Knight to stop them. Phantom figured that they would easily dispatch the gargoyles and rejoin him, so he didn't call for help.

That was his mistake.

Etrigan proved himself to be more of a match for Phantom. He beat Phantom around like the halfa was a punching bag. Sufice to say, it wasn't a fun experience.

"Raw!" Etrigan flew down and tried to punch the downed halfa.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" Raven used her magic to make a shield to protect Phantom. It held up against the demon's strength for a time, but Etrigan soon began to beat his way through the shield.

Luckily, Phantom had recoverd and was ready to attack. When the shield broke, Phantom sent a massive uppercut at the scaled being's chin. It made contact with a blast of green light.

"Ha!" Etrgan shook it off and batted Phantom away. The halfa tumbled away and down the street.

"Crap…Should have known that wouldn't happen…" Phantom muttered as Etrigan launched himself at the ghost. Phantom was prepared and used a move that Black Canary showed him to throw Etrigan into a nearby car.

Crash!

"That won't stop him for long…" Raven rationalized.

"I know…" Phantom muttured.

"What's wrong with you? You should be doing a lot better than this." Raven mentioned.

"I'm having a bad week…" Phantom sighed.

"Well, you better get it together, or call for help, because I don't think he cares anymore." Raven stated emotionlessly.

"I know…"

"Raw!" Entrigan rushed out of the dented car and crashed into Phantom. He slammed him into the wall of a building. He began to punch Phantom in the face.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" Raven sent blasts of magic to Etrigan's back. They didn't seem to do anything, though.

"Gah!" Phantom tried to blast Etrigan away with his own ectoplasmic blasts. This proved to be ineffective, though. The blasts didn't even cause the demon to pause.

"Use your freezing ectoplasm!" Raven shouted.

"I…" Phantom's hands glowed blue lightly for a moment, but then it fade. "I can't…"

"Fine!" Raven used every bit of concentration she had. She lifted the car that Entrigan had crashed into and sent it flying at the yellow scaled demon. It managed to hit the demon and sent him crashing away under the force of the car.

"Gack…" Phantom slid to his knees. "I…I can't."

"Get a hold of yourself." Raven ordered. "I'm too young to use extremely powerful magic. I can't fight him on my own. I need your power."

"But I don't have…" Phantom paused. "Magic…you use magic."

"Duh, that's not the point."

"Yes it is." Phantom looked up to the girl. "Use your magic on me. Enhance my strength, and I'll fight him one on one."

"That won't work. We haven't practiced, and ghosts are too emotionally to use magic without hurting themselves." Raven rationalized.

"I've been one with Dr. Fate. I have experience." Phantom noted.

"This is different. Your emotions-"

"Won't be a problem, just do it."

"But…"

"Raw!" Etrigan managed to pick up the car and was about to throw it.

"Now!"

"Fine, you idiot! Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Etrigan threw the car. It was sent flying to them. It would have easily crushed them if it landed on them. Luckily it didn't because…

Phantom caught it with a single hand.

"Okay…" Phantom placed the car down. Black and white magic danced around his body. It empowered him like an adrenaline rush. "Round two."

"GRAW!" Etrigan flew at Phantom at dizzying speeds. Phantom matched his speed and met him hallway down. Both beings sent a punch forward and crashed their fists together with a crack. Their fists met and completely canceled each other out.

Etrigan seemed shocked by this. Phantom was grateful for this. Using the shock to his advantage, the halfa brought his knee up and crashed it into Etrigan's stomach. Of course, Etrigan's reaction was to bend over and clutch his bruised torso. Seeing this opening, Phantom sent a magic empowered ectoplasmic blast at the demons face.

Boom!

"AH!" The yellow scaled being grabbed at his burnt and bruised face. Phantom used this moment to send a spinning back kick at Etrigan's torso. The leg hit once again and sent the demon sliding back.

"Graw…" Etrigan groaned in pain.

"…Yeah, I remember this feeling…" Phantom breathed in at the memory. "This that power…except weaker and I'm in control. Still, it feels great. Come on, fish face, let's end this."

"RAW!" Etrigan did exactly that. He and Phantom were once again locked in combat. They both sent dozens of blows at each other. Both fighters managed to land a few blows, but neither were willing to back down.

The demon sent a wild hook at Phantom's head. The halfa quickly ducked under the blow. In one fluid motion, Phantom landed an uppercut at the demon's ribs. Etrigan spit out black blood and keeled over in pain. Phantom then swept out the demon's legs and sent him crashing into the concrete.

Etrigan tried to push himself up, but was a little slow in the process. When he managed to get to his hands and knees, the yellowed scaled being saw Phantom standing in front of him. Looking up, the demon saw that Phantom had his arms raised and his hands clamped together. Ectoplasmic and magical energy flowed to his arms and caused them glow brightly.

"Stay down!" Phantom sent his arms crashing down. They landed on the back of Etrigan's head.

Boom!

The explosion caused Etrigan's face to be sent into the concrete with literal concrete breaking force. This was proven when the ground beneath quickly gave way to the combined force of Raven and Phantom. As the dust settled, the demon could easily be seen lying motionlessly in a crater. Black blood trickled out of his nose and mouth and onto the ground.

Phantom let out a sigh as Raven's power faded. "Well…that went better than expected."

"How…" Raven floated to him. "How did you do that? You used the magic like it was natural. That shouldn't be possible even with experience. From what I've seen you're too emotional to control my magic."

"Yeah…emotional…" Phantom closed his eyes. "It's a long story…something I'm sure you have since you seem to have red glowing tattoos on your hands and forehead."

"No!" Raven flinched as she covered her hands and head with her cloak. "Please no. They shouldn't be there…not yet…I have more time…"

Phantom eyed his sister's friend. "…It's okay. If you don't want to tell me that's fine."

"No…no it's my fault that you're even involved in this…" Raven trembled and looked away. "I'll tell you once we get Mr. Blood back to his home."

"Okay. That sounds fair. But…who's Mr. Blood? That sounds like a crappy horror movie name."

* * *

><p>"Hey, guys!" Spirit waved to the group that was approaching her, Wulf, and Cujo. "You're late to the party, but thanks for bringing the extra guests!"<p>

"Yeah…party…" Red Huntress frowned. She used a net from her hover board to carry the gargoyle demons to this house. According to Raven, this was they needed to be. She seemed like she knew what she was talking about, so no one questioned her. "I think we had enough of a party with these guys."

"These three…" Fright Knight frowned as he examined the downed demons that Spirit, Cujo, and Wulf fought. "They are the Demon Three. Where did they come from?"

"House…" Wulf grunted as he licked his wounds.

"Yeah…" Spirit pointed to Jason Blood's home. "They came from my history teacher's house."

"Why from there, though?" Phantom grunted as he placed Etrigan on the ground.

"It's because Jason Blood is the sorcerer that keeps all these demons locked up." Raven answered.

Everyone looked at her. "What?"

"I'm sorry I never mentioned it before, but…It wasn't my story to tell before. But considering what happened, you deserve an answer." Raven sighed. "Not from me, though, from Mr. Blood…"

Raven waved a hand at Etrigan. Her magic pulsed around him. Because he was unconscious, the magic managed to do what it was intended from. The scaled form of Etrigan slowly transformed into the simple form of Jason Blood.

"Okay…" Spirit frowned. "That doesn't make much sense, but I'm willing to go with this. Just tell me that this doesn't get any crazier."

"…I can't do that…"

"Good." Spirit smiled. "I was lying. I love when things get crazier."

* * *

><p>"I must thank you for all your help in this matter." Jason Blood sat down in a cushioned chair in his library. Phantom, Spirit, and Raven followed his example.<p>

After they woke Jason Blood up, he quickly sealed all the demons back to where they came from. They were surprised to see that the demons were sealed into simple things like books and a sword. It was weird to think that demons would be contained by such things; but considering that Jason Blood himself was a demon, it wasn't so weird.

Fright Knight and Red Huntress decided to help Cujo and Wulf back to Masters Mansion in order to get medical attention for their wounds. They didn't seem too worried about missing any details. After all, Phantom, Spirit, and even Raven could fill them in later. Besides, their friends' health and well-being came first.

"I would say that it was not problem, but…it was." Phantom frowned. "People could have gotten hurt. In fact, some of my friends did."

"Yes, I know." Blood sighed. "This is all my fault. I never predicted that this would happen. You have my deepest apologies for all the trouble. This was something I could have prevented if I thought more ahead, but I thought that Amity Park's natural affinity with the supernatural would keep everything tame…"

"You lost me." Spirit interjected.

"Yes, I believe I did, Miss Masters." Jason Blood nodded. "What's with those looks? Oh, right…I know your secret. My apologies, but I have been at this for a long time. Plus, I figured out Miss Roth's identity, so figuring out the rest wasn't too difficult. Don't worry, though, I can't reveal your secrets without revealing mine so you're safe."

"Still…Vision might want to talk to you." Phantom frowned.

"That's fair enough, Mr. Fenton." Jason Blood agreed. "But that can wait. I believe that you deserve some answers."

"Yes, please." Spirit nodded.

"Okay, I will start at the beginning." Jason Blood began. "I was once a knight under service for King Arthur of Camelot."

"Really?" Spirit's eyes widened. "That means that you're ancient, huh?"

"Yes…" Jason chuckled. "I believe it does. But please, don't interrupt, Miss Masters."

"Oh, right…Sorry, Mr. Blood." Spirit blushed.

"Right…Anyway, I was once a knight, but in an error of judgment based on lust and desire, I betrayed my king and country." Jason frowned. "As punishment, Merlin sealed a demon to my soul. That demon was Etrigan, as you probably guessed. Thus, I was forever cursed to walk this world as a container for Etrigan, and to try and find redemption for my terrible crimes."

"I see…" Phantom frowned.

"To do this, I dedicated myself to protecting this world from supernatural threats." Jason Blood explained. "At first, I was dedicated solely to stopping the reason for my betrayal in the first place. I constantly battled with the sorceress Morgaine La Fey. That woman…she tempted me with my greatest desires and her incredible beauty…And like many men, I fell for her charms. Thus, I knew that I had to do my best to stop her from ever succeeding ever again.

"But…eventually, I realized that she wasn't the only threat I had to face. Many demons walked this plain of existence many centuries ago because of the dark magic used to summon them. I knew that I had to stop them. So, using Etrigan's power, I subdued them. Then, I used my magical talents to seal them away into items. Usually, it was books." Blood gestured all around him. "But for special demons, I had to come up with different ways. Like with the Demon Three. I sealed them into a sword so I could contain them all together."

"So all these books…" Spirit looked around at his massive library.

"Many of them, yes, but not all of them." Jason Blood smiled.

"I see why you wanted to seal them up, but…why come here?" Phantom questioned. "Was it because of the ghosts?"

"Yes, originally I was based in Gotham." Blood nodded. "Butt many years ago, I noticed the incredible ectoplasmic energy that this city seems to emit. The air is so rich with energy, that it is almost impossible to sense other types of energy in this city. I thought that this would be the perfect place to guard the demons without anyone ever being able to find me."

"So…you were here through everything?" Spirit questioned. "Every ghost attack and catastrophe...

"Yes, but I could not risk blowing my cover. Even when the Ghost King rose again…I could do nothing without alerting the presence of these beings." Jason Blood shook his head. "If people get their hands on these demons…"

"I get it." Phantom shrugged. "It wasn't your responsibility to fight the ghosts. You had other problems. Besides, I think your demon side would only bring more panic."

"Thank you for understanding…" Jason nodded. "So, for a while, everything was good. Even with the ghost problems, I was content to stay here and guard these demons, but then…a demon appeared in this city. It was hard to notice, in fact, I didn't notice until a few months after the demon arrived."

"A demon was here?" Phantom raised an eyebrow. "How come I didn't notice this? The demons seem really distinct."

"It's because this demon has the appearance of a human." Jason frowned.

"Who is it?" Spirit questioned.

"It's me." Raven finally spoke up.

"…What?" Spirit questioned in shock.

"I…am a demon." Raven looked away awkwardly. "Or…Half-demon to be more specific."

"So… your mom…" Phantom let that hang out there.

"No, she's human. It's my father that is a demon. That's why he's never around." Raven scowled. "Didn't you ever noticed that?"

"Well, yeah, but I always assumed that you just had a deadbeat dad who was never around and never paid child support." Spirit stated bluntly. "Er...sorry..."

"Yeah, it's alright…I wish that was the problem…"

"From the way you're acting…I'm guessing that your mother doesn't exactly like your father…" Phantom suggested.

"That's putting it lightly. Let's just say that people shouldn't be involved with cults that worship demons and evil entities. It never ends well…" Raven sighed. "Sometimes, they actually accept your offers such as a young woman being a bride and child bearer…"

"I see…"

"People…" Jason sighed and shook his head. "The fools never learn…No offence, Miss Roth."

"None taken." Raven gained a look of despair. "I know that I never should have been born…"

"Don't say that!" Spirit sprung to her feet. "You're my friend! Of course you should have been born! Even if you are the seed of the devil, that doesn't matter to me! A friend is a friend no matter what."

"You don't understand…" Rachel sighed. "My father…He's not a normal demon. He puts every demon you saw today to complete and utter shame. He is an incredibly powerful being capable of destroying worlds."

"Yes…" Jason looked really troubled. "That is true."

"His name…is Trigon." Raven shuddered. "And he plans to destroy the Earth."

"What?!" Phantom's eyes widened.

"Yes, in a few years, he's going to try and destroy this world…and he's going to use me to do it." Raven noted. "I am his connection to this world. I am the link…the Gem…When I turn sixteen, he will use me as a portal to come to this world and destroy it."

"Woah…That's messed up." Spirit paled.

"I…I want to prevent it. I tried to hide from his sight and keep him from using me." Raven frowned. "And I couldn't hide in Azarath…an alternate dimension whose people agreed to protect me and my mother. All my life, I was led to believe that I was meant to be used as an object of destruction…I hated it, and I knew eventually, I would be sent away from Azarath because of the danger I pose."

"They would just throw you out like that?" Phantom frowned.

"Yes…And that was what I thought would happen, but then…I learned about Amity Park." Raven explained. "I thought that I could hide here. That my father's forces would never find me in this ball of energy. I never thought that another demon would be living here…"

"The feeling is mutual." Jason reasoned. "Which is why I took a job as a teacher to keep an eye on you. I never thought it would cause all this, though. My demonic energy seemed to activate your latent blood…hence the tattoos, although, they have mostly faded now."

"Tattoos?" Spirit questioned.

"The symbol of my father…" Raven muttered. "They appeared all over me. That's why I was acting strange, and why I came to confront Mr. Blood and get him to help me. But…a similar thing happened to him. My demonic energy from my father made Etrigan go nuts. And with him out of control, Mr. Blood couldn't keep the demons sealed and they began to escape."

"So that's what happened…" Spirit nodded. "Okay, that makes sense. Then I guess all we have to do is to prevent this from happening again is to figure out how to get you not react to each other's energies."

"I can arrange a few seals that will help." Jason nodded.

"Good! Problem solved." Spirit nodded to herself.

"No, it's not. We have threat to the entire planet right here." Phantom noted.

"…I though you might say that." Raven sighed. "You want me to leave…"

"I never said that." Phantom sighed. "You came to Amity Park for a reason, right? I know it wasn't for the same reason as Blood. You told me something a while ago that suggests that you know something about me and my family."

"…Crap…I should have known that would come back to bite me…" Raven sighed.

"You called me the Fate Changer. The man who would deny death three times. The person that would absolve the sins and rise to absolute power. You said that I was the reason you came to this city." Phantom eyed the girl.

"…Yes…That's true. I came because of the First Prophecy." Raven explained.

"First Prophecy?" Spirit raised an eyebrow. "What is that?"

"It's…It's a prediction of the future. It says that the Phantom that denies death three times will ascend to absolute power and have the ability to change fate." Raven frowned. "I thought that if I came here and got close to you then I could have my fate changed. That's why I befriended Dani in the first place."

"What?!" Spirit gained a sad look.

"It was different back then." Raven gave the smallest of smiles. "Back then I didn't like you like I do now…Like I said once before, I'm stuck with you guys."

"Oh…Okay then."

"But…how did you know that I was this Fate Changer?" Phantom finally asked after the girls' exchange.

"…Sometimes, I can see the future. I can't control how it happens, but one day…I saw what happened to you on May 25, 2010. When I saw that, I knew that you were the Fate Changer, so I begged my mom to take me here."

"Look…" Phantom sighed. "I can try to help you, but…I don't believe in destiny or fate. I believe that life is shaped by the choices we all make."

"You may not believe in fate, but what is meant to happen will happen" Raven stated.

"…I've heard that before…except it involved death…" Phantom mumbled. "But if you truly believed that, then you wouldn't have even tried to change your fate."

"…Maybe you're right." Raven nodded. "Maybe I am doomed to my fate, and maybe I'm just fooling myself into thinking that you can help me."

"No!" Spirit shook her head and yelled. "You're not! We can help you! We'll totally going to stop you're father from destroying the world!"

"Are you sure?" Jason Blood interjected.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…that the only way to completely prevent Trigon from coming is to kill Miss Roth." Blood noted. "Are you willing to do that?"

"Of course not!" Spirit exclaimed.

"Well…Those are your two options. Either Miss Roth dies, or Trigon destroys the world." Blood closed his eyes painfully. "Those... are you only two terrible options we have."

"No…They're not…" Phantom scowled. "There has to be a better option…"

"There isn't." Jason sighed.

"There has to be!" Phantom hissed.

"…He's right, Danny." Raven clenched her fists. "I always knew that it would come down to that."

"You think that I'm just going to let people die?" Phantom questioned. "No. I'll find a way. I'll save you and the world. I don't know about this prophecy or Fate Changer B.S., but I do know that I'm not going to let my sister's best friend die just because you say that those are my only options."

"You know that isn't realistic." Jason noted. "People die, and sometimes there is nothing you can do to prevent it. No matter how strong you are, it doesn't matter. You can't save everyone. I'm sure that you've seen this more than once."

"…It doesn't matter if it's realistic or not." Phantom gave them a determined look. "I'll fight for my ideals either way. I'll fight for what matters…I won't lose everything again."

"Then what will you do?"

"…I'll do some research. I'll make a plan. I'll prevent Trigon from coming because…I can't lose my obsession again. No…not again…" Phantom paused for a moment then stood. "I-I'm sorry, but I need to go do something…"

"Danny?" Spirit questioned.

"I'll be back. I just need to go talk to someone."

* * *

><p>"Okay…" Phantom sighed as he sat down in the chair across from Black Canary. "You want to talk? Then let's talk."<p>

"That good." Black Canary smiled. "You'll find that letting your emotions out will be better for you in the long run."

"Letting my emotions out…" Phantom chuckled dryly. "Man, I wish that was my problem."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you really want to know what I'm feeling?" Phantom questioned. "I know that you won't like it. It's a bit whelming after everything that happened."

"Please, I'm just here to help you."

"Alright then. What I'm feeling is…nothing."

"What?"

"I don't feel anything." Phantom gave her a hollow smile. "After the shock of the simulation died down, I didn't feel anything. I sacrifice all my friends, comrades, and family, and I feel absolutely nothing."

"I-I don't…"

"Even after…." Phantom paused. "After Spirit died…There's nothing there anymore. It's like after there was one huge storm, it was extremely powerfully, but it took everything. I'm completely numb. And that's the problem. I wish I was feeling something. I wish there was something like anger, sadness, desperation, or anything really. But there's not, and that's why I have avoided Young Justice."

"Because you think you don't care about them?" Black Canary questioned.

Phantom just shook his head. "I knew you wouldn't understand. No, I care about them. I care about them a lot."

"Then…why are you-"

"Do you know where a ghost's powers come from?" Phantom cut her off. "A ghost gets its powers from the emotions he or she feels based on the ghost's obsession. The thing that gives a ghost its purpose."

Black Canary was silent.

"If a ghost…goes against its obsession, then it will weaken. Lose the will to live. Begin to fade…" Phantom closed his eyes. "And my obsession is…to protect what matters."

"I see. And because you failed to save the world, you went against your obsession." Black Canary tried to comfort him. "But the trial was meant to be impossible. You should know now that there was a no chance of saving everyone."

Phantom sighed. "Humans…You never really understand. I said that my obsession is to protect what matters. While protecting the planet is important, it's not what truly matters to me. What really matters to me is my family, my friends, my city, and…Young Justice."

"Oh…Oh!" Black Canary's eyes widened.

"Exactly." Phantom frowned and looked down at his hands. "I lost…everything I care about for the greater good. In the end, I didn't protect what matters most to me. No, I did the exact opposite, and now I'm paying for it."

Phantom stood and began to pace. "I went against my obsession. I abandoned everything I stand for. And…now there's nothing. It was the same problem I originally had after the GIW war. I felt numb because I sacrificed friends…rivals…all for the sake of saving the greatest number of people. But it got better when I joined this team.

"I've grown to care about every one of them. They matter to me. And I sacrificed them without a second thought because it was the right thing to do." Phantom placed his face in his hands. "Before the war, I would have felt…violently angry, despair, hopelessness. Heck that would be better than now. But I don't feel like that anymore. I gave up those emotions when I forgave Agent Z and let him live."

"And without those emotions…" Black Canary frowned. "You don't feel anything. That…explains a lot. But don't worry. I'm sure in time, you'll gain the positive emotions back and-"

"No…I won't." Phantom looked at her hopelessly. "It took…a lot to make me even a little better before. Now I'm worse, and there's no new hope to help me get over it. So…that leads to my real problem. The real reason I've avoided Young Justice this past week."

"Yes?"

"Like I said before, ghosts that abandon their obsessions lose the will to live. It's a subconscious thing. Even if…I know that they're all live, my subconscious realizes that I sacrificed…everything, and it's acting accordingly." Phantom closed his eyes and sighed. "I can already feel the effects. My strongest powers are gone. My base powers have weakened to the point that I wouldn't be able to fight off most regular ghosts. I no longer have the power in order to have this lifestyle."

"But…there are other options. Robin and Artemis don't have powers after all." Black Canary argued.

"But they have years of training that I don't. And I don't have the time to get up to that level. Besides…things are only going to get worse for me." Phantom opened his eyes and showed her his dull eyes. "Ghosts that give up their obsession will eventually begin to fade away…"

"You mean…"

"I will continue to grow weaker as time goes by." Phantom nodded. "And eventually, I'll fade away like a memory. Danny Phantom will cease to exist."

* * *

><p><strong>If you noticed any changes to Raven or Jason Blood's back stories from the comics, then please realize that it was intentional. I kept a lot of the same elements, with a few key differences. This is my story, after all, I think I can make a few changes to DC characters.<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	19. Sin

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Weakness is a sin." Sir Crocodile (One Piece)

* * *

><p>Chapter 19: "Sin"<p>

(Tuesday-October 31, 2010)

"…You…are going to a party?" Vision questioned carefully.

"Yep…" Phantom nodded. He adjusted his hat. The halfa was dressed as a cowboy. A bandanna under his hat covered his head and a pair of shades made sure no one would see his unique eyes. Because he was going to a high school party, he refrained from even having fake gun holsters, knives, or ropes. Other than that, he looked just like a character from an old western.

"Why, if I may ask?" Vision gave Phantom a confused look from the dining table. Vlad was standing by a wall and was merely observing the conversation.

"Because my friends invited me." Phantom answered simply.

"Because…your friends…" Vision did not seem pleased. "Are you kidding me?"

"Excuse me?" Phantom blinked.

"I do not understand what you are doing." Vision glared. "You avoid everyone like their infected for a week and then…you just become this social butterfly. You have never been socially active…ever."

"Maybe I want a change?" Phantom suggested.

"A change this drastic…it's not natural." Vision sighed. "You always push yourself to keep working. Every single day, you train, work on your machines, go out on patrol, go to your Team for more training, then come home and try to sleep. Yes, you have moments where you socialize, but…"

"What Vision is trying to say, Daniel, is that you have completely changed how you act…and it's troubling to everyone." Vlad spoke up. "You spend every moment with other people. Usually, it's Dani dragging you to go out, but now it's backwards. You dragged Cujo to play fetch for hours. And…you even howled at the moon with Wulf. What was with that?"

"I just want to have a bit of fun." Phantom shrugged.

"At the expense of everything you worked to build?" Vision questioned. "You abandoned all your work. Inventing. Your school work. Patrolling. Even training. We are extremely concerned."

"You shouldn't be. I'm fine. After all, I'm still a teenager, right? I should enjoy being young." Phantom noted.

"Yes, but…this isn't you. And I know it's because of that simulation that the League put you up to." Vision clenched her hands.

Phantom was silent.

"Talk to us, Daniel." Vlad encouraged. "You've been so reliant on other people lately, but you refuse to talk about what happened in that training exercise. We gathered some of what happened by what you said when you first got home, but…We need to know the details."

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to talk about it." Phantom shook his head.

"But you talk about it with a member of the League?" Vision eyes grew dark. "They were the ones that caused this, yet you confined in Black Canary before anyone in your family."

"Fright Knight knows." Phantom sighed. He knew they were spying on him. They couldn't do it inside the Cave, though, because the League made sure that there were measures to stop Vision's birds from spying on them.

"Of course he does, but you know he would never tell anyone your secrets or even try to change your mind if you don't ask for his advice." Vlad interjected. "You're obviously going through a difficult time, yet you refuse to talk to your family about it."

"…You would overreact." Phantom frowned.

"We already know that your powers have weakened again. That much we can sense." Vision stated. "You don't have to fear about that."

"It's not that…It's that I don't have…" Phantom went silent.

"Don't have what?" Vlad questioned.

"Look, I just want to spend more time with the people I love." Phantom smiled. "Life is short, right? We have to make the most of it. I mean, I've spent more time with you two as well. I don't see the big deal here."

"I always see guilt on your face when you look at me." Vision noted. "That's what the big deal is. I will find out what happened. Even if I have to invade your privacy."

"Vision…" Vlad began.

"No, I have been patient enough." Vision stated. "I wanted to let you come out with this on your own, but if you refuse to cooperate, I will have learn what happened from another source."

"Then do it." Phantom shrugged. "I won't stop you."

"You…don't care?" Vision asked carefully.

"No, I don't really." Phantom mentioned. "

"Look, I have to go." Phantom waved. "I'll talk to you guys later."

"One more thing, Daniel." Vlad stated. "Miss Grey says that you refuse to talk to her. I must admit that I'm curious, why avoid only her when you cling to others?"

"…Because I don't deserve to be around her…"

* * *

><p>"Is everything ready?" Dani questioned her friends. She had been tempted to get a Spirit costume, but she thought that might not work out for the best. Instead, she went for the zombie look. In fact, it turned out that Vision had talent with makeup and got Dani looking like she jumped right out of the pages of a Walking Dead comic.<p>

"Let's check…" Nyx looked at her list. The shadow user was dressed like a punk rocker with spiked clothing, leather, and chains. Oddly enough, this look fit her. "Costumes?"

"Check." Dani looked around everyone was dressed and ready to go.

"Giant bags for candy that we'll most likely make the boys carry?"

"Check."

"So you admit that you make us carry all your heavy crap." Victor frowned. His costume was simpler than the girls. He was dressed as a football player.

"Just deal with it, dude." Youngblood shrugged. His costume…well, much to their amusement, Youngblood was wearing a Danny Phantom costume. He looked absolutely ridiculous, and everyone was enjoying the irony that he was once an enemy of the halfas.

"Easy for you to say. You have ghost super strength…" Victory grumbled.

"Hush, both of you." Rachel glared. She didn't want to wear a costume, but they made her. Their first choice was a Moon Sailor outfit…but that was quickly turned down by the half-demon. The second choice was more acceptable. She was dressed as a vampire with dark makeup, fangs, and a cape.

"Eggs, spray paint, and stink bombs?" Nyx continued.

"Check."

"Toilet paper grenade launcher?"

Dani lifted the bazooka like prank weapon over her shoulder. "Super check."

"You actually got your brother to make that for you?" Victor questioned.

"Of course not…my Dad did it." Dani smirked.

"How did you pull that one off?" Rachel asked with genuine curiosity.

"It's quite simple, my dear Watson." Dani's face twisted in a cute pout. "I'm adorable, and Dad can't resist my puppy dog pout."

"That's the stupidest argument that I have ever heard." Nyx snorted. "It can't be that simple."

"Oh really…" Dani pouted at her other friends. "Would you hold my bazooka for me, please?"

"Of course." There was no hesitation in Victor's voice.

"You got it." Youngblood nodded vigorously.

"Sure." Rachel agreed.

"Rachel!?" Nyx looked horrified.

"Sorry, but that is one convincing face." Rachel shrugged. "You could get an Eskimo to buy ice using that face."

"See?" Dani state smugly.

"Whatever…" Nyx grumbled.

"So…just so that I'm following this crazy plan…" Victor shrugged. "We're going to trick-or-treat every house in the city, then we're going to prank them, even if they give us candy?"

"Yep." Dani nodded.

"…Can I just point out that you are filthy stinking rich and could easily buy a mountain of candy?" Victor suggested. "Why are you going through all the trouble to trick-or-treat anyway?"

"One, because it's fun." Dani stated. "And two, free candy tastes a whole lot sweeter."

"Amen to that!" Nyx grinned.

"But then, why are we still going to prank them?" Victor questioned. "It's trick-or-treat, not trick-and-treat."

"It is to us." Rachel noted.

"And you're actually supporting this? You're barely motivated to do anything besides read." Victor noted.

"Seeing Dani and Nyx make fools of themselves greatly amuses me." Rachel noted.

"Hey!" Nyx glared.

"She's not wrong." Dani shrugged. "We are pretty hilarious when we do crap like this."

"Gah…"

"Plus this gives me a chance to change the color of this town." Rachel pulled out a can of spraypaint. "It's far too bright for my tastes."

Victor sighed. "Whatever…"

"Don't worry, Vic, we're going to go straight up gangsta on those houses." Youngblood stated.

"…Don't say that. Ever."

"What?! Why?"

"Because you are the whitest white boy I have ever met." Victor noted.

"…Fair enough."

"Man…" Victor sighed again. "I really need different friends."

"I say that every day." Rachel agreed.

"I was referring to you too."

"I know. I just like to mock you."

* * *

><p>Agent Z took a deep breath in into his lungs and sighed deeply. "It's almost time."<p>

"That it is." Joel responded calmly from his cage.

"You aren't worried?" Agent Z questioned.

"Worrying will not make my problems go away. We have created the best plan possible and prepared as much as possible." Joel noted. "That is enough."

"…You are way to calm for a kid." Agent Z snorted.

"Well…truth be told, I'm freaking out on the inside…" Joel looked pale. "There's such a good chance that I can die today. It's hard to keep my heart from pounding in my chest and to keep my hands steady…Usually, I can keep a cool head…nothing really seems to get to me, but I can't shake this one off."

"You hide it well." Agent Z noted.

"I learned a long time ago that showing your stress doesn't help." Joel frowned.

"Still, you're what? Ten?" Agent Z questioned.

"Yes, but I have learned a lot in a short amount of time." Joel closed his eyes. "Life is short and hard, and it certainly isn't fair."

"That's true." Agent Z agreed.

"…I've been thinking." Joel stated. "About ghost obsessions...they need them to survive. Yours is obviously about vengeance. Mine, though…I can't think of anything I particularly care about. All my life, all I wanted was a simple life. To have peace…"

"So that's your obsession? To find peace?" Agent Z smirked. "That's got to me the most cliché thing I have ever heard. A ghost's obsession is to find peace. I feel like laughing."

"Yes…I just want to find the point where I'm content to live normally. To not stop being constantly concerned about the fight between life and death." Joel sighed. "But I don't think that will ever happen."

"Of course not." Agent Z grunted. "You're a ghoul now. Your life isn't going to get an easier even if you escape and get stabilized. You'll always be fighting. Whether it be humans, regular ghosts, or the Ghoul Project jackasses."

"That's the problem isn't it…" Joel reasoned. "I won't find peace. Especially after we leave, because I'm constantly going to be thinking about what's happening back here."

"And why would you do that?"

"Because we're going to get the failed ghouls killed." Joel clenched his fists. "The guards will shoot to kill, and we're going to sacrifice them so that the three of us can escape. It's reprehensible."

"They're dead anyway." Agent Z noted. "They'll dissolve in a week even without us acting."

"You think that matters. We're still killing them. Taking away the time that they have left. It's wrong, but I'm still going through with it because I want to escape." Joel looked disgusted. "How can I ever be at peace with myself if I let them die for me? But I also can't be at peace if I stay here. Either way…I'm screwed."

"At the same time, though. You'll still be working towards your obsession no matter what." Agent Z reasoned.

"That doesn't matter to me…" Joel frowned.

"Kid, you can't always have the moral high ground. Sometimes, it's either you or them." Agent Z suggested. "No one would blame you for choosing yourself."

"I would."

"You can't have it both ways, kid." Agent Z sighed. "Either you die with all your morals intact, or you live a long life by compromising at least some of your beliefs. Eventually, everyone realizes that."

"That's what I'm afraid of..." Joel closed his eyes painfully. "And that's why I don't think I will ever find peace."

* * *

><p>'…Is he that stupid?' Phantom questioned as he watched the speedster dressed as a werewolf flirt with M'gann. The halfa looked to the mummy Kryptonian clone. He whispered, "Are you okay with that? He's flirting with your girlfriend."<p>

"Gah…" Superboy rolled his eyes. "I trust M'gann, and Wally's just being Wally."

"You have a stronger will than I…" Phantom noted "I would have decked him for flirting with my girlfriend like that in front of me."

"…Do you think we should tell him then?"

"Nah. It's too funny to watch him fail like that." Phantom snorted.

"Woah…babe, eat my brains any time." Wally stated as M'gann shifted into a zombie bride.

"See what I mean?"

"Great minds think alike." Captain Marvel with zombie makeup approached them and smiled.

"Captain, you look terrific." M'gann complimented the man. "Are you going to a Halloween celebration too?"

The Captain gained a shocked look. "Er…sure. I'm going with…I mean, you did invite the whole Team, right?"

"Yeah, we'll all be at the dance all night. Don't worry about us. Go. Have a good time at your party." M'gann encouraged.

**Recognized: Artemis B07, Zatanna Zatara A03**

"Oh hey, Zatanna." Artemis who was dressed as a vampires greeted. "You look great."

"Oh thanks, you too." Zatanna who was ironically dressed as a witch smiled. "Oh look. Zombie Captain Marvel. That's hilarious. Is the Justice League having a party, because my Dad didn't mention it."

"No! Nonono! You see…" Zombie Captain Marvel scratched the back of his head. "Fine. I'm going trick-or-treating." He flew over to the Zeta tube. "And I'm not sharing my candy."

"…Trick-or-treating?" Phantom questioned as he stepped towards the females. "That's weird. You think he wanted to go to the party with us?"

"What? He's a grown adult. Why would he want to go to a school dance?" Artemis questioned.

"Yeah…you're right." Phantom nodded. "It just seemed weird to me. He looked a lot like Spirit does when I say she's not allowed to come with me to places."

"Huh…You might just be imagining it…" Zatanna suggested. She turned around to see M'gann wrapping Conner in more bandages. "Unlike that…So, how long have Conner and Megan been a couple?"

Artemis laughed. "Ha! Couple? No, they're not a…" Her jaw dropped when she saw M'gann and Superboy flirt and basically undress eachother with their eyes.

"A couple." Phantom suggest.

"…And you knew?" Artemis hissed.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…"

"I'm waiting."

"And I'm waiting to come up with an answer that won't get me kicked in the balls." Phantom noted. "And I think intangibility is that answer."

"You…" Artemis glared at him and began to storm off.

"Wait." Phantom placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, but I thought that you would find out on your own. They're pretty obvious about it. Hell, they make out in the open all the time."

Artemis's look surprised him. It wasn't angry or sad. The look was kind of jealous…no…more like wanting. "You don't get it."

"Then explain-"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"Damn…" Phantom looked at his phone. "…I have to take this."

"Yeah…I bet." Artemis turned away.

"I'll talk to her." Zatanna offered.

"Thanks, Zatanna." Phantom smiled at the magic user.

"Yeah, yeah. You men…You can't handle emotional problems" Zatanna smirked as she walked away.

"You have no idea…" Phantom answered the phone. "This is Danny."

"_Torch says to come to Lake Eerie._" Torch's voice sounded through Danny's Fenton Phones.

"Torch? What do you want?"

"_Torch needs to talk to DP. Come to Lake Eerie now._" Torch commanded.

"I'm in the middle of something right now. Can this wait?"

"_No."_

Click. Torch hung up.

"…Okay…" Phantom turned to the others. "Sorry guys, but something's come up. I'm going to be a bit late to the party."

"That means you aren't coming, right?" Wally questioned.

"…Probably." Phantom sighed.

"It's fine." Conner sighed. "It happens, right?"

"Right…" Phantom noticed that M'gann was oddly silent. She wasn't even looking at him. In fact, she hardly ever looked at him anymore… "I'll see you later, I guess."

"Yeah…" M'gann muttered. "Later."

* * *

><p>"I think things are progressing quite nicely…" Dani smirked.<p>

"Yeah, half the city is covered in toilet paper." Rachel rolled her eyes. "That's real progress right there."

"But we also have a ton of candy!" Nyx grinned.

"That you're making us carry…" Victor grumbled.

"Mmhhmm…" Youngblood mumbled.

"Stop eating our candy!" Nyx snapped.

Youngblood swallowed. "Ah…What did you expect? You gave me the candy. That's like giving a dog a steak and telling it not to eat it. Not gonna happen."

"Fair enough." Rachel conceded to the logic. "Vic, carry Charlie's stuff."

"What?!" Victor scowled. "He eats your candy and I get punished? How is that fair?!"

"He's going to be punished." Rachel explained. "I shall unleash a voodoo curse on him that will cause him to throw up constantly for twenty-four hours."

"What?! No!" Youngblood cried. "That's cruel and unusual."

"Exactly." Rachel nodded. "That's what makes it funny."

Dani laughed. "Remind me not to get on your bedside."

"You did once. Remember that day your chair collapsed in class and you fell in the toilet?" Rachel questioned.

"What? You cursed me?"

"Of course not. I just sabotaged you." Rachel shrugged. "That's what you get though."

"What did she even do?" Nyx questioned.

"She took my pudding cup." Rachel answered.

"What?! That was Nyx!" Dani gasped.

"It was?" Rachel looked to Nyx for an answer. The shadow ghost shrugged. "Oh…too bad, then."

"Too bad?! You sabotaged me, and you're just going to let it go for her?" Dani glared.

"The punishment has already been dealt. I have no control over who it goes to." Rachel mentioned.

"Er…Yes…You do actually…" Victor frowned.

All it took was one glare from Rachel to shut him up.

"Hahahahahaha! Come on guys, we need to hurry up and get to the rest of the houses if-Gasp!" Blue smoke escaped Dani's mouth.

Everyone froze. Either one of Dani's family was here to check on her or…

"Ah!" Dani shouted as a pair of hands grabbed her ankles and pulled her now intangible body down into the concrete.

"Dani!" Her friends cried.

"Ack!" Dani grunted as she was thrown onto the roof of a building. The ghost that grabbed her pulled her down through the ground and up through a building before she had the chance to react. Now what she was freed, though, she now could concentrate enough to change. "I'm going ghost!"

"Oh…" Her kidnapper raised an eyebrow. "So that's what the halfa transformation looks like. Interesting…"

"…You…" Spirit stared at her kidnapper. "You're that mummy ghost that Nocturne took."

"That I am." The mummy nodded. "My name is Hotep Ra, and I have a job for you."

Spirit looked down at the mummy ghost's hand. "You…have a black power ring."

"That I do." Hotep Ra nodded. "My new comrades gave it to me. I must admit…this thing gives me more power than I can even imagine."

"You need to take it off." Spirit warned. "If you don't, then it will begin to change you. Vision says that they corrupt a person's very soul."

"Perhaps…But it's worth it." Hotep Ra grinned. "But it's still not enough. Cursed weaponry can still harm me. So I need your help to get a certain sword for me."

"And why would I help you?" Spirit questioned.

"Because your morals won't let you ignore what Harm did and will do." Hotep Ra noted.

"What? Who's Harm?"

"You'll soon find out!" Hotep Ra raised his hand. Black energy escaped his ring. It swirled all around them. This was the sight Dani's friends saw as the came to back up the halfa. They tried to push past the energy, but it was too solid. Eventually, the energy did fade, but not because of their attacks.

It was because both Hotep Ra and Spirit were gone, and the children had no clue where they went…

* * *

><p>The lights were flickering. Alarms were going on and off. Automatic weapons were deployed and shooting at everything that moved, even the guards and scientists. Luckily, they were only set to stun, but humans were naturally weaker than ghosts or ghouls, so the humans would be far more hurt by the weapons.<p>

Joel instantly knew what that meant. "It's time."

"Hurry!" Agent Z shouted. "Get out of there!"

The ghoul quickly acted. He created a simple key for his cage and unlocked it. Then, the boy lunged towards Agent Z's cage all the while avoiding the chaos going around them. Agent Z, however, didn't need Joel's help. The ex-GIW leader shifted his hand into ectoplasm, and rammed it into the keyhole. With a click, Agent Z was free.

"Stay down, kid." Agent Z pushed Joel to the floor to avoid a stray ectoplasmic bullet.

"Right…thanks…" Joel nodded.

"Don't thank me yet, brat." Agent Z scanned the room. "This isn't going to be easy…"

"No, but we have a plan." Joel noted. "I'll head to the control center now."

"I'll go get Grundy." Agent Z agreed. "I'll try to free as many failed ghouls as possible as I go. They'll buy us some time."

"Right." Joel crouched. "Stay safe, old man."

"I'm not old, brat." Agent Z grumbled.

"Yeah…whatever." Joel took off. As he did this, the boy quickly changed into his ghoul form. This allowed the ghoul to fly through the facility at a rapid rate. Still, the boy was forced to dodge the automatic turrets, soldiers, and ghouls whose cages were damaged in the chaos. Luckily, his lack of participation in the fighting made him lower on the priority list for the combatants. If they were outright attacking him, Joel was sure that he would be struck down rather quickly.

That couldn't happen. Joel had to get to the control room. If he didn't, then escaping would be next to impossible. The closer they got to the exits, the more likely the guards were to turn their attention on the only successes of the Ghoul Project. After all, if they escaped then most of the guards and scientists would be killed…

And thus another heavy weight sank into Joel's heart. How many beings needed to die for their escape? They were sacrificing so many of them. It was likely that very few would survive the consequences of their escape. Yet they were still doing it. Hundreds would die for three ghouls…

Joel had to fight the bile that was crawling up his throat. He couldn't think like that. The ghoul still had to concentrate on the task at hand. 'Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.'

…He couldn't stop, though…

Arriving at the control center, Joel rushed into the room. Many scientists were there hiding. They were trembling in fear.

"You!" One of the scientists that was responsible from his transformation shouted. "Did you do this?"

"Yes." Joel answered simply as he stepped to the main computer.

"Damn you!" The same scientist glared. "Do you realize what you've done? You've doomed us all! None of us will survive this event, including you! Do you really think the bosses will just let you leave? No way, they'll hunt you down to the ends of the earth."

"Then I will run to a place that they can't reach. Heard the Ghost Zone's nice." Joel began to access he computer. The virus was doing its job. No one could access the computers if they didn't know the pass codes. Luckily, Joel did.

"You won't be able to do anything! We already tried. If we can't stop this, what makes you think that you ca-"

The scientist was silent as all the power in the facility was suddenly shut off. They were surrounded in complete darkness. No one moved until Joel used his ectoplasm to create a bit of light for them.

"You were saying?" Joel raised an eyebrow.

"P-please don't kill us…" One of the cowering scientists begged. He obviously thought that Joel was after revenge. That was the furthest thing from the truth, though.

"I don't intend to hurt you for what you've done." Joel stated. "That wouldn't change anything."

"Liar!" The first scientist pulled out an ectoplasmic pistol. Why he didn't pull that out sooner, Joel didn't know. Perhaps he planned to sneak behind the ghoul as he was working on the computer and was trying to hide his intention.

"Put that away before I'm forced to hurt you." Joel instructed.

"Never! I know that you could never forgive us for what we did to you! That's why you plan to kill me when I put this gun down!" The scientist screamed.

"Forgive you…That's funny." Joel blasted the gun from the scientist's hand.

"Gah!" The scientist grabbed his smoking hand, but was forced to let go when Joel grabbed the front of his coat and pulled him down to the boy's level.

Joel's eyes burned with hatred though his face remained cold and uncaring. "Of course I will never forgive you. You gleefully tortured me. You killed hundreds of innocents. You deserve to die. But I'm not the one that will kill you. No, I actually value life. I will never kill anyone, even if they deserve it. Instead, I'm going to give you a chance…"

Joel blasted open the sealed door. "Either you can stay here and die, or you run away like dogs. It doesn't matter to me, though. I gave you a chance, so for you, my conscience is clear."

"Y-you…" The scientist stuttered.

Joel threw the scientist to the ground. "I may not want you to die, yet, but I do want you to rot in hell when you do one day. Goodbye, doctor. I hope I never have to see your ugly face again."

* * *

><p>"What do you want Torch?" Phantom quested as he floated towards the fire ghost above Lake Eerie.<p>

"Torch has heard that…Hahahahahahaha!" Torch burst out laughing when he saw what Phantom was wearing. "What is that? You a cowboy now?"

"It's a Halloween costume, Torch." Phantom took off the hat, bandanna, and glasses that hid his appearance. "I was going to a party before you called. So I'll ask again, what do you want?"

"Well, right now Torch wants to take a picture of you and put it on the Internet." Torch controlled his laughter.

"Whatever…" Phantom sighed. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you, Torch. I'm going back."

"In the mood, eh?" Torch raised an eyebrow. "Because Torch heard that you've been in a really weird mood lately."

"…So that's what this is…" Phantom frowned. "Vision called you."

"That she did." Torch nodded. "She's concerned."

"And you?" Phantom asked. "Are you concerned?"

"A bit." Torch shrugged. "Torch never figured DP would be the needy type."

"Needy?" Phantom raised an eyebrow. "I am not needy."

"Really…because it sure seems like you are now." Torch mentioned. "You've become reliant on other people. You cling to them for comfort over something while never really talking about what the problem is. Torch gets the last part. People like us don't like talking about our weaknesses. Generals can't let their soldiers see even a moment of weakness. But what you're doing…it's worse. The leader does need to seek advice from the soldiers, but you can't cling to them like that. It sends the wrong message."

"I don't need advice from you on being a leader." Phantom frowned. "I've been forced to do it more times than I can count."

"Then why don't you act like it?" Torch questioned.

"I do. This isn't about leading. This is about spending time with my friends and family." Phantom argued. "There's a difference."

"No, there isn't…" Torch shook his head. "Leaders never get to just stop leading. It's a constant. They always lead by example, and you're setting a poor example."

"Well maybe it's time for me to stop leading then." Phantom mumbled.

"You don't get to make that choice! You forced yourself in these positions!" Torch yelled. "You can't just stop now!"

"I may not have a choice…" Phantom turned away. "Look, I promised my friends that I would meet them. If this isn't an emergency, then it can wait."

"No it can't…" Torch growled. "Vision asked Torch to get DP talking, so Torch will."

"Not happening."

"Yes it is!" Fire danced around Torch's arms as a black and red scythe was formed in his hands. "Vision thought that you might be like this, that's why she asked Torch. She knew Torch could beat some sense into you."

"That doesn't sound like her." Phantom turned back.

"That's why she sent me." Flames danced around Torch like a halo. "Now get ready, it's time for your rematch with Torch."

"And what if I refuse?" Phantom questioned.

"You don't have a choice!" Torch swung his scythe. A wave of flames was sent flying at Phantom. The halfa flung himself out of the way.

"I'm not fighting you, Torch!" Phantom glared.

"Why?! You used to respect the integrity of fighting! What happened?" Torch flung fireballs at Phantom's head.

Phantom continued to dodge. "That's not going to work!"

"Then maybe this will!" Torch raised his scythe. Flames jumped above him. The fire seemed to collect together and change shape. A giant bird of flames danced above Torch.

"Woah…since when can you do that?!" Phantom shouted.

"You think that Torch has been idle?! Torch has been training just like DP! Torch was determined not to fall behind you!" Torch grinned. "Now let's fight!" The flame bird was sent flying towards Phantom.

"Well crap."

* * *

><p>"Okay…I'm officially mad." Spirit noted. She was standing on the edge of a rooftop. Down below here was the city of New York. It was rather quiet actually. Maybe it was just the tension in the air, though. The atmosphere seemed heavy, and it was hard to breath…luckily that didn't matter to the ghost.<p>

The halfa had to question if this was just because of Holloween, or if this was normal. New York was known for its crimes, but she doubted that New York usually had this atmosphere. Thus, the second option was doubtful. This city wasn't Gotham after all. No, it had to be something else.

Perhaps it was the presence of the black power rings…No, nothing like this happened before in Amity Park after the times the black power ring users showed up. Something else was wrong. Spirit just didn't know what it was. But for some reason, she thought that it had to do with what Hotep Ra had said.

For some odd reason, Spirit believed the mummy ghost. Hotep Ra was now one of the few enemy ghosts that had no bad history with the halfas. There was no bad blood…yet. He gained nothing from just attacking her other than satisfying his comrades. Not only that…her Premonition sensed no ill intentions to her from the mummy. He was being sincere.

Thus, why would he teleport her here and give her such strange information if there wasn't some truth to his words? Someone called Harm was causing problems somewhere. Instinctively, the hafa wanted to stop him. If a black power ring user said that what he did was bad, then it must be terrible and unforgivable

At the same time, though, Spirit wondered why Hotep Ra teleported only her here. He had the chance to send her friends here as well. If this Harm guy was strong enough to give a black power ring user pause, then Spirit reluctantly had to admit that she could be in trouble. Considering his tone and words, the mummy wanted something from Harm. Perhaps she was the distraction for him to get it, but she could be more help with others…

"None of this makes sense…" Spirit muttered. "And Hotep Ra took my phone, so I can't call anyone…I could ask someone to use their phones, but who knows how they would react…Oh well, I guess I'm going to have to sign a few autographs. It could be worse-Ah!"

Blue mist escaped her mouth.

"Spoke too soon…"

"Secret."

Spirit turned. She saw a young blond girl wearing a white cloak. This girl was looked like the complete opposite of Raven. "You here to fight?"

"Secret."

"How is that a secret? You either do or you don't." Spirit argued.

"Secret."

"Okay. That's going to get annoying. Can you say anything else other than Secret?" Spirit questioned

"Secret."

"Yeah, I figured you'd say that…" Spirit sighed. "I don't sense that you want to fight, and you haven't tried anything yet. You must want something then…"

"Secret."

"Of course it is…You know, all ghosts are staying in Amity Park and the Ghost Zone for their own safety. You must have a good reason for being here. Don't say anything, but could you at least point me in the right direction, blondie?"

The blond girl who Spirit dubbed Anti-Raven…or Secret…or The-Girl-Who-Annoys-Me-With-One-Word…pointed into the distance.

Spirit looked in that direction. "I don't see anything."

Boom!

"Wow! My timing is totally off tonight." Spirit blinked. She turned back to Anti-Raven. "Thanks for…And you're gone. That must what humans feel when we disappear. It's annoying being on this end, but it's freaking hilarious on the other end."

Spirit then flew off to the explosion. "And I'm talking to myself now…Maybe I just like the sound of my own voice…Yeah, that's probably it."

When Spirit arrived at the scene, she found a blazing fire on the streets. It didn't seem natural. Either fossil fuels were involved or some form of alternate energy. Floating above the fire, Spirit suspected the later.

Crash! Bang!

Spirit turned to the noise. She couldn't see anything over the uneven rooftops. Her fight instincts were tingling, though. Something was going on, and it involved violence. That thought brought a smile to her face.

It wasn't hard to find the people fighting. They were making quite the scene. It was two girls fighting off one guy. The man had long brown hair, incredibly pale skin, and a white trench coat with holes in the shoulders. There was also the fact that he had four long scars on the upper right side of his face and a huge sword at his side…and was that a zombie arm on his back?

Weird…Cool, of course, but still weird…

The other girls, or at least one of them were more familiar to Spirit. "Artemis…"

Spirit would recognize any members of Danny's Team. While she liked them all personally, the halfa girl had a distaste for them as a whole. They were the ones that caused Danny to become Dr. Fate and later have a mental breakdown after all. It was hard not to hold a grudge, even if Artemis was a cool girl. They even texted and talked a bit before the Injustice League thing.

That fondness may have faded, but Spirit knew that Artemis was a good person. She fought beside Danny after all. The dark haired magician girl beside her was obviously her friend, while the sword dude was the enemy. That was good enough reason for Spirit to attack the hippy pale guy.

Deciding to go with a silent sneak attack, Spirit flew down behind the guy. She intended to kick him in the back of the head. If that didn't knock him unconscious, then he would at least be stunned. That would be enough to gain the upper hand.

'Cut behind me. Stop attack. Kill attacker.'

Spirit instantly heeded the warning of her Premonition. She was glad she did too. The man followed through with his intentions. Spirit barely dodged the initial strike. The attacks that followed were no joy either. The sword was lightning fast.

"Gah!" Spirt flung herself out of the way after dodging several attacks.

"Spirit?!" Artemis shouted as she saw the ghost girl barrel to the side to get away from the man. "What are you doing here?!"

"Long story!" Spirit didn't take her eyes of the man. "Tell you later, Goldie Locks."

Despite the situation, the raven haired girl snickered.

"Zatanna!" Artemis glared.

"Sorry, but that's funny." The now identified Zatanna stated.

"It seems that many of the weaker versions are coming out tonight." The man noticed. "Perhaps the its all wish for Harm to come to them? Otherwise the its wouldn't be seeking Harm out."

"Harm…" Spirit narrowed her eyes at the man's wording. Was this the guy that Hotep Ra mentioned?

"Spirit, we need to regroup and figure out a plan!" Artemis shouted.

"You go do that!" Spirit grinned. "I'll just be here kicking Harm's butt."

"It thinks that it can hurt Harm. How humourous." Harm smiled cruelly. "But it doesn't realize that Harm is about to hurt it."

"Yeah, you can try…" Spirit activated her Spectral claws.

"Gnirb tiripS ot su!" Zatanna yelled out.

"Gah!" Spirit felt an invisible force grab her and began to pull her to the girls. She recognized this feeling. This was magic. "Let me go!"

"Not likely!" The girls continued to run over the rooftops. "You can't take him alone!"

"I don't plan to! I just need to hold out until your backup arrives!" Spirit struggled against the invisible force pulling her.

"Er…"

"…You do have backup coming, right?"

"You know. That would have been a great idea." Zatanna mentioned to Artemis. "Why didn't we think of that?"

"Because we're busy running for our lives." Artemis argued. "But I'll try."

"Wow…and people call me stupid…" Spirit rolled her eyes.

"And why aren't you doing it?" Zatanna glared.

"I was kind of teleported here without my phone." Spirit shrugged.

"Teleported?"

"Later. For now… RAW!" Spirit used her Spectral Claws to cut through the magic holding her.

"Wait!" Zatanna warned.

"Move!" Spirit used ectoplasmic blasts to knock the girls away. This happened just in time, as Harm came crashing down and trying to cut at the older teen girls.

"Harm is impressed." Harm noted as he turned to the girl. "It has good reaction speeds for a child, but it cares about the other its too much when it should be worrying about itself." Harm caught the explosive arrow that was shot at his head and threw it back at the girls.

Boom!

"Ah!" The cried as they were sent sprawling back.

"…" Harm looked at Spirit again. "Yet it doesn't flinch when the other hits find Harm."

"That was their stupid mistake." Spirit noted. "And while I don't want them dead, I would prefer they not fight this. I have no experience in teaming with them. Besides, I want to kick Harm's ass myself."

"Harm accepts its challenge." Harm rushed at Spirit. The ghost tried to stop his rush by sending ectoplasmic blasts at Harm. The man easily knocked the blasts away with his sword, though. It was like he was batting away wads of paper.

"Crap!" Spirit was forced to dodge his strikes. The blade moved in a blur. She was force to move back continually. Despite hovering, though, she was still slower moving back than he was going forward. She didn't get the chance to escape, and she doubted that a lunge tactic would work again.

'I have to counterattack.' Spirit thought. 'At least so I can get fly to the edge where he can't follow.'

Using her Spectral Claws, Spirit tried to slice at his open midsection. That did not work. He was waiting for that attack. His sword swung to cut off the appendage. Luckily, Spirit managed to prevent that, but couldn't stop her arm from being cut.

"Ah!" Spirit clutched the cut. It burned unnaturally. This wasn't a normal cut. There was magic in it. That explained the ability to stop her ectoplasmic strikes.

Zap! Boom!

"Gah!" Spirit was sent sprawling to the ground when electricity came out of the sword and hit her in the chest. The electrify shocked her to the point of being paralyzed. She was stuck on the ground unmoving. 'Damn! I underestimated him! I didn't think the sword was that powerful!'

"And its story ends by Harm." Harm brought his sword up and prepared to strike the girl down.

"Spirit!" Artemis and Zatanna jumped to her feet and prepared to help the girl. The archer brought out her crossbow while Zatanna prepared to use her magic. Neither received the chance, though.

Clang! Harm's sword was stopped by another blade.

"…This night howls to me. It calls ordering me to protect my kin and to slay my enemies. On this most hallow of eves, my strength is boosted to its peak. With that, I can instantly come to the aid of those I have come to protect. And when the most import person to my master is in trouble, I have no hesitation…I have no mercy…"

"Who are you?" Harm questioned.

"I am the Spirit of Halloween. I am the sword of my master. But most importantly, I am the being that shall cut you down." The ghost knight with purple flaming hair and black armor stated. "I am the Fright Knight."

"Ah…" Spirit scrambled back to her feet and gained some distance from the two sword users. "Fright Knight…how did you get here?"

"On Halloween, I can do almost anything. Even teleport." The Fright Knight chucked. Then, with a roar, the knight ghost flung the villain back and sent Harm sliding across the rooftop. "Now go. I know that curse sword. It is the bane of all ghosts. Even members of the Council might be made powerless by its curse."

"But you?"

"I have the power of Halloween to protect me." Fright Knight sounded pleased…almost excited. "Leave. I sense a presence here that might be able to help us find his weakness. Find that ghost and have her lead you to where you need to go."

"…Okay…" Spirit nodded slowly. "I will. Just stay safe."

"Don't worry about me." The Fight Knight's sword seemed to gain green sparks. "It is Harm that needs to worry."

"Harm doubts it!" Harm lunged and swung his sword. The two blades met with sparks of magic and ectoplasm meeting. The ground beneath them cracked and shattered under their power.

Spirit ignored this and flew to the other girls. "I need your help. I need to find a ghost. I think she might be able to help us. Her name is Secret."

"That girl was a ghost?" Zatanna questioned.

"Yes, and we need to find her." Spirit nodded.

"Well…" Artemis looked to the side to see the other female ghost waving from several buildings away. "I think I found her."

"Yeah…" Spirit nodded. "I think you did."

* * *

><p>Swords clashed in a blur of motions. Each attacker was trying to not only strike the other's body, but also the hands. If a swordsman lost his hands or fingers, then he would no longer be able to use his hands. This was why both Harm and the Fright Knight worked to block and dodge each blow sent their way.<p>

Sparks and energy rose into the air as the two legendary swords met. This caused the rooftops to appear as if a firework show of yellow and green lights was going off in the middle of Halloween. It was only a matter of time before the police were contacted.

This did not bother the combatants, though. They just jumped around the rooftops randomly to avoid the chance of anyone catching up to them.

"Harm is surprised by its ability to keep up with Harm." Harm mentioned as he slashed at the Fright Knight with his electrified sword. "Especially when it cares so much for the other its."

Fright Knight blocked. "Fool! My dedication to my master's kin is what makes me strong!"

The knight ghost then pushed Harm away. The scared man slid back but was not deterred. Harm stabbed the ground and caused the roof below them to become electrified. The Fright Knight reacted by flying into the air. Then, using all his power, the Fright Knight created a large gem of flaming purple energy and sent it at Harm.

The sociopath responded by pulling his sword out of the roof and slashing at the gem. The ectoplasmic attack was cut in two and slash continued to Fright Knight. The yellow magical slash of energy was quickly deflected by Fright Knight into the sky.

Both swordsman stared at each other. They could feel their blood begin to boil beneath their skin. This was a fight that they craved. A real fight between swordsmen. Unfortunately, it was tainted by Harm's terrible crimes against Fright Knight's kin.

Thus, while the Fright Knight would enjoy the fight, he would enjoy cutting the sociopath down a whole lot more.

* * *

><p>Joel flew through the chaos of the Ghoul Project. The darkness would have been a problem if the facility wasn't filled with ghosts and ectoplasmic weapons. The number of ectoplasmic attacks being thrown around was uncountable. The blasts made it so the ghoul could see perfectly in this dark prison. It was like the entire place was filled with active fireworks.<p>

And it sounded like it too.

"RAW!"

"Get down!"

"Ah! My legs!"

"How did this happen?!"

The facility was filled with screams and yells. People and failed ghouls were everywhere. Many of them were injured. All of them, however, were running and fighting in this chaos. To Joel, this looked like a war zone. He wouldn't be surprised if this place was destroyed by the end of the night.

Despite everything, though, Joel continued onward to the meeting spot. He couldn't get caught up in a fight. There was only a limited amount of energy he had, after all. Joel would need every last bit of energy he could get while escaping and finding someplace to hide. After a few minutes of dodging and ducking, Joel arrived at the meeting place that had been established.

"You're late!" Agent Z roared as he blasted a soldier away from him.

"Have you looked around?" Joel threw away a failed ghoul that was trying to bite him. "It's safer trying to walk through a minefield than go through all this!"

"It's not stopping him." Agent Z grunted.

"Grundy crush all of you!" Grundy roared as he picked up a cage and flung it at a group of soldiers.

"WAH!"

"HELP!"

"GRAH!"

…The fact that didn't help that the cage was full of failed ghouls did not help the chaos of this situation…It did, however, make it a lot more humorous.

"Well, I'm not a freaking tank." Joel formed his Pendulum Nunchaku and began to knock away the enemies around them. "Did you get the inhibitor collar off?"

"Why do you think he's able to move like that?" Agent Z snorted as he smashed a soldier's head into the floor. "Take that you piece of trash…"

"Then we need to start moving to the exit." Joel mentioned.

"Grundy on it!" Solomon Grundy roared. He ran forward. Bullets bounced off his skin, and people were sent flying from the force of his massive charge forward. Nothing could stop the living tank.

"Try to keep the men off of him!" Agent Z barked. "He may be tough, but if he takes enough damage, even he will fall!"

"Right!" Joel switched to his Burst Gauntlets. The ghoul dashed to the side of Grundy and stopped the reinforcements that arrived to halt Grundy's charge. Even the usually violence opposed Joel couldn't hide his smile as he knocked the men unconscious. These men had terrorized them for months. It was nearly impossible not to justify some payback against the soldiers. As long as he didn't go too far that is…

"Z!" Joel shouted. "That's enough!"

"What?!" Agent Z was stepping on the jaw of one of the downed soldiers. It cracked with ease under the ectoplasmic empowered man. "I can't hear you!"

"Stop!" Joel glared. "We don't have time for petty revenge."

"Don't act like they don't deserve some punishment. You hurt some of them yourself, pacifist boy."

"But I'm not being cruel about it." Joel returned. "Just stop. We need to go."

"Whatever…" Agent Z spit on the downed soldier. "I've had my fun."

The group of three continued to work their way to the exit. It didn't take too much effort to defeat the unorganized and fatigued soldiers. In all, their plan worked perfectly. Within a few short minutes, the three ghouls were standing at the exit.

"RAW!" Grundy rammed his thick hands into the steel wall and began to rip them off the edges.

Agent Z was in the back of their group and was watching for any soldiers of failed ghouls that might have followed. They stopped most of them, but you could never be too careful. "I can't wait to get out. It seems like it's been forever since I've been free."

"Fresh air and an open sky…" Joel gained a longing look. What Agent Z said was true. The few months he had spent in the Ghoul Project had felt like years. "Sounds good."

"Yeah…" Agent Z nodded. "It will be."

"Grundy can't wait!" Solomon Grundy grinned. "FREEDOM!"

With that, the large brute ripped the metal doors away. The three ghouls were instantly met with the fresh smell and cool touch of the open air. They all blinked and slowly walked out of the facility. The sky was dark and filled with stars. Grass crunched beneath their feet. A cool breeze brushed their skin and caused a gentle shiver to run down their spines.

"Freedom…" Grundy looked close to crying as he collapsed to his knees. "Grundy is free."

"It feels…so good." Agent Z breathed.

Joel said nothing. He merely closed his eyes and took all the feelings in. This was what they worked for. This was why they caused all that chaos and possibly death in the wake of the Ghoul Project. It was all for freedom. Despite all the sacrifices and loss, they were free.

And in that moment, Joel felt like it was all worth.

"Eh?" Grundy's voice sounded out. "Who are you?"

Joel's eyes snapped open.

"My name is Psimon, and Psimon says that you aren't going anywhere."

* * *

><p>The sky was lit up with flames and explosions. All of them were caused by Torch. Phantom couldn't keep up with Torch's rapidly changing attacks. The fire user wasn't kidding when he said that he had been training. Torch's flame abilities were leaps and bounds beyond what he could do in their first fight.<p>

While Phantom's powers were at an all-time low…

"Ah!" Phantom dodged the pillars of fire that rained down around him. He barely managed to keep dodging the blasts. In fact, his clothes were burned and scorched beyond repair, and his skin was covered in slight burns. "You know I won't get the money back for this costume, right?"

"Shut up and fight!" Torch lunged at the halfa. Flames danced around them in a spiral. Torch decided to keep Phantom from running anymore. It was then that Phantom knew he had to act. Ignoring the pain that was caused by the flames, Phantom grabbed Torch and dragged the fire ghost into the cold water below them.

The halfa didn't have a plan after this. All he knew was the the water would restrict Torch's attacks, if only for a moment. But right now, he was thinking solely about buying time to come up with a better plan. He couldn't win this fight right now, and his chances or effectively fleeing were dismal at best.

The good thing was that Torch wasn't going for the kill in this fight. If he was, Phantom wasn't sure that he would survive…

Torch struggled and thrashed against Phantom. Neither needed air, so that wasn't a problem, but Torch knew that his powers would be weakened while submerged like this. He would need to get out. Phantom held him back, though. The halfa still needed time to…

"Ah!" Bubbles escaped from Phantom's mouth. The cold autumn water was suddenly increasing rapidly in temperature. It began to boil and rage from Torch's power. Feeling his skin begin to blister, Phantom released Torch and began to push himself out of the water. He flew to the surface and then out of the water.

The halfa tried to flee, but was stopped. Torch grabbed the teenage ghost and flung him to the shore. Phantom landed with a crash and came to a sudden stop. The halfa tried to get back up to his feet, but was stopped when Torch pointed the blade of his scythe at Phantom's neck.

"…Torch wins…" Torch frowned.

"…You do…" Phantom agreed.

"Why didn't you use your ice powers?"

"I couldn't."

"Couldn't or wouldn't?"

"Couldn't." Phantom confirmed.

"Torch sees…" Torch moved the scythe from Phantom's neck. Nevertheless, Phantom remained on the ground shamed. "Torch won, so tell Torch what is going on. Why are you weaker than ever before?"

"It's…it's hard to explain." Phantom gained a pained look.

"Try Torch." Torch ordered.

"You won't leave until I tell you, huh?" Phantom sighed.

"No." Torch nodded. "Torch will burn you to a crisp first."

"Fine…" Phantom sighed and began to explain.

Torch listened to Phantom's tale silently until the end. Then he said, "So…Torch died in the dream?"

"Simulation, and yes. But not only you…Everyone died." Phantom clenched his fists. "I couldn't save anyone."

"Torch sees why this is troubling, but you need to get over it. Those people are still alive. It was all a bad dream." Torch argued.

"It wasn't to me." Phantom retorted. "I felt and saw everyone die in front of me…they sacrificed themselves for me. And…I mourned."

"You should be happy, though. They are alive." Torch mentioned.

"I know, and it's selfish of me, but…I can't bring myself to feel anything." Phantom clenched his fists. "There's nothing left. My ghost half thinks that my obsession is gone, and that means that it cannot maintain its form anymore."

"So you will fade away…" Torch frowned.

"My ghost half will, but I have no idea what will happen to my human half." Phantom stated.

"You think that you're going to die. And…you're dealing with it by spending time with your family." Torch realized.

"Yes."

"That is very logical. It is smart to spend time with the people you care about while you can. Most people would do that, but…"

Wack!

"Ow!" Phantom clutched the part of his head wear Torch hit him with the normal part of his scythe.

"You are not most people! You are like Torch! We do not do the logical thing! We do the impossible thing!" Torch shouted.

"What are you talking about?"

"Fight! Find a way! Struggle until your last breath! That is the way we work! Torch never gives up and neither do you!" Torch glared. "Don't lie down and accept this! You are Danny Phantom! The only man to defeat Torch one-on-one! You cannot die until I defeat you with both of us at full strength."

"It's not that simple Torch. No words or logic can help this. It's hopeless." Phantom shook his head. "I've lost too much to keep going. I'm broken."

"You think that you're the only ghost that has suffered? Wrong! Every ghost has his or her fair share of tragedies and hardships! But none of us ask for pity! For only the people with the strongest wills can ever hope to live on after death!" Torch exclaimed.

"Torch…"

"Yes, you may have lost a lot, but don't think that it is impossible to come back from it." Torch frowned. "Torch lost many of Torch's minions in the war. Torch cried. Torch thought about giving up…to tell Torch's remaining minions to leave and never look back. But then, Torch was given a purpose. A way to be remembered and become famed. You gave Torch the chance to make a difference. Without you, Torch doesn't know what would have happened."

"But you didn't lose your obsession, Torch." Phantom shook his head. "I did. I know you care about you minions, but this is different. I lost Dani. I lost the single person I care about the most."

"…" Torch paused for a moment, but then spoke up. "When Torch was alive, his name was not Torch. It was Trever. Trever…was not the smartest person. Trever dreamed big, though. Trever dreamed of becoming a famous fighter. That man trained every day, but no one thought that Trever could do it. Not even Trever's parents…But there was one person. One girl thought that Trever could become something big.

"She was a sweet girl. Far better than Trever deserved, and Trever knew it. So, Trever cherished her. She was Trever's most precious person." Torch began to tremble. "But then…but then something happened. An accident happened. She was trapped under all that metal and concrete. Trever knew the explosion was coming, but Trever couldn't stop himself. Trever tried desperately to save her, but…Trever wasn't fast enough, and Ellie died."

"Torch…" Phantom mumbled.

"When Trever died and lost Ellie, Trever wanted to give up. To move on and let go, but Trever remembered his dream and Ellie's encouragement…It was then Trever decided that he can't give up and forced himself to live on. That was when Torch was born."

Phantom was silent.

"Torch does know what it is like to lose your most important person. It's not something that is easy to go through. Torch knows this, but you can't give up." Torch encouraged. "Torch won't let you."

"But…what can I do?" Phantom questioned.

"What you need to."

* * *

><p><em>Greta Hayes<em>

_Beloved Sister_

Spirit stared at the small grave before her. Secret had led them to what was most likely Harm's home considering the pictures of him and Secret…no, Greta…The halfa was surprised to find a connection between the ghost and the psychopath villain. The shock quickly shifted when Spirit saw the grave. She knew what this meant.

"He killed you…" Spirit whispered. "He killed his sister."

"Secret…" Secret nodded.

"I can't believe, but…how?" Zatanna questioned.

Secret created an image of Harm's dagger above her small hands.

"That…bastard…." Artemis hissed. "How could anyone even think of doing something like this?"

Spirit ignored the other girls and stared at the grave.

Was…was this even possible? To kill you sister like that? Danny would rather die than ever hurt her! Wasn't that the same for all siblings? You had to look out for your family! It was like a religion to Spirit.

Yet, someone could still do this. This atrocity…how could it actually happen?

"…rit!" Zatanna shook Spirit's shoulder.

"Huh?" Spirit turned away from the grave.

"You weren't responding to us." Zatanna stated. "We think that the Fright Knight and Harm are getting closer."

Boom! Crack! Smash!

"Okaaaaay…They're definitely getting closer." Zatanna frowned.

"Good." Spirit glared deeply. "Cause I'm going to beat that man to the brink of death."

"I get that you're mad, but Harm is freaking insanely tough." Artemis argued. "It might be best to leave it to Fright Knight."

"He deserves to suffer…" Spirit muttered as they saw Fright Knight and Harm battle on the roof of the building.

Harm saw them. "How did the its find Harm's home!?"

"Perhaps you can ask them!" Fright Knight pushed Harm away from him. Both beings were covered in cuts and bruises. The fight had taken its toll of both swordsman.

Magical electricity danced around Harm in his anger. "Get out of Harm's way!"

The force of Harm's swing knocked the Fright Knight away and to the street beyond the fence. It was then that the psychotic villain jumped down and glared at the girls. His eyes showed furry and confusion as to why they were at his home and in front of his sister's grave.

"How did the its find Harm's home?!" Harm barked.

"You secrets led us here." Spirit glared.

"Secrets?" Harm questioned. "Harm is pure. Secrets are no use to Harm."

"No use to you…" Spirit trembled in anger. "Well this secret has no use for you either."

"What does it…" Harm's eyes widened as Greta appeared from the ground. "Ah…it casts an illusion spell."

"Except I didn't speak. Harm knows that it can't cast a spell without speaking." Zatanna noted.

Harm's eyes widened in realization "No…you're dead…How are you…"

"Secret." Greta stared at her brother.

"You piece of garbage." Spirit growled. "You killed your own sister. For what?!"

"Harm…needed to be pure. Earthly attachments make Harm impure…weak…" Harm seemed to bet losing a bit of control. "Harm had to kill the only thing Harm loved."

"Well guess what. You did kill her, but that doesn't mean she's gone." Spirit grinned. "Greta has lived on as a ghost, and ghosts tend to hold grudges."

Secret then began to walk towards Harm.

"No! Harm's heart is pure! Harm's not sorry! I'm not!" Harm yelled. Electricty danced around his sword for a moment, but quickly faded. The magic in the sword could not respond to Harm's wavering will and heart. Thus, Secret could pass through the blade like it was any other normal object. Then, the girl reached into Harm's chest and pulled out what looked like a ball of energy.

"Ah…" Harm collapsed in a heap.

"Well, well…" The Fright Knight landed in front of Harm. His sneering helm stared down at the downed at the psychopath. "It looks like I arrived just in time."

"No! Harm is still pure!" Harm jumped to his feet and tried to cut at the Fight Knight. The sword merely passed through the intangible knight. The sword landed on the ground with a thud. Harm could not lift it again.

"No…Harm's not pure. Harm was never pure in any way." The Fright Knight lifted his blade. "And Soul Shredder agrees."

"No!" Harm desperately tried to move the sword, but the hand sheath reacted to Harm's now clouded heart and automatically re-sheathed itself.

"Have fun in in your own worst nightmare."

Slash! Pop!

Harm was gone.

The girls stared. Zatanna was the first to speak up. "Did…you kill him?"

"No." The Fright Knight shook his head. "Soul Shredder has the ability to teleport people to a realm of their own worst nightmares. I can bring Harm back whenever I want. I have refrained from using the ability because Lord Phantom thinks that its ability is cruel. I shall restore Harm's form now if you want."

"NO!" Spirit hissed. "Leave him there for a while. He deserves to suffer!"

The Fright Knight looked to the young heroine and nodded. "As you wish, Lady Spirit."

"Oh…how cruel of you, Spirit…" Nocturne's voice sounded around the area. Three different ghosts appeared around the ghosts and heroes. They were all the users of the black power rings.

"See? I told you it would work." Hotep Ra stated.

"But I was hoping the girl would die…" Aragon growled. He was in his more human like form. His skin was blue, his eyes were red, and his hair was grey. The ghost's clothes were a royal purple, while his crown of thorns was green.

"You know that would go against the plan." Despite his word, Nocturne did not seemed pleased. "The halfas must live for now."

"Who are you creeps?" Artemis pointed her crossbow at Aragon.

"They're ghosts…I can feel it." Zatanna frowned. "But something is wrong."

"It's their rings." The Fright Knight warned. "Beware their power. They can easily destroy mortals."

"You…" Spirit glared at them. "Why did you send me here?"

"It was my idea." Hotep Ra spoke up. "Harm was both a possible threat and a possible gain. The Sword of Beowulf is a cursed sword that can hurt all ghosts. Even us. At least one of use would have died trying to take it from him, but then I learned of his greatest weakness…Greta."

"We tried to use the little brat, but she would appear before us." Aragon growled. "She sensed the darkness in our hearts and stayed away out of caution. In all honesty, it was a smart thing to do."

"You, though…" Nocturne pointed to at Spirit. "You are so full of cheer and justice. We knew Greta would instantly be drawn to you…even if you are being cruel to Harm. Though, he does deserve it."

"But…you had the chance to take my friends too…" Spirit noted.

"They are not like you." Hotep Ra stated. "They do not do good solely for the sake of doing good. Each of them had a deep darkness hidden in their heart. Their presence would have made Greta avoid you."

"Secret…" Secret looked around in an alarmed state. She looked like she wanted to run.

"Now…hand over the sword." Nocturne ordered.

"And why should we give it to you?" Artemis glared.

"Because we will take it from you if you don't wench!" Aragon barked.

"Can we take them?" Zatanna whispered to Fright Knight.

"With my injured state and their power…no, we can't." Fright Knight sighed.

"The sword…" Spirit glared at the blade. "You're going to destroy it like the other things, right? That's why you want it? It's a threat, so you'll destroy it."

"That's part of the reason, yes." Hotep Ra nodded.

"…Then take it!" Spirit picked up the sheathed blade and threw it at the mummy ghost. "That thing was what caused Greta's death! It's what caused this…atrocity to happen. That sword needs to be destroyed so this will never happen again."

"Are you sure, Lady Spirit?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Yes…" Spirit looked at Secret with sadness. "Enough people have died for that stupid sword already."

"…Secret…"

* * *

><p>"Damn it, you big oaf! Stop!" Agent Z roared.<p>

"Grundy can't!" Grundy was swing at the other ghouls wildly.

Joel rolled out of the way. Based on Psimon's appearance, he was most likely a telepath. That would explain why he could control Grundy like this. Grundy did not have the mental strength to fight off mental invasion. This allowed Psimon to use him like a puppet.

The ghoul knew that taking Grundy down without the inhibitor collar would be nearly impossible right now. He didn't have too much energy to spare. To free Grundy, he would have to attack Psimon. The only problem was that Grundy was stopping him from getting to Grundy.

'This isn't a fight where I could win more than I could lose…' Joel realized.

Kneeling off to the side, Joel watched as Grundy attacked Agent Z. The ex-GIW leader was being pushed back. It was clear that Agent Z was exhausted and unstable right now. He couldn't fight off the brute right now. If Agent Z had any chance of surviving, Joel would have to interfere.

But…

Joel looked off to the side. There was a clear path outside. He could easily get to it. Psimon was too focused on Grundy to stop him, and Grundy was dealing with Agent Z. Nothing could stop him from leaving. It would be an easy thing to do.

Except it wasn't. Joel couldn't bring himself to leave the other two ghouls behind. Without them, he never would have escaped, and although he had very little emotional attachment to them, they were still in the same boat. He couldn't leave them in this hell…

Joel did the only thing he could. He created his nunchucks and jumped on Grundy's back. The chained weapon wrapped around the brute's neck and body and held him back.

"Go!" Joel yelled to Agent Z. "Stop Psimon! I'll hold Grundy back!"

"…Right!" Agent Z nodded and ran past the two ghouls.

"…No…" Grundy grunted as he pulled at the chains. "Small boy…needs to run…"

"Don't worry! We're all getting out of here!" Joel yelled.

"Don't understand…in danger…" Grundy said through gritted teeth. "Can hear it from brain man. Trap!"

"What?"

Click! Zap!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

><p>"That…is an intense story." Phantom noted to Fright Knight and Artemis as they stood outside the Zeta Tube.<p>

"I teleported Harm back to the physical realm and dropped him off at the police station. Considering all the evidence against him, Harm won't be fee any time soon." Fright Knight explained.

"That's good." Phantom nodded. "Thanks for helping my sister out."

"It was a pleasure, my Liege." The Fright Knight bowed for a moment. "But if you'll excuse me, I am quiet exhausted from my confrontation with Harm. I need to go rest."

"Of course." Phantom smiled as the Fright Knight flew away. He then turned to Artemis. "Thanks for bringing them home. I really need to ask Batman to key them into the Zeta system. That way you won't have to carry them in a Fenton Thermos."

"It's not a problem, but didn't the Fright Knight teleport earlier?" Artemis pointed out.

"Our powers tend to fail when we're fatigued. Besides…I think that the Fright Knight can only do that to himself on Halloween." Phantom shrugged. "This is his night, after all."

"Oh…" Artemis looked over Phantom's burned and bruised appearance. "What happened to you, by the way? I thought you were going to the party with the others."

"Let's just say that a friend chose a weird time to want a rematch." Phantom shrugged.

"Oh…You won, right?" Artemis smirked.

"…Yeah…" Phantom nodded slowly. "Of course. What else do you expect?"

"Not much…" Artemis frowned and looked away.

"You okay?" Phantom questioned. "I know that the Megan Conner thing got to you. Add in the Harm Secret thing…it must have been a rough night."

"Yeah. It kind of sucked." Artemis sighed.

"You want to talk about either one?" Phantom questioned.

"Not really…" Artemis huffed.

"Are you sure? Because you said that I didn't understand." Phantom noted. "I said that once, remember? The best way to help people understand is explain it to them."

"…I guess, I'm a little jealous." Artemis sighed.

"Because M'gann has Conner?" Phantom questioned. "Or because they have eachother?"

"Both, I guess." Artemis shrugged.

"Hmm…" Phantom nodded. "I get that you think that SB's…er…hot. Man, that's weird talking about a guy…But no offence, you two aren't very compatible. I don't think you two would have very much to talk about considering that he barely talks and all you say are sarcastic remarks."

"Yeah, I realized that a while ago. Conner's a great guy and is super good looking, but I would like to be around a guy who doesn't grunt out most of his words." Artemis snorted. "And you know what, I'm happy for them. They make a really good couple. I guess…I just wish you all didn't make it a big secret."

"In my defense, it was pretty obvious. Half the time I see them now, they're making out." Phantom shrugged.

"I guess I didn't want to acknowledge it then…" Artemis sighed. "But if you knew that I didn't know, why didn't you tell me?"

"It's not my place to tell other people's secrets…even if they aren't very secret." Phantom shrugged.

"I guess…wait…" Artemis froze and starred at Phantom. "The way you said that…"

"I know about your family. There's a pretty big resemblance between you and your family." Phantom nodded. "I didn't say anything, because I didn't think it was a big deal. You're my friend, and I would trust you with my life."

"Danny…" Artemis was shocked…but happy. She never thought that anyone would be so nonchalant about her family. "Thank you…for everything."

"Hey, it's no problem. What are friends for?" Phantom smiled.

"…I've been thinking." Artemis sighed. "After the simulation and my talk with Black Canary…I was conflicted by my feelings."

"You mean your extreme reaction to Wally's death?" Phantom noted. "I know you care about him."

"Yeah, but would he lose an arm for me?" Artemis questioned.

"That? That was nothing." Phantom shrugged. "I would do it for all my friends."

"Yeah, but…" Artemis sighed. "I'm so messed up. I guess I just want a moment where nothing matters. To forget about everything."

"I know what you mean…" Phantom nodded slowly. "It's all I think about lately."

"Then you know life is too short, right?" Artemis frowned.

"It is." Phantom agreed.

"…Okay then."

"Okay wha-"

Artemis pulled him into a kiss.

* * *

><p>"Hi guys!" Dani waved at her friends as she walked into her livingroom.<p>

"Dani!" They cried.

"You guys won't believe what happened to me tonight." Dani smiled.

"Why are you being so nonchalant about this?!" Victor shouted. "We went to your parents for help, and then we searched, but the knight guy said he found you and disappeared."

"Yeah…is that why you guys are at my house?" Dani questioned.

"Yeah!" Youngblood glared. "We were worried."

"Sorry, but I couldn't call, but Hotep Ra took my phone." Dani waved her recoverd phone in the air. "But I got it back. Good thing too, I think Dad and Vision were close to having aneurysms when I called them…Where are they, anyway?"

"They said something about helping the Fright Knight with his injuries." Rachel explained.

"Oh…" Dani frowned. "Then I guess I'll have to introduce Greta to them later."

"Greta?" Nyx questioned.

"Secret…" Greta turned visible beside Spirit.

"Er…who is that?" Victor questioned.

"Guys, this is Greta!" Dani smiled. "She's going to be staying here now!"

"…Something tells me that this has something to do with what happened when you disappeared." Rachel noted.

"Yep. It's a…well, I wouldn't say good story, but it fits the atmosphere of Halloween." Dani stated. "Greta tells it a lot better than I do, though. Right, Greta?"

"Secret…"

"Exactly!" Dani nodded sagely. "That is the perfect explanation for what happened."

"Secret!"

"Too true, Greta. Too true…"

"…Did you get a word of that?" Nyx questioned.

Her answer was the shaking of heads.

"Me neither…"

* * *

><p>"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Joel yelled and fell off of Grundy's back.<p>

Electricity surged through Joel's body. The boy clenched at the inhibitor collar around his neck. Soon, Joel was forced to change back into his human form because of the pain.

Joel breathed and panted heavily. "No…what…"

"Looks like it worked." Agent Z noted. He stood over the downed ghoul. His leer showed no pity as he watched the ally he just betrayed.

"That it did." Psimon agreed.

"I don't…" Joel looked up desperately.

"Really?" Agent Z snorted. "Are you that dumb, kid? You've been played. I had that collar from the start. I knew Psimon could stop Grundy's stupid mind, but you would be more trouble. That collar fixed the problem, though."

"No…" Joel tried to force himself back up, but he couldn't. "Why?"

"Do you really think I'll last out there? As if! Even if we did escape, how would I get stabilized? You think Fenton or his allies would help after everything I did? Not likely." Agent Z grunted. "The Ghoul Project is my best bet to survive. I just needed to get in with Queen Bee's good graces."

"And that you did." Queen Bee walked in through the entrance. She peered down at Joel and then glanced at Grundy who was still being controlled by Psimon. "Everything worked out how I wanted it to."

"But…the ghouls…the soldiers…the scientists." Joel gasped out.

"Those fools failed me far too many times." Queen Bee answered. "This was their final chance. They had the opportunity to stop this, but then they failed to stop the plan of a young boy. They deserved to be put down. This was the best way to get rid of them and rid the Ghoul Project of the unwanted trash in it, while at the same time making sure our only successes weren't killed in the process."

"No…" Joel gasped out.

"I must admit, you are impressive. Your plan would have succeeded if Agent Z didn't inform us of your treachery." Queen Bee smiled. "I can see why Ra's wanted you to succeed him, but it's too late now. Even if this worked in my benefit in the end, I cannot forgive your trying to escape. You will have to be put down after we duplicate your powers."

"No! You can't!" Joel's eyes widened in fear.

"Yes, I can." Queen Bee turned to Agent Z. "And as I promised, you will be free to move around as you wish. I will arrange a room to be set up for you. I take care of my assets after all."

"Thank you." Agent Z bowed his head slightly.

"Now, would you kindly take Joel back down to his new cell." Queen Bee ordered. "And do make sure he's unable to move. We don't want him getting any ideas."

"My pleasure…" Agent Z stood over Joel.

"Wait!" Joel pleaded.

"Sorry, spooks. Nothing personal. It's just who I am." Agent Z brought his foot down on Joel's head.

Crack!

And with that, Joel was taken back to the Ghoul Project. This time was different, though. Now, he knew that he would be put to death as soon as they could duplicate his powers. This time, he would be given no chance of escape.

With that last though, Joel lost all hope for survival as he was dragged back to his own personal hell.

* * *

><p><strong>EDIT November 16, 2014: Added fight between Fright Knight and Harm<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

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	20. Maturity

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Don't you understand that we need to be childish in order to understand? Only a child sees things with perfect clarity, because it hasn't developed all those filters which prevent us from seeing things that we don't expect to see." Douglas Adams (Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency)

* * *

><p>Chapter 20: "Maturity"<p>

(Friday-November 5, 2010)

"My Liege..." The Fright Knight approached Danny Phantom from behind and addressed the halfa. "It is three in the morning. You have been out here all night...again."

"Have I?" Phantom questioned as he stared at the statue dedicated to the Nasty Burger Incident. "I must have lost track of time..."

"For the fifth night in a row?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Yes..." Phantom sighed.

"I see..." Fright Knight nodded. "I can understand, of course. Considering the date..."

"It's been a year." Phantom never took his eyes off the statue. "One...long year..."

"Yes, it has been." Fright Knight agreed.

"It's hard to believe, though. It seems like yesterday despite everything." Phantom closed his eyes in pain. "I remember them with perfect clarity."

"That's good." Fright Knight noted. "They live on in your memories. As long as a person is remembered, they are never truly gone."

"I'd rather that they be here completely..." Phantom gritted out.

"That is not a choice you get to make unfortunately." Fright Knight shook his head.

"Maybe I do..."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think the Reality Gauntlet can bring people back to life?" Phantom questioned.

"...No...Don't go down this path, Lord Phantom." The Fright Knight warned. "Do not even think such thoughts. They will only lead to your end."

"But if there's a chance, don't I have to take it?" Phantom inquired.

"No. The Reality Gauntlet is a cursed tool." Fright Knight stated. "It's creation and use brought about the rise of Nekron the Reaper. You cannot alter reality like that without consequences."

"But...haven't I earned a bit of good karma?" Phantom questioned. "Have I not suffered and sacrificed enough to be a little selfish?"

"You tried that once, remember?" Fright Knight recalled. "When you tried to leave with Ember."

"But you said that I could make my own choices back then." Phantom argued.

"That's different, and you know it." Fright Knight sighed. "Please erase these thoughts from your head, my Liege. You dwell in the past far too much. Despite releasing your anger, you still refuse to let them go. You place far too much blame on yourself. It is not healthy."

"But..."

"Please, Lord Phantom." Fright Knight stared at his master. "I have never tried to change you mind before, but this is different. The Reality Gauntlet must be destroyed once we find Freakshow. You know this."

"You're right...The Gauntlet has to go...I'll stop thinking about using it like that."

Except he didn't.

* * *

><p>"…<em>And there's still the problem of Phantom." Red Arrow mentioned.<em>

"_Problem? I don't believe that there is a problem." Kaldur frowned._

"_That's because you've blinded yourself to the fact that he has mixed loyalties." Red Arrow glared. "Did you forget that he's part of that ghost Council just as much if not more than his membership in Young Justice? He's probably feeding them info daily."_

"_Red Arrow does have a point." Batman acknowledged. "Phantom cares a great deal about the fate of the ghosts, and we do not know what the plans of the ghosts are at this time."_

"_Are you kidding me?" Robin seemed insulted by all this. "Danny has taken down every villain we've come across. He's stuck by us. Hell, he even sacrificed himself by becoming Doctor Fate for us! How can you even consider being suspicious."_

"_That's the thing…" Red Arrow's eyes narrowed. "How do we not know that he didn't plan that from the beginning? We have no way of knowing of how ghosts influence Nabu. For all we know, that Dora is more in control than Nabu."_

"_That…is a possibility. I doubt it, though." Batman acknowledged. "Plus, there's the fact that Phantom has some…questionable contacts on the other side of justice."_

"_Who? Red X?" Kaldur questioned. "That much was obvious from the beginning when you invited Danny to the Hall on the fourth."_

"_No…It's not Red X. It's Jinx."_

The video ended.

"What?!" Dani glared at her brother. "Jinx?! That crazy chick that destroyed the original Fenton Works?"

"It's complicated." Danny glanced at his sister. "She's a friend. We usually don't bring work into it."

"But you do sometimes." Valerie noted as she leaned against the wall of the Masters living room.

"Once or twice. It never got us anywhere, though." Danny shrugged from his seat.

"That is not why we are here." Vision quickly got a hold on the situation. "Who Danny spends his time with is his business as long as it doesn't compromise us."

"So…I'm guessing you knew?" Danny raised an eyebrow.

"Don't be surprised, Daniel. It's us after all." Vlad shrugged.

"And you're not freaking out?" Danny questioned.

"I'm not happy, but I know I can't control you…" This fact greatly displeased Vision who thrived off of control.

"Yeah…Not happy…Considering the rant you gave me, not happy is an understatement…" Vlad muttered.

"Hush, hon."

"Yes, dear."

"Okay, we'll save your invasion of my privacy for later." Danny sighed. "You wanted us to see that the League is suspicious of me, right?"

"My Liege…" The Fright Knight looked to his lord. "It was obvious even before this. But this event happened during All Hallow's Eve. When they knew that you and the other suspected traitors would be away from your Cave. This isn't just about you. It's about the other three members of your Team."

"None of them are traitors." Danny glared. "And I will convince the League that no one on my Team is a mole. This is just a small hiccup."

"Considering all that they did to you in that simulation, I think this is more than a small hiccup." Vision's eyes grew dark. "It's close to downright pathetic and unforgivable."

Danny sighed. He just had to tell his family the full extent to which the simulation affected him… "You promised not to get mad at them."

"No, I promised not to confront them. I will be mad for as long as I want." Vision frowned under her veil.

"Fine…" Danny shrugged. "But just let me handle it. We have enough tensions with the League as it is for you to be trying to pick a fight over me."

"Daniel…I know you care about your Team greatly, but realize this. That does not have to extend to the League." Vlad noted to the younger halfa. "You have no obligation to them."

"That I do know." Danny nodded. "Don't worry. The League doesn't intimidate me."

"Good, but I kind of want to go back to that Jinx thing…" Val frowned.

"You can discuss that at a later date." The Fright Knight came to Danny's defense. "It is not an immediate threat to us."

"Yes, there is still the fact that Hotep Ra now has a power ring." Vlad added. "That adds to that problem. And there's no news on Walker or Freakshow. This is disappointing after we captured Spectra, Bertrand, and Undergrowth in such a short time frame."

"But we know what to expect from them at least." Vision nodded. "With the others captured, the unknowns are now gone. We will not be surprised agai-"

Zwisk! Swish! Pop!

"Vision?!" Danny's eyes widened in alarm as Vision, Vlad, and Fright Knight all disappeared.

"No!" Dani jumped to her feet.

"What…what happened?" Valiere questioned.

"I don't know…but I'm going to find out." Danny's eyes flashed green.

* * *

><p>"You still living, brat?"<p>

Joel opened his eyes slowly. He said nothing. The ten year old ghoul merely stared at the guard holding his food.

"I'll take that as a yes." The soldier noted.

Joel was silent. Meal time was the only points in the ghoul's day that he had any kind of chance to talk. Yet he did not feel like saying anything. What was the point? This person didn't care about him as anything else than a caged animal. Talking to him wouldn't change that.

After his recapture at the hands of Agent Z, Joel had been locked in a solitary cell. The wall around him were thick and nearly impenetrable. Chains held the boy down in the hard uncomfortable chair that he sat in. These chains were especially made to stop his powers. Not only did the chains that were wrapped around his limbs and torso completely immobilize him physically, they also made it so he couldn't faze through them.

Because of the chains, Joel was forced to sit all day every day. All he could do was sit, sleep, and think. It left a lot of time to contemplate the choices he made up to his escape attempt and his decision to trust Agent Z. He was mentally kicking himself for that mistake.

It made so much sense at the time. They were both trapped in the Ghoul Project. He needed as much help as possible to escape. It was a gamble as it was by just relying on Grundy. The boy thought that Agent Z would raise his odds of success. Obviously, he was wrong.

Not only that…Joel had thought that he was beginning to think that Agent Z could change. For weeks, they talked and planned together. Joel knew that the man was corrupt and crazy. That was shown during the GIW War. At the same time, Joel thought he saw glimpses of a better man. Joel hoped that the ex-leader of the Guys in White could change for the better. That had obviously not happened, and Joel was forced to learn a hard lesson.

People don't change.

Joel just wished that he learned that before he trusted Agent Z.

"Come on, kid." The soldier sighed. "I can't leave until you eat."

Joel eyed the man. The newer soldiers weren't as bad as the ones that were killed during the escape attempt. They weren't nice to the boy, but they were smart enough not to hurt a valuable asset of the project and treated him like he was valuable.

Of course, that might not be based on morality and more on a sense of survival. After all, the bosses already showed that they were willing to kill those who failed them.

"…Fine…" Joel nodded. He didn't feel like eating, and the food tasted terrible; but he still needed to eat in order to live.

Not like there was a whole lot of hope for living anymore…

"Alright then, here's-"

Zwisk! Swish! Pop! Crash!

The food tray fell to the floor.

Joel blinked. The soldier was gone. He was alone.

"Huh?"

* * *

><p>"Do you know anything about this?" Phantom questioned into his phone as he floated above Casper High.<p>

"_About what?"_ Jennifer asked innocently through Phantom's Fenton Phones.

"Oh, you know, the usual every day stuff like all the adults in the world suddenly disappearing?" Phantom deadpanned. "Oh wait…that doesn't happen…ever."

"_I know where you're going with this. I'm not involved with this at all."_ The assassin defended herself.

"Then do you know anything about it?" Phantom questioned.

"_Nope."_

"How do I know you're not lying?" Phantom asked.

"_You don't._" You could almost feel the amusement in Jennifer's voice.

"Damn it, Jen." Phantom sighed. "Do you even realize how bad this is? All the adults are missing. The young kids won't be able to take care of themselves. Some of the teens might even riot. Without the police or any authorities, there aren't any resources to keep them in check. This could end badly."

"_You promised that there would be no more talk about business._" Jen pouted.

"This is an emergency!" Phantom exclaimed.

"_There's always an emergency, Danny._" Jen retorted. _"That's the kind of world we live in."_

"Fine…fine…I won't ask you about this stuff anymore." Danny sighed.

"_So…we still on for go-carts later?_" Jen changed the subject.

Danny snorted. "I'll let you know later. After all this is over with. But if we do, you're going down…"

"Danny." Red Huntress's voice sounded behind Phantom.

"Er…I've got to go, Jen. Still have a bunch of stuff to handle." Phantom turned to see his fellow Amity Park vigilante.

"_I'm sure. Talk to you later._"

"Same here. Bye." Phantom ended the call and addressed RH. "What's up?"

"You talking to that assassin." Red Huntress frowned behind her helmet.

"Yeah, I was hoping she might have some info. I was wrong." Phantom sighed.

"Of course she didn't! She's a bad guy, Danny!" Red Huntress rolled her eyes. "You need to stop talking to her. She'll only bring you down."

"She's not all bad, Val." Phantom frowned. "There are many times where she saved my ass."

"And most of the time she caused those situations in the first place!" Red Huntress gave him a look of disbelief. "I know that you already explained it to me, but just because you used to hang out as civilians, it doesn't mean that you can cooperate as a hero and villain."

"Everyone deserves a second chance, Val." Phantom noted.

"Yes, but I don't think she wants a chance to change her ways." Red Huntress shook her head.

"Look, we can argue about that later." Phantom decided to change the subject to the problem at hand. "Did you get all the kids in the school?"

"Yeah, most of them. Dani, Raven, and Secret are double checking, though." Red Huntress nodded. "We're lucky that the kids basically idolize you and Dani. Otherwise, this would have been a lot more difficult."

"You're right." Phantom nodded. "We need to make sure they stay as calm as possible, though. They must be completely stressed about the adults disappearing."

"I know I am." Red Huntress muttered.

"We'll get them back." Phantom encouraged. "They aren't gone for good. Just…missing. I'm going to head out to meet with Young Justice to help find the adults."

"Right." Red Huntress agreed. "I'll tell the others."

"Thanks…" Phantom paused. "Before I go, can you help me with something?"

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Here. I need you to give me my ectoplasm boost." Phantom handed Valerie the needle. "I still can't do it myself yet."

"Gah, I hate needles." Red Huntress frowned. "Where do I put it?"

"My arm." Phantom took off his trenchcoat.

Red Huntress prepared the shot and asked. "And this helps your condition?"

"Temporarily yes."

"Are than any side effects?"

"Plenty." Phantom frowned as the needle was stuck in his arm and he was injected with the boost. "But none of them are immediate."

"There." Red Huntress removed the needle from his arm and handed it to Phantom.

"Thanks." Phantom put the needle away.

"No problem." Red Huntress smiled and started to leave. "I better go help the other now, though."

"Yeah…Wait, Val?"

"Yes?"

"I need to talk to you later…after all the adults are back, okay?"

"…Sure, Danny. This isn't bad is it?"

"No…Yes…Maybe…It depends on how you react."

"Oh…That sounds fun."

* * *

><p>"Hey there…" Spirit smiled gently at the five year old little girl.<p>

"…You're Spirit…" The young girl muttered in awe as she hid under her bed.

"Yeah, that's my name." Spirit nodded. "What's your name?"

"Tara…" The blond girl muttered with wide blue eyes stated.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Tara." Spirit chuckled. "Why are you hiding under the bed?"

"My Mommy and Daddy disappeared. I called 911 like they told to if something bad happened, but no one picked up." Tara began to cry. "I'm scared."

"I know." Spirit nodded. "I'm a bit scared too. My Dad and…Mom…disappeared too."

"You have a mommy and daddy?" The younger girl blinked away the tears.

"I do. And I miss them a lot right now." Spirit noted as she continued to lie on the floor and talk to the other girl. "That's why we're going to work to bring them back. Until then, though, we want to make sure all the kids are safe. We set up a safe house at the high school. Do you want come?"

"…I'm not supposed to go with strangers, but…you are a hero." The girl internally debated. "Mommy and Daddy did say I could trust you too."

"It's okay." Spirit gently offered a hand to the girl. "I'll take you to the safe place. I'll even fly you there!"

"Fly?!" Tara's eyes lit up.

"Yeah."

"Okay!" The girl took Spirit's hand and slid out from under the bed.

"Okay." Spirit helped the girl up. "Hold onto me, okay?"

"Right." The girl hugged Spirit.

"Here we go." Spirit slowly ascended off the floor and fazed through the ceiling with the little girl.

"Ah!" Tara squeaked.

"It's okay. I got you…" Spirit smiled.

"I know…" Tara shook.

Spirit flew over to the meeting spot she and her friends had decided on.

"You found another." Raven noted.

"Secret." Greta agreed.

"Yep." Spirit smiled to the girl in her arms. "Tara, this is Secret and Raven."

"I recognize her…" Tara looked at Raven, but frowned at Secret. "But who's she?"

"Secret…"

"Right, this is Secret. She's a new friend of mine." Spirit explained.

"Is she nice?" Tara questioned.

"Secret." Secret made the illusion of a dancing teddy bear in her hands.

"Awesome." Tara beamed.

"Yeah. She's super nice." Spirit chuckled and then addressed Raven. "Did you find anyone else?"

"Yes, but…I can't get them to come with me." Raven looked away ashamed. "They were scared of me…And Secret couldn't convince them either…for obvious reasons…"

"Secret."

"See what I mean." Raven sighed.

"It's fine." Spirit looked to Tara. "Can you go with Secret so I can go help other kids?"

"…Okay…" Tara nodded slowly and was handed to Greta.

"Secret." Secret smiled to the girl and began to fly off to the school.

"Greta's got a good heart, I'll give her that." Raven stated. "But I still don't see why she came back with you."

"I couldn't leave her there." Spirit frowned.

"I know, but I don't get why she didn't ascend." Raven responded. "Harm was stopped."

"Well…I don't think that was her obsession." Spirit mentioned sadly.

"Then what is?" Raven questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"As a sister…I know I would hate to see Danny ever become anything like that." Spirit explained. "I would want to make sure he got better. I think that's Greta's obsession. She wants Harm to find redemption."

"From what you told me, I doubt that's possible." Raven frowned.

"Yeah…you're probably right. That's the sad thing of it all." Spirit sighed. "I…I should go get the kids."

"I'll show you where they are."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-November 6, 2010)<p>

One of the first things Phantom did with the Team was send a message to the world. They made sure all the children in the world knew that there were still people trying to find a solution and bring the adults back. They pleaded with the older teens to step up and be responsible for the younger children. Phantom could only hope that their message worked. There was no way they could even dream of stopping riots right now.

They were running on borrowed time, too. It was only a matter of time when the electricity would stop working. There were no adult workers to help supply it after all. No one knew how long they had to keep working like they did. They had to fix this fast.

It was determined that this was a magical problem. Someone was casting a spell to vanish the adults. No one knew who, though. Phantom wished that they had at least Jason Blood left. His expertise in sorcery and the mystic arts could greatly assist them in finding the solution. Zatara could help as well. Hell, maybe even Vision could help pinpoint the source of the problem.

Unfortunately, those were not options. Their only hope right now was that Zatanna could duplicate her father's tracking spell. Phantom didn't really know the girl, but she seemed reliable enough. His Team trusted her, so the halfa decided that he should trust her as well. But…she was young and inexperienced. That much Phantom could see. She might not be able to help as much as she wants too.

If she failed, though…Phantom didn't know what he could do. Maybe he could get Raven to help, but she was even younger than Zatanna. He might be able to invent a magic tracking device, but he didn't have the time for that. This was their best bet.

"Danny…are you okay?" M'gann sat down next to Phantom at the kitchen counter.

"Hmm?" Phantom forced himself out of his thoughts. "Oh, yeah. Just thinking."

"About what? Amity Park?" M'gann questioned.

"Naw." Phantom shrugged. "I've got six people and a dog there, and there aren't many young villains, human or ghost, that would want to attack Amity Park."

"Oh…So you're thinking about everything in general?" M'gann questioned.

"Yeah…" Phantom sighed. "Everything's a mess."

"We'll fix it. We always do." M'gann encouraged.

"Yeah…" Phantom paused. "You know…this is the most we've talked in a while. I thought you were avoiding me."

"I was…until Conner convinced me to come talk to you." M'gann explained.

"Huh…" Phantom looked to Superboy. He was leaning over against a wall a bit away. He was glaring off into space.

"He thinks of you as his best friend, you know." M'gann sighed. "I guess he doesn't want his best friend and girlfriend to be at odds like we are."

"Yeah…I guess we've been avoiding this…" Phantom frowned. "Then I'll just say it…I'm sorry."

"You're sorry?" M'gann blinked in surprise. "What for?"

"I killed you in the simulation." Phantom clenched his fists. "Even if Manhunter was influencing me…It's unforgivable. You're my friend, and I betrayed you."

"No!" M'gann hissed. "That's not your fault. It's mine. If I controlled my powers better, none of that would have happened. Because of me, you experienced so much loss. I saw you when Spirit died…I saw how it broke you. I should be apologizing for putting you through that."

"You didn't mean for that to happen." Phantom insisted. "I was the one that intentionally hurt you."

"That's just like you…" M'gann gave a sad chuckle. "Always trying to take so much blame. I'm not anywhere close to being angry at you, but if it makes you feel better, I forgive you. But! Only if you forgive me first."

"That's already done." Phantom smiled.

"Good." M'gann smiled back, but then frowned. "But…how have you been feeling. You put of this brave front, but I know it must be hard to try and come back from what happened. Not after the way you acted at the end…"

"I'm fine." Phantom lied. "I've come back from this stuff before."

"That's what scares me…" M'gann frowned. "The mind and soul can only take so much."

"Look, not everything's perfect, but I can always pull myself together. Especially now that you're talking to me again." Phantom gave her a small smile. "I just wish it was the same way with Artemis…"

"Yeah, I noticed that…" M'gann raised an eyebrow. "What happened between you two?"

"I don't know. I think that Artemis is just used to getting her way in some things." Phantom shrugged. It was probably true. Artemis probably never even considered the possibility that a single straight guy would say no to her. She was a gorgeous girl, and probably had to beat boys away from her with a stick.

After Artemis kissed him, Phantom instantly pushed her away. It wasn't that he didn't find her attractive…because he sure as hell did. No, it was more that Phantom knew that both Artemis and Wally harbored feelings for each other. He didn't catch on at first because he's Danny, but eventually he saw that Wally and Artemis just meshed together well, considering that they argue like an old married couple. Plus, you could just feel the sexual tension between them.

Phantom knew that Artemis was only trying to use him as a way to deny herself of her feelings after Wally died in the simulation. She did not want to feel vulnerable like she did. The blond girl was seeking out Danny because he was safe. Despite their deep friendship, Artemis did not care about Danny in that way.

She wasn't being completely selfish, though. Artemis could tell that Danny was hurting as well. She thought that they could comfort each other in a no strings attached relationship. Part of Danny was incredibly tempted by this. After all, Artemis was a beautiful girl that literally flung herself at him. In different circumstances, Danny would happily accept the offer for comfort after the simulation. He would do anything for a moment where he could think about something else other than how hard life was. But…there were two things holding him back.

Wally and Valerie. Both of them would be hurt if Artemis and Danny fooled around with no reason. He couldn't do that to them. He and Wally didn't call each other 'bro' for no reason. And Valerie…He refused to hurt her any more than he already did.

"What does that mean?" M'gann was honestly confused.

"She…and I just had a disagreement. I'm giving her some time to cool down." Phantom noted.

"Oh…Okay." M'gann nodded slowly. "What was the disagreement?"

"Er…It was…"

"_Aqualad to Team. Zatanna has reported that she is ready to use the tracking spell."_

'Thank you, Aqualad.' Phantom mentally thanked his friend for the save. "We should go."

"Yes. I can't wait to get Uncle J'onn back…" M'gann began to float away. This development instantly made her forget about their previous conversion.

But she was the only one that forgot…

Phantom looked to Conner. He was staring at the halfa. The clone's enhanced hearing probably allowed them to listen to their conversation. By the Kryptonian's look, he probably guessed what happened between Danny and Artemis.

Superboy said nothing. He had not judgment in his eyes. There was only respect and understanding as he nodded to his friend.

Phantom nodded back, and that was it.

Nothing else needed to be said.

* * *

><p>"I spy with my little eye something blue." Spirit stated.<p>

"I just told you that I don't want to play that stupid game…" Raven muttered.

"But I'm bored." Spirit whined.

"We're all bored. Suck it up." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Fine…" The halfa girl huffed.

Both girls were floating above the Casper High gym. They observed and watched as the children and teenagers moved below them. Secret was in one corner entertaining the kids with her illusions and images. Youngblood was across the gym dressed as a clown in order cheer another group of kids up. At the same time, Red Huntress was directing the teens. She was giving them instructions and provisions.

"I'm impressed by this city." Raven suddenly noted after a moment of silence. "The children here are taking this remarkably well."

"I think the fact that there are so many young heroes around here helps. It sets a good example and encourages them." Spirit nodded sagely.

"Yeah…you're right. Although, not all of us are heroes." Raven looked to Spirit. "Some of the ghosts merely help because they are your friend, fighting entertains them, and merely out of convenience."

"You mean Youngblood and Nyx?" Spirit sighed.

"Who else?" Raven frowned. "I could be talking about Secret, but she seems to genuinely like helping people. Youngblood and Nyx, though…they aren't like that. They're far more selfish."

"Youngblood sure looks like he's happy." Spirit pointed to the dancing clown.

"He's soaking up the attention. He loves the spotlight." Raven argued.

"So do I." Spirit pointed out.

"That's different. You actually care about people. Youngblood doesn't." Raven frowned. "He's not a bad person, but he's a brat with a Peter Pan complex, like I'm a depressing smartass and you're an optimistic lunatic."

"Lunatic? I thought I was a hero?"

"You can be both." Raven shrugged. "And it's not that I don't like Youngblood. He's a nice enough person. Funny too. But when it comes back to it, he holds onto his childish antics and dress-up personas like a lifeline. Why do you think he is still here despite being a decade older than us internally?"

"Um…I guess it's because he's stuck in a child form because of his obsession?"

"Exactly. He lacks the maturity or desire to mature." Raven eyed him. "And he won't change, because people never really change."

"That's not true! Just look down there!"

Raven did.

"And then I threw the ball into the inzone and Kwan caught it to win the game! The win was epic, and the team dedicated the championship to the ghosts that project us. Espeicially Danny Phantom and Spirit!" Dash grinned as he told the story to the kids around him.

"You have gorgeous hair!" Paulina exclaimed as she and Star brushed the hair of the various girls in the gym. "It really brings out your eyes. You need to use more conditioner, though."

"See!" Spirit gained a smug look. "Those guys used to be terrible according to Danny. Look how much better they act."

"Do they still bully kids and act like they are better than everyone else?" Raven questioned.

"Er…"

"That's what I thought. They may have altered their behavior somewhat, but they're still the same at the core." Raven noted.

"What about my Dad? He changed a lot!"

"How so? Because he fights for justice? He's still in this for himself and his own reasons. He may care about you and Danny, but that doesn't mean that he's a good person." Raven mentioned. "He still does business with shady people like Lex Luthor, right?"

"That's to keep an eye on him!"

"And to make a lot of money. Plus, you also mentioned that he wants to run for mayor next year." Raven stated.

"He wants that office to help ghosts more."

"No, he wants power and control." Raven shook her head. "That's his obsession isn't it? Family, power, and control. I can feel it oozing off of him. He lusts for greatness."

"So does everyone else…"

"But he might be willing to crush people to get what he wants." Raven argued.

"…Rave…Can you stop this…you're depressing me…" Spirit frowned sadly. "Why are you even saying all this?"

"I'll answer your question with a question. Where's Nyx?"

"Huh?"

"Where's Nyx? I haven't seen her since we all appeared in our secret identities earlier to make sure no one noticed us missing." Raven's eyes narrowed.

"I don't know. What does it matter, anyway?"

"Because at the core, Nyx's nature is chaos." Raven warned. "And I don't think that she can resist this moment without adults to go do something stupid."

* * *

><p>Clank! Bang! Rattle!<p>

"AH!" Joel screamed. "Come on!"

He pulled and struggled against the chains holding him. With all his might, Joel fought to free himself. Despite this, though, he couldn't move. The restraints worked to keep the ghoul where he was.

"Move!" Joel desperately pulled against the chain. His cool headed demeanor was completely gone at this point. "This is my chance!"

The entire Ghoul Project was silent. There was no noise. There were no people. The entire place was abandoned besides Joel. The ghoul did not know what exactly happened, but now he was completely unguarded. This was his chance to escape.

Except…it didn't seem to be possible…

"Gack!" Joel spit up blood. His arms were deeply bruised, cut, and bleeding from his attempt to escape. Pain surged through him. Without his powers, Joel's ability to numb the pain was useless.

These wounds weren't caused soley by his struggles, though. No, his body was already weakened. While chained up, the new scientists continued to run their tests on the ghoul. He was poked, electrocuted, bled, and scanned daily in an attempt to replicate his powers. It was an excruciatingly painful and terrifying experience.

What made it all unbearable was the fact that he no longer had even a prayer's hope of escaping. He was unable to move at all times. His powers were cut off. There was no one left who could help him now that Agent Z betrayed him and Grundy was recaptured and put back into his cage with even more security. Joel literally had no logical hope of escaping.

Nothing short of a miracle could save him.

And this was his miracle. He had to take advantage while he still could. After all, how often was it that all the other beings in the world seemingly disappeared?

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Joel yelled at the top of lungs. He could feel his skin tear away from the chains. His bones began to crack. The fresh rush of pain made the ten year old boy clench his teeth and tremble.

This…wouldn't work. He was completely trapped. He couldn't even tilt his head to the side. How was he even hoping of escaping?

"Huff…pant…huff…pant…" Joel breathed deeply. He could feel his body begging him to stop. It was beginning to refuse his commands.

The ghoul struggled to fight back tears. Joel had learned a long time ago that crying never helped anything. Tears made everything worse. They revealed weakness and vulnerability that could be used against you. No, Joel refused to let himself cry a single tear. No…not after what happened last time.

"Damn!" Joel screamed. His cool resolve and uncaring attitude flew out the window. He had to escape! He couldn't die! He just couldn't! "PLEASE! I DON'T WANT TO DIE HERE! IF THERE'S ANYTHING OUT THERE THAT CAN HELP, GET ME OUT OF HERE! I JUST NEED ONE MORE CHANCE! I WON'T WASTE IT! JUST GIVE ME THE STRENGTH TO ESCAPE! JUST GIVE SOMETHING SO I DON'T DIE WITHOUT HOPE!"

He didn't want to die as he had lived. Trapped, without hope, and never knowing peace.

"…Please…" He begged. "Please…"

* * *

><p>"…No, I think this is the perfect time for this." Vision glared at the Dark Knight.<p>

"We have a bigger crisis on our hands than your personal issues with me and the League." Batman glared.

"Yes, my daughter is missing. Like all the children in the world, if you haven't noticed." Zatara's irritated voice rang through the Cave.

"We realize this, Zatara." Plasmius stated evenly. "That is why we came here in the first place. We wish to get the children back."

"Then perhaps it would be best to save our personal quarrels for another time?" Red Tornado suggested.

"That will be hard to do, considering the League has continued to put themselves into our affairs." Vision glared. "I don't trust any of you, so how am I exactly supposed to cooperate with you if I can't even trust you for a second?"

"Trust us?! Zatara roared. "You are the one that has blackmailed us into cooperation in more than one occasion. How are we supposed to trust you?!"

"You left us me no choice in that matter. Very few members of the League were willing to listen to us during the war. Not all of them were as collected as Batman and as noble as you, Zatara. They fought us and indirectly caused the deaths of hundreds of ghosts. Which none of you even seemed to care about." Vision explained. "I am looking out for the best interest of the ghosts, because none of you seem to give a damn. Not even when is a member of your little Young Justice group."

"So it comes down to that…" Batman sighed.

"This arguing is pointless." Dr. Fate tried to intervene. "We are only wasting time we could be using to stopping the spell that has taken the young ones."

"Don't try to be the voice of reason, Nabu." Pandora growled. "Reason went out the door when my daughter disappeared. We already know the location of the source, but we knew we had to come here and make sure we don't cross paths and end up fighting each other. Preferably, I would want to go there myself and destroy the fools, but I know this is necessary so the League doesn't have a hissy fit."

"Hissy fit?" Red Tornado questioned. "It seem to me that you are the ones who are overreacting."

"Overreacting?" Plasmius scowled. "Sir, I have to say that this is not overreacting. Not for ghosts anyway. Overreacting would be us destroying your League and everyone in it for the sins you have committed against us, and especially my student. The damage you have done to him is nigh unforgivable."

"It was Phantom's choice to join and stay with the Team." Batman noted.

"But it was your choice to use, abuse, and exploit him as much as possible." Vision's eyes were like acid burning through the Caped Crusader.

"Like you used him to collect knowledge on the League's activities?" Batman argued back.

"Do not compare me to you, Batman." Vision frowned beneath her veil. "My actions with Danny have not resulted in so much damage. In fact, my actions have always benefited Danny. You on the other have only hurt him. You take him away from his obsession, force him to lead your sidekicks, make him risk his life, cause him to sacrifice himself to be Dr. Fate, and then you use a simulation to break him and scar him in ways that are unthinkably cruel."

"None of that was by intention." Batman scowled. "Phantom made his choices."

"But you still manipulated him." Vision glared. "You keep trying to make Danny more and more attached to the humans. You want Danny to turn away from us and focus solely on your cause."

"That is not true." Batman stated. "I don't wish for him to abandon Amity Park."

"But you want him away from the Council. Don't think I haven't been paying attention to you or the others. You all look at Phantom and see the potential that he has. You want him on your side because you like him, respect him, and see yourselves in him." Vision seemed to mock Batman. "You think he's like you just because he lost his parents too? Think again. I will not let you make him into the second coming of you just because your own protégé has realized that he doesn't want to be like you."

Batman's lip twitched. It was a small thing. Only the most perceptive a people could see it, but Vision and Plasmius still did. "You don't understand anything."

"But I do." Vision stared at Batman. "You see it, don't you? He's basically a combination of you and the Kryptonian. That's the most dangerous combination thinkable. So you want to make sure that he is completely like you. I may be a conniving and manipulative person, but I have never forced my ideals or desires down Danny's throat."

"But you yourself realize that he can't be left alone." Batman retorted. "Look what happened to his future self. That must be prevented at all costs. Someone with that much potential and power cannot be left unchecked. He needs to be on the right path."

"Everything you've done, however, has only forced him to follow the path of self-sacrifice and misery." Plasmius's face was like stone. "He is hurt, and now there is nothing any of us can do. And that was because your fear what he could become and desire to have him as a friend and ally. Guess what? You did it. Young Justice is a part of his obsession. It only cost Danny everything. With that done, though, I have to ask about my daughter. She shares the same potential and power that Danny has. How long before you recruit her as well?"

Batman was silent.

"That's what I thought."

There was then a pregnant pause. Both sides glared at the other. By now, Phantom would have usually done something to step in between the two groups. That wasn't a option, though. Phantom wasn't here right now.

Another young hero was though.

"Guy! I'm here to help!" Captain Marvel flew into the Cave. Both he and the others were shocked to see each other.

"You're back!"

* * *

><p>"The magic seems to be interfering with satellite surveillance." Phantom noted as he stared at the blurry image on the screen. "We can't get a visual."<p>

"Then we are going in blind?" Kaldur questioned.

"It's not like we have a whole lot of choices." Conner grunted.

"SB's right." Robin sighed. "There's no way to get a visual from far away, and we're running out of time and options."

"Then a sneak attack is the best option." Wally suggested. "We may not know who's involved with this, but they're probably pretty high profile. Searching the League's data banks will help us figure out who could possibly be responsible."

"What if there's a lot of them, though?" M'gann asked. "If we're outnumbered…"

"There's eight of us." Artemis noted. "There would have to be a lot of people involved for them to have more than us."

"But…uh…what if it's a small number. Mabye even just one." Zatanna tried to put in her input. "That means that one person has a lot of raw power behind them, and a plan in case someone attacks."

"We'll deal with that when we get there. After all, there's still a lot of unanswered questions." Phantom sighed. "Like what someone would even hope to get out of this."

"Very true." Kaldur nodded. "The only logical thing would be that someone wants to use the chaos to accomplish something else."

"Chaos…" Phantom frowned. "Crap…This might just involve-"

"SHAZAM!" Boom! Rumble!

A ten year old boy just appeared in the Cave. "It worked!"

"Woah!" Phantom blinked. "Didn't see that coming."

"Where did you come from? Who are you?" Kaldur questioned as the team ran up to the kid.

"Read my mind." The boy instructed.

M'gann did. She then gasped. "He's Captain Marvel…"

Captain Marvel? The super buff hero that was an even bigger boyscout than Superman? How was that possible? This kid looked to be about ten.

"Yeah, and I'm Speedy Gonzales." Kid Flash obviously shared Phantom's skepticism. "Look, just because he believes he's Captain Marvel-"

"Gee, Wally. Do I really have to bring you nachos and pineapple juice to get on your good side?" The dark haired blue eyed boy smirked.

The entire Team shared a look.

"Okay…I don't really get what's going on, but I think I can speak for everyone by saying that…this is pretty freaking cool." Phantom noted.

No one could argue against that.

This obviously pleased the boy by the way his grin grew and his eyes lit up.

* * *

><p>"Huh…" Spirit continued to search the gym. She couldn't find Nyx anywhere. Where did she go?<p>

Everyone else was accounted for, though. All the teens and kids were in the school and were being guareded by the various young heroes in Amity Park. There hadn't been any problem, so Spirit allowed herself the chance to look for Nyx. The shadow ghost was nowhere to be found.

"Gah…" Spirit sighed as she leaned against the bleachers in the gym. "What am I even worrying about? She's probably in the bathroom-Amhmhmh!"

Spirit tried to yell about, but a hand covered her mouth and pulled her behind the bleachers.

"Shh…You need to be quiet." A female voice warned.

Spirit looked to who was holding her. It was Cassandra Cain. "Massamra?"

"Please. No one can know that I'm here." Cassandra warned.

Spirit paused for a brief moment. This girl did once try to interfere with her fight with Shiva. Considering that Shiva was her mother, though, Spirit didn't hold too much of a grudge. Plus, this girl did seem to want to help Danny. So, the halfa girl decided to agree.

"Mhs…" Spirit nodded.

"Good." Cassandra released the halfa.

"Why are you here?" Spirit questioned as she turned.

"I came here with a warning." Cassandra stated evenly. "I can't find Phantom, though."

"He's not here. He's trying to fix this." Spirit explained.

"I…see…" If Spirit wasn't paying attention, she would have missed the sliver of disappointment that flashed on Cassandra's face. Spirit, however, was paying attention, so she did notice.

"Why do you need to see him?" Spirit questioned suspiciously.

"I…have info that could help him." Cassandra stated. "I haven't been able to contact him because I'm always watched, but this was my chance."

"I see…Well, you can go ahead and leave the info with me." Spirit suggested.

Once again, the sliver of disappointment was there. "I suppose…"

"What am I not good enough?" Spirit huffed.

"No, it's not that…I just wanted to talk with Danny. It's not that you're not good, he's just so cool…" Cassandra stated. "But as long as the info gets to him…"

"Okay. One: Stop. He's my older brother, and we're the same age so…ewe." Spirit frowned. "Two: Can we get to the point."

"It's only a three year difference…" Cassandra muttered.

"Cassandra!" Spirit hissed.

"Fine. Fine…" Cassandra sighed. "I don't have anything else on the Ghoul Project because I'm a kid, but I do know what's going on right now."

"Oh?" This peaked Spirit's interest.

"Yes, Klarion the Witch Boy is behind this. I heard it from Mother when she warned me about her disappearing. Luckily, this allowed me to leave as soon as it happened." Cassandra stated.

"…How did you even get here?" Spirit questioned.

"Secret."

"Oh, please don't. I get enough of that from Greta…" Spirit frowned. "But that guy…Klarion…He's behind this?"

"Yes, and I have heard some of the goals behind it…well, one goal." Cassandra frowned. "And that's because my Mom was muttering about him not being around children…"

"What?"

"Klarion wants to use this chance to contact his daughter Nyx without the interference of Pandora." Cassandra stated what she heard.

"…What?" Spirit froze.

"I don't know all the details, but I know that it is directly related to this place." Cassandra noted. "He's sending a projection to come and find her."

"Crap!" Spirit groaned. "I was wondering why she was gone…I need to get Raven or Cujo and find that idiot."

"Okay, but there's something else." Cassandra stated. "I think your brother is in danger."

"No duh! He's always in danger." Spirit fidgeted. "I need to go now. My friend needs my help…"

"You don't understand. I think that soon Vandal Sav-Wait!" Cassandra watched as Spirit flew off.

"Raven!" Spirit flew off to her friend.

"What?" Raven turned.

"Do you think you can track Nyx?" Spirit questioned. She didn't ask earlier because she thought that Nyx was around here somewhere, but now that she knew Nyx was in danger…

"If I try, yes, but why?" Raven question.

"Klarion the Witch Boy is after her."

Raven's eyes narrowed. "I see. Okay, give me a minute."

"Right," Spirit nodded.

"Spirit?" Youngblood flew over to his friends. "Is something up?"

"Yeah, Nyx is in trouble." Spirit explained. "We're going to go find her. You and the others stay here and guard the people."

"Er…I'm not so good at the guarding thing…But okay." Youngblood shrugged.

"Good." Spirit nodded. "We'll be back. Rave, you ready?"

"Yes, let's go."

After exiting the school, Raven began to lead Spirit through the streets of the Amity Park. They were silent as they went. Both were too concerned with their own thoughts. Eventually, though, Spirit decided to speak.

"I wish the others were here…" Spirit muttered.

Raven knew what she meant. "Yeah…Having at least one adult would help with this."

"Especially Pandora…Torch once said that Nyx's dad was really dangerous. And if Klarion is her dad…"

"I don't know how that would even work physically, but you're right." Raven nodded. "And there she is."

At the edge of the city was the purple haired, blue skinned girl. She didn't seem to be in mortal danger. Nyx wasn't alone, though. Spirit recognized the skinny man…whatever he was…from the fight with Vortex. It was Klarion, or at least a mental projection.

"…my answers?" Nyx questioned.

"Of course!" The Klarion projection cackled. "All you need to do is come with me."

"Hmm…truth be told, I get these weird vipes from you." Nyx frowned. "You're a weird dude."

"Its genetic." Klarion smirked.

"Nyx!" Spirit called to her friend. "Get away from him!"

"What?!" Nyx blinked at them. "Why? This dude's just a projection. He can't hurt me."

"No physically." Raven glared at the Witch Boy. "But he will break you mentally."

"Awe…you're friends are concerned about you." Klarion snorted. "I'm sooooooooooo proud."

"Proud?" Nyx questioned. "Why would you be proud of me, Slenderman?"

"What's wrong with a father being proud of his daughter?" The Klarion projection smirked.

"W-what?"

"I'm not surprised Pandora never told you." Klarion giggled. "You see, you weren't made conventionally. When Pandora and I were fighting once, I tried to combine our energies into a monster. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, and you were made."

"Stop it!" Spirit shot a blast of energy at the projection. It obviously didn't work on the illusion.

Klarion rolled his eyes and continued to address the horrified Nyx. "Idiot. Anyway, in my shock, Pandora forced me to flee and got a hold of you. Bet she thought about killing you at first. After all, you'd be an abomination in her eyes. Guess she decided to raise you as a weapon against me."

"No…It can't be…" Nyx trembled. "You're lying…"

"I'm not. Come with me, and I'll show you." Klarion opened a red portal with a wave of his hand.

"Nyx, don't. He's a sick and terrible person." Raven warned. "A lord of chaos. He might just kill you."

"Chaos…This explains so much…" Nyx mumbled.

"Nyx, please…" Spirit reached out for her friend, but she was too late. Nyx was already stepping into the portal. "NYX NO! WE HAVE TO STOP HER!"

"Got it. Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Then, in a flash of black and red, they were all gone.

* * *

><p>Things had certainly turned in an odd direction for this catastrophe. Through collaboration with Billy…er, Captain Marvel, Young Justice managed to work with the League and the Council in order to stop the wizards that had apparently separated the worlds between adolescents and adults. They would do a joint attack at the same time and would hopefully defeat the two enemy groups at the same time. There wasn't too much planning they could do besides that.<p>

At least there was a plan. If it wasn't for Captain Marvel, they would be completely in the dark. Although, it was weird to know that Captain Marvel was actually a ten year old child. Granted, that explained a lot of the Captain's mannerisms, but it was still weird to think about. This made Phantom question what other secrets that individual members of the League had. Phantom could feel the temptation creeping in to ask Vision for the info she gathered on the League.

But Phantom knew better than that. Privacy was an important part of being a vigilante hero.

Zap! Boom!

'Crap!' Phantom pulled himself out of his thoughts. 'Have to stay focused.'

Their initial attack revealed that the person behind the division of the worlds was Klarion the Witch Boy. Phantom had been enemies with Klarion for some time, even before they somewhat clashed at the Tower of Fate. Klarion seemed to have a unique interest in ghosts…or at least messing with ghosts if his interference with Phantom, Pandora, Vortex, and…Nyx…was any indication.

Not only this, Klarion was a very powerful, immortal wizard. His power could rival Dr. Fate, and his only vulnerability was that had no physical body. While making him nearly invulnerable to most attacks, if an enemy attacked his familiar Teekl, Klarion would vanish.

So, Phantom told everyone this. "Go for the cat! It's his biggest weakness!"

"Right!" Superboy lunged at the small cat…only for it to become a large demon cat with saber teeth and bulging muscles. The demon cat then flung Superboy away like a rag doll.

"Please! A familiar to a Lord of Chaos won't be taken down to easily." Klarion jeered. The magical dome protecting him, until it began to shake and waver. "Gack…So you teamed up with the grownups. Team ups are so overrated."

With a flick of his wrist, Klarion sent magical blasts of electricity at the various members of the Team, sent Robin flying, and forced Kaldur to block the attack with his magic.

'Crap…' Phantom mentally groaned. The adults were ahead of them. They needed to hurry up. Deciding to go on the offensive, Phantom activated his ice powers. Luckily, his ectoplasm boost helped him bring back his more advanced powers…

Of course, by doing so, the halfa felt like his insides were on fire. His energy twisted and resisted inside of him. Despite his freezing core, his skin felt like it was melting off his aching bones. The pain nearly caused him to scream, but he fought it back as he formed an ice broadsword.

Then, with a roar, Phantom lunged at the dome of magic.

"Witch boy!" Phantom shouted as he slashed at the magic dome. "Turn the world back now!"

"Oh, is the little ghost boy upset?" Klarion smirked. "Do you miss the grownups that badly?"

"This is madness!" Phantom growled. "Billions of children are suffering!"

"Do you really care?" Klarion questioned. "You're heart doesn't seem to be in your work in Amity Park anymore. Is there too much pain there now?"

"Shut up!" Miss Martian yelled as she telekinetically threw some boulders at the sorcerer. "You don't know anything about Danny!"

"I know more than….Arg" Klarion growled at the explosive arrows rammed into his magic dome.

"You heard M'gann!" Artemis shouted. "Your mind games won't work!"

"They're right!" Kid Flash dodged the magic blasts coming at him. "Don't you try and turn us against our teammate!"

"Gah…" Klarion scowled. His features become even more demonic. "I hate when they refuse to listen to my taunts. Oh, well. It's almost time."

"That's right, Witch Boy." Kaldur pushed himself to the dome. "Your time is up!"

BOOM! CRASH!

The entire area was covered in black and red energy.

* * *

><p>"Gah…" Spirit pushed herself to her feet. "Welp…that was fun."<p>

"You're telling me…" Artemis groaned.

"Yeah…Wait a minute!" Spirit blinked at the blonde archer. "Why are you here?"

"Me? What about you?" Artemis questioned.

"I was teleported when I tried to help…NYX!" Spirit looked around desperately.

"She's…in there." Raven muttered as she too got up. In fact, all the people were rising to their feet. They saw Nyx standing in the magical dome. Klarion was kneeling down next to her. He had a wicked smile on his face as he spoke to the stunned girl.

"…You need to trust me on this." Klarion encouraged. "Pandora will never trust you completely. She sees too much of me in you. She sees too much chaos in you. It's only a matter of time before she starts putting you under lock and key."

"Nyx…" Phantom gasped. "Klarion! Get away from her!"

Klarion kept talking to the girl.

"Everyone! Attack!" Phantom roared.

Young Justice, Raven, and Spirit all obeyed. All the heroes began their assault on the magical dome. None of them held back. The dome quickly fell.

"AH!" Klarion yelled out in pain as the dome fell. Phantom used his ice powers to freeze his body

"Now, Kid!"

Kid Flash immediately took advantage. He ran by Klarion and grabbed the gem in the center.

"Yam eht owt emoceb eno ecno erom!" Zatanna yelled.

Thus the worlds united again.

* * *

><p>"Boy, they sure don't make evil immortal sorcerers like they used to." Karion noted as he shrugged off the ice. "Fun while it lasted. Teekl." The demon cat instantly shrunk and ran to its master.<p>

"Klarion!" Pandora roared to the lord of chaos. "GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!"

"She's my daughter too? Don't I get visitation?" Klarion chuckled.

Pandora's glare said no.

"Oh well." Klarion shrugged as he petted his familiar. "I already got my message across. Call me if you ever want to talk, Nyx."

"I…" Nyx fidgeted.

"See you later armadillos!" Klarion cheered as he created a portal and jumped in it. "Unless I see you first, Hehehahahaha!"

"Get back here coward!" Pandora yelled. "I shall impale your demon cat with my spear, Cretan!"

"Don't. You know that Klarion cannot be contained." Dr. Fate stopped the woman ghost. "And killing Teekl would only delay his return."

"Having him gone for a century would be worth the effort, though." Pandora muttered.

"…Why…" Nyx muttered. Her eyes were fixed solely on her mother. "Why…WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME!?"

"Nyx…" Spirit reached out for her friend.

Nyx ignored her. "You knew that guy was my father…You knew my true nature, and never told me?"

"You have to understand, Nyx…" Pandora knelt in front of her daughter. She still towered over the girl, though. "I knew you would seek him out. I couldn't have that before you were ready. He could have corrupted you."

"That's what you think, isn't it?" Nyx glared. "That I'll become the monster I was designed to be?"

"You were never a monster."

"Oh really? Did you think about killing me after I was created?"

"I…For a moment, but that was before I saw you." Pandora desperately explained. "As soon as I saw you, I was filled with the love of a mother. You were my daughter and always will be."

"Yet you still see him in me, don't you?" Nyx mumbled and began to walk away.

"Nyx! Nyx!" Spirit cried as she and Raven went to try and comfort their friend.

'Wow…' Kid Flash blinked as he mentally addressed his teammates. 'Didn't know ghosts had these kinds of problems…well, besides Danny.'

'You'd be surprised.' Phantom shrugged.

'Is she going to be okay?' Artemis eyed Nyx sympathetically. She understood what it was like to have a less than favorable father.

'I don't know…'

'Are you going to speak with her?' Kaldur questioned.

'No, she's Spirit's friend.' Phantom sighed. 'She'll handle it.'

'…' Superboy glared at the adults as they talked. 'You sure? The League and Council seem to think differently.'

'Just…Just give it some time.' Phantom frowned.

'At least it's not all bad…' M'gann looked at Zatanna and her father as they hugged.

'Yeah…' Robin agreed. 'Good to see a family united. Think this is happening all over the world?'

'Totally, Rob.' Kid Flash grinned. 'We totally rocked it today. Oh! That reminds me! My parents!'

'My Mom!' Artemis yelled as well.

'And Uncle J'onn!' M'gann cheered.

'Yeah…we should be getting back…' Phantom agreed.

'Are you okay?' Kaldur questioned his friend. 'You look worried.'

'It's nothing important.' Phantom shrugged. 'Just…a suspicion.'

Phantom was only looking at one of the adults in the area. Like the others, Dr. Fate was looking at the group of girls a bit away from them. Unlike the others, though, Fate wasn't looking at Nyx. No, Fate already knew about Nyx's connection from his…her, technically…time as Phantom. It was another girl that gained the doctor's attention.

Dr. Fate was starring directly at Raven.

'She isn't in Amity Park, so her demonic energy isn't hidden.' Phantom realized. 'Dr. Fate knows…'

The only question was…how would Dr. Fate react? Phantom didn't have many high hopes.

* * *

><p>"It looks like he tried to escape…" One of the new scientists in the Ghoul Project noted.<p>

"There's blood all over the chains…" Another scientist sighed. "We'll have to knock him out, patch him up, and clean the room."

"I say leave him." Agent Z leered at the broken ghoul. "He deserves it for trying to escape."

"S-sorry, sir." The second scientist addressed Agent Z. The ex-GIW leader was treated like a boss in the Ghoul Project now. He had proven himself already to the big bosses. Usually, what Agent Z said goes now, but… "If he's killed before we get to replicate his powers, we will all be punished."

"Fine." Agent Z rolled his eyes. "Knock him out and clean him up. He won't be here that much longer."

Joel glared at Agent Z

"Oh? You angry, little boy?" Agent Z snorted.

"Fool…" Joel sighed and dropped his frown. With a shake of his head, Joel added. "Karma will surely come back to haunt you."

"Karma?!" Agent Z laughed. "You really believe in that crap? Have you looked around? If karma was real, then do you think that you would be here in death row."

"I never said that bad things never happen to people who deserve it, but…" Joel stared at Agent Z. "Someone with so much sin cannot get away without punishment. That much I know. Your actions will cause you to meet a very terrible end."

"Sure, kid. Sure." Agent Z rolled his eyes. "Knock him out, already. I'm sick of hearing him talk."

"Of course…" One of the scientists prepared to drug the ghoul.

'Damn…Damn…Damndamndamndamndamndamndamndamn!' Joel mentally ranted.

This had been his last chance, and now it was gone. Why?! Why did it have to happen to him?! All he wanted was a bit of piece! Why was he flung into this situation!?

'Damn…' Joel mentally whimpered as the drugs were pumped into his body. He knew that if he couldn't escape with such a golden opportunity, he would never be able to get away. The ghoul knew that he was doomed to die without hope.

Feeling the fatigue claiming him, Joel bowed his head in acceptance of his fate. He wasn't going to fight it anymore.

* * *

><p>"GRACK! BLEH! ACK!" Danny was kneeling before his toilet. He was currently puking his guts out.<p>

"Well…damn." Valerie noted as she walked into the bathroom. "You look like crap."

"Thanks…BLEH!" Danny's head did not rise from its position.

"And this is a result of the ecto-boost?" Valerie questioned as she leaned against the sink.

"Yeah…" Danny raised his head a bit and nodded. "It leaves me violently ill and in terrible pain after I turn back into a human."

"Then…why use it?" Valerie questioned.

"It gives me time. Postpones the degradation." Danny answered. "Not only that, I can use a bit more of my advanced powers. It makes sure that I won't die in a fight."

"But then it causes this…" Valerie observed.

"It's worth it…" Danny ached and trembled in pain. Sweat poured down his brow. "If it helps me survive long enough to find a cure than it's worth it. I can't leave everyone alone. Not yet…"

"And here I thought you were trying to make the time you had left worthwhile." Valerie noted. "Spending so much time with your friends and family…I thought you already gave up hope."

"No…not yet. I have to keep fighting. It's the kind of person I am…even if I need a reminder every now and then…" Danny chuckled lightly.

"That's good." Valerie smiled. "So…What did you want to talk about?"

"It's about Artemis…" Danny looked up to the girl. "She kissed me."

"She did, did she?" Valerie raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but I pushed her away." Danny stated.

"And why are you telling me this?" Valerie questioned carefully.

"Because you were one of the reasons I did so." Danny explained. "I couldn't do that to you…or Kid Flash. He really likes Artemis…if you know what I mean."

"I think I do…"

"And she likes him back the same way. They're just both too stubborn to admit it." Danny grinned. "But I'm not."

"Oh?"

"Val…I can't say that I love you like you love me." Danny explained. "But…I think I want to try at least. To have something."

"So…you're asking me out?" Valerie clarified.

"Yes…will you be my girlfriend…" Danny asked.

"You sure? You've been though a lot lately." Valerie didn't want him to back out of it after a few days.

"I'm certain…" Danny sighed into the toilet. "During the training simulation, I…saw you die. It was not a quick death. And I was surprised by how I was hurt. It wasn't like the others. I questioned more what could have been if I gave you a chance. I really like you, Val, and I think that can grow into something more…if I make it through all this emotion stunt/powerless thing…"

"…Okay then." Valerie agreed with a smile. "I'd really like that, Danny."

"Good, but if I don't make it through all this disappearing crap than you should know…should know…BLEH!" Danny once again threw up into the toilet.

Valerie sighed and smiled as she rubbed his back in a comforting manner. "You're so romantic, you know that?"

* * *

><p>"It is none of your business." Vision glared at Dr. Fate.<p>

"Did you know?" Dr. Fate questioned.

"No, Dora. This was the one thing in the world that I didn't know. I was dumb enough to not even look into where my daughter's best friend came from." Vision rolled her eyes.

"Then you should know the danger she possess." Dr. Fate glared.

"Yes, I do. But both Danny and Danielle have made their choice in the matter." Vision explained. "I respect it, so should you."

"And you think they will stop Trigon?" Dr. Fate questioned.

"Yes, I do."

"It must be nice for your mother to have such trust in you…" Nyx grumbled as she and her friends sat on the steps. Given the circumstances, Nyx was allowed to sleep over as long as her mother was here. Rachel had yet to go home because she wanted to know what happened with Dr. Fate. And, of course, Secret lived in the mansion, so…

"Yeah…I'm sorry, Nyx." Dani noted.

"Ain't your fault, Girl Scout." Nyx's eyes narrowed. "But…everyone else knew. It wasn't such a big secret. They just made sure I didn't know."

"Secret." Greta encouraged.

"Thanks…That actually makes me feel better, Blondie." Nyx snorted.

"Secret…"

"I think we all can agree that today sucked." Rachel frowned. "Nothing good came out of this…well, besides the twist of fate thing."

"Huh?" Dani blinked. "Twist of fate?"

"Nothing…it was just a vision I had earlier." Rachel eyed Dr. Fate. "It's strange how the world works. Dora ended up taking the place of the man who showed her mercy…"

"What are you muttering about?" Nyx questioned.

"Secret." Greta added.

"Thank you, Greta." Rachel smirked. "It was nothing. Just wondering what's going to happen now that the League knows about my heritage."

"…Who knows…" Dani sighed. The League didn't seem to be the type to judge people based on family relations, but still…Rachel was a threat no matter how you looked at it. It was hard to say what was going to happen. "I think that we can all agree on one thing, though."

"And what's that?"

"Things are going to start changing very soon…"

* * *

><p><strong>Extra: Poker Night<strong>

"I raise." Phantom threw some of his chips onto the table.

Around the table, the other male members of Young Justice all called and placed their own chips on at the center of the table.

"So what do you think about Zatanna joining the Team..." Wally eyed Robin for more than one reason.

"It's pretty cool, huh?" Robin smirked.

"I bet." Kaldur responded with a calm face. "Considering how you were congratulating her for about half an hour."

"Dude, I wish you would go back to being serious all the time..." Robin frowned. "I get burned a lot less."

"I think the blame should be place on everyone around this table." Kaldur noted.

"Yeah, no kidding." Conner noted. "Just listening to you has helped the sarcasm."

"Oh, great. Now we have an angry and sarcastic Kryptonian clone." Phantom snorted. "How lucky are we?"

"Really lucky considering that I beat you all to a bloody pulp when we first met." Conner stated. "Despite all the knowledge the Gnomes gave me, I never realized that the Great Danny Phantom would be such a wimp."

"Oh! Nice one..." Phantom grinned. "But considering that I kicked your ass when we were in Bialya, I think the score is tied."

"Then we'll have to settle it." Conner grinned in return.

"As much as I would want to see you two brawl, can we finish the game first?" Wally questioned.

"Why?" Robin questioned. "Got a good hand?"

"No..."

Everyone stared at him for a moment, before stating, "Fold."

"Damn it!" Wally flung his cards to the table in anger.

(...One hand later...)

"Okay, truth time..." Robin stated. "Who do you think would win a free for all in the League?"

"No question, the Flash." Wally grinned.

"My king." Kaldur stated.

"Superman." Conner didn't even look up form his cards.

"Batman." Phantom stated.

Everyone looked at him.

"What?"

"Why him? He has no powers?" Conner questioned.

"Because he's Batman." Phantom shrugged.

"That's not a real answer." Kaldur frowned.

"You obviously haven't looked on the Internet..." Phantom chuckled.

"But how could he beet the Flash." Wally snorted at the idea. "No one can touch the Flash."

"I know where Danny's coming from." Robin grinned. "Batman literally has a plan to take down everyone."

"...Fair point..." Kaldur sighed.

"But..." Conner frowned.

"Never underestimate a good tactician." Phantom shrugged. "That's why Vision is so dangerous. A good plan can take down anyone."

"Huh...noted." Conner nodded.

"Speaking of strategies..." Robin placed his cards down. "Fold."

"Fold." Everyone besides Wally agreed.

"How did you know?"

"You've been jumping up and down in your seat for the past three minutes."

"Damn it!"

(...One hand later...)

"Okay..." Robin stated. "I'm all in."

"Too rich for my blood." Conner folded.

"I call." Kaldur pushed his chips in.

"Call." Wally nodded.

"Call." Phantom agreed. "What do you have, Wally?"

"Four of a kind."

Robin groaned. "Well, too bad I've got...Straight flush!"

"Damn it!" Wally shouted. "I can't win tonight!"

"Me either it seems..." Kaldur sighed.

"Never underestimate a trained ninja..." Robin reached for the chips.

"Oh, too bad, Rob." Phantom smirked. "Royal Flush."

"What?! No way! You must have cheated!" Robin glared.

"No I didn't. I cheated just as much as you did."

"Then I know you cheated!" Robin barked.

"Dude!"

"You admit you cheated?" Kaldur questioned.

"Er..."

"Never thought I would see you become tongue tied." Conner laughed.

"Never thought I would be beaten in poker..." Robin scowled. "Batman's going to be so mad."

"Wait let's go back." Kaldur frowned. "You've been cheating?"

"Uh...who we talking about?"

"You..." Kaldur glared.

"Actually..." Superboy spoke up. "I've been cheating too. Used my senses to judge your body reactions."

"I used my powers too..." Phantom admitted.

"I have four aces up my sleave right now..." Wally sighed.

"..." Kaldur bowed his head. "I would be ashamed if I did cheat as well. It turns out that I am not very skilled in it, though..."

"Well, damn..." Robin smirked. "I guess nobody wins."

"I'm not giving you back your money." Phantom snorted.

"Damn it!"

Superboy just laughed. "So...same time next week?"

"Of course!"

"You know it."

"Wouldn't miss it."

"Only if we all agree never to cheat again." Kaldur stated sternly.

Everyone shared a look.

"Well...we all know that isn't going to happen."

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you all for reading and please remember to…<strong>

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	21. Cold Truth

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Three things cannot remain hidden for long: the sun, the moon, and the truth." Buddha

* * *

><p>Chapter 21: "Cold Truth"<p>

(Thursday-November 11, 2010)

"Hey, kid." Agent Z sat down across from the restrained Joel.

The younger ghoul said nothing and merely stared at the ex-GIW leader.

"I heard you were refusing to eat." Agent Z mentioned. "I believe it. You look terrible, you know that?"

He received no answer.

"So…you've finally given up, is that it?" Agent Z questioned. "After all that talk about valuing life above all else, you decided to just give up in the end, huh?"

Blink. Stare. Blink.

Joel did nothing else.

"…Even I feel a little sad about all of this…" Agent Z spoke nonchalantly. "You weren't a bad kid, and you had all the potential in the world. I guess, I just decided to choose me before you."

This time, Agent Z didn't even want a response.

"I know I'm a shitty person. Someone who's too far gone now." Agent Z sighed. "And I don't regret it. I won't apologize for anything I did. I did what was best for me, after all."

Blink. Stare. Blink.

"I will survive. No matter what. Even if I have to stay here. I'm treated like a king of course, but I still lack freedom." Agent Z mentioned. "I suppose in the end, people will choose life over liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I know I sure as hell did."

It was then that Joel finally spoke. "Was it worth it?"

Agent Z snorted. "Yeah, it was. Soon, I'll get what I want, and I'm going to live through it. I'm going to be around a long time."

Joel nodded slowly in understanding. There was no approval, yet there was no hatred either. He was indifferent.

"Anyway, I just came to say goodbye." Agent Z smiled sourly. "They've figured out how to duplicate your powers…or at least your matter make ability into a machine at least"

Joel closed his eyes in acceptance. He knew what was going to happen.

"They also figured out how to stabilize the failed ghouls enough to keep them alive in captivity." Agent Z noted. "When they fight, they'll still dissolve, but now the big bosses have dangerous attack dogs from all this. But they did learn the chances of making a ghoul…a real ghoul, one that won't dissolve and actually have unique powers is nigh impossible through scientific means. Hell, even you and I'll dissolve if we fight too much. Thus, the Ghoul Project is being shut down for now."

Joel was waiting for it. The killing blow was coming.

"Queen Bee wanted me to kill you so they could dissect your remains, but she was overruled by the other big bosses." Agent Z grinned. "You get to live."

"For what, though?" Joel questioned.

"Good question." Agent Z shrugged. "All I know is that the big bosses are going to turn you and Grundy into investments. I don't know what they mean, but I still wouldn't hold my breath."

Joel wouldn't.

Agent Z stood and began walking to the exit of the cell. "But to me, it looks like you decided to just let go. That might just be the smarter option. Besides, I no longer have an obligation to keep you alive. If you decide to die, then it's no skin off my back. After all, we still have Grundy as an investment."

The door closed behind Agent Z with a loud bang, and Joel was left alone with his thoughts.

* * *

><p>"Danny! Wake up!" Dani yelled as she ran into her brother's room. She then flung herself onto his bed and dropped onto the sleeping halfa teen.<p>

"Gah!" Danny groaned as he was painfully pulled out of his slumber. "Crap! Dani, that hurt!"

"Good!" Dani beamed. "You need to be punished for sleeping right now!"

"Dani…" Danny groaned. "It's…6:00 A.M. and I was up all night prepping for Kid Flash's surprise birthday party. I think I deserve to sleep a bit. Besides, you hate mornings."

Not to mention that Dani's birthday would be soon too. Technically, she was created earlier than the fourteenth, but she was just a glob in a tube for most of it. Plus, she didn't start to age until Phantom helped stabilize her with his own energy and DNA. If he had done something differently, then Dani might only age internally. Luckily, she could live a normal life…for a halfa.

So, considering all the circumstances, Dani decided that her birthday would be on the fourteenth. They were planning a surprise party…which would be different from Wally's party because the speedster knew about his party. Yeah, KF's 'hints' weren't all the subtle…

"Not when it's snowing outside!" Dani beamed.

"Snowing? It's November…" Danny sat up and looked out the window. "Woah…"

"Yeah, woah." Dani was bouncing up and down in excitement. "Isn't it great?! I think that I'll even get out of school! What do you thing?"

"I think that Climate Change is getting way out of hand…"

* * *

><p>"Isn't this great!?" Dani shouted from the kitchen table in the dining room.<p>

"Hardly…" Vlad mumbled as he swallowed his eggs. "The rate this is going, all of my meetings and business calls will be delayed. I will be so backed up…"

"Tell me about it…" Danny sighed. "What if the Zeta systems stops working? It isn't used to reacting to this kind of weather. If it shuts down, it will take forever to fly home…"

"Only a few hours." Dani shrugged. "Plus the cold doesn't bother ice users."

"True, but I think the instant teleportation thing has spoiled me." Danny shrugged.

"Why are you being such downers?! This is awesome!" Dani grinned. "Someone back me up!"

"Bark!" Cujo obeyed his master and was rewarded with a strip of bacon.

"Yes…excellent…" Wulf nodded and caught the bacon thrown at him by Dani.

"Dude, you have your own bacon." Danny deadpanned to his friend. "Why would you suck up to her for food when you have your own plate?"

"You can never have enough bacon." Wulf grinned and spoke in the first line of English he said that wasn't broken up.

"Eh…Fair enough."

"For what it is worth, I don't sense anything involving ectoplasmic energy that could have caused this." Vision suggested from across the table. "This is odd, but I know it doesn't involve ghosts."

"What about magic or technology?" Vlad questioned.

"We will need to investigate that much…" Vision acknowledged.

"Well…something is up considering that snowstorms are appearing all over the country." Danny frowned at his phone.

"It could just be a miracle birthday present that fate has gifted me." Dani grinned.

"That is doubtful…" Vision shook her head.

"Speaking of birthdays, though, I need to get to the Cave." Danny rose from and seat.

"And I'm going to go meet my friends." Dani gained an almost evil smile. "We're going to have the snowball fights to end all snowball fights…"

"You know, you're pretty excited for a girl that can literally go to the Land of the Far Frozen whenever she wants." Danny noted as he and his sister walked out of the room.

"This is different! This is snow that gets me out of school! What could be better?"

"A weather phenomenon that doesn't end in car wrecks and tons of hours spent on shoveling snow?"

"Killjoy…"

* * *

><p>"Okay, Wally will be here soon. Are the cakes ready?" Phantom questioned as he carried food from the kitchen.<p>

"Yeah." M'gann nodded as she levitated the cakes. "I have one chocolate and one vanilla."

"You sure that will be enough?" Conner questioned as he and Kaldur hung the birthday banner.

"No, that's why I asked M'gann to make two and why I hid the cupcakes." Phantom shrugged.

"You do know that Kid Flash will still be able to find the cupcakes no matter where you hid them." Kaldur noted.

"Well, hopefully the cakes will distract him long enough for us to eat the cupcakes." Phantom shrugged.

"Yeah, hopefully." Robin snorted as he and Zatanna finished with the other decorations. "You do remember that he beat you in a eating contest, and you made duplicates and don't have to breath."

"It's the best plan I got, okay!?" Phantom fronwed.

Everyone laughed.

**Recognized: Artemis B08**

Artemis walked into the Cave and greeted her friends. "Hey, guys. Sorry I'm late. My mom was freaking because of the snow."

"Must suck not to have a car that can literally drive on almost every surface." Robin smirked as he remembered the Batmobile.

"Or just fly." Phantom suggested.

"Oh yeah…" Superboy smirked as he got down from the latter and patted Sphere, aka the Supercycle. It turned out that the simple sphere machine from Bialya was actually a super advanced fighting machine. Phantom could barely believe Superboy's story about the 'New Gods' from New Genesis. "Flying is nice."

"Okay, stop making fun of my normalness." Artemis frowned.

"You do know that most teenagers get made fun of for being different?" Zatanna noted with a smile.

"Yeah, but in this group, it's different to actually be normal." Artemis shrugged.

"Define normal, though." Phantom stated.

"Good point…" Artemis didn't even look at Phantom when she spoke.

"Danny…" M'gann whispered as she nugged her friend. "I think now's the time to talk to her. You know, before the party."

Phantom nodded and turned to Artemis. "Hey, Artemis, can you help me carry Wally's presents in here."

Artemis frowned. While she was far from weak, they had teammates with abilities that would carrying the presents easy. So, that meant, Danny wanted to be alone with her. "Fine. Let's go."

Ignoring the glances of the members of Young Justice that didn't know about their falling out, Danny and Artemis walked into the hall and headed to the closet they hid Wally's presents.

"I'm surprised that Wally never found his presents." Phantom noted. "He's been looking for a week after all."

"Uh huh…Can you cut the small talk and get to the real point of all this." Artemis turned and crossed her arms.

"Fine," Phantom frowned. "We need to talk about how pissy you've been lately."

"Why? It hasn't affected the Team." Artemis frowned. The halfa noticed that she didn't deny it, though.

"Because it's bothering me." Phantom stated. "We're in the business that every day could be our last. I don't want that day to come with a friend still being mad at me."

"Alright…" Artemis sighed. "I'm sorry about basically blowing you off for two weeks, but I was hurt okay. I put myself out there, and you rejected me. How was I supposed to react?"

"I never said that you didn't have the right to be mad." Phantom clarified.

"No, you didn't." Artemis nodded. "I guess…I just thought that the signs were there. The attraction was there. Neither of us were taken. We both wanted something to keep our minds distracted. I thought you would just go with it."

"I almost did." Phantom answered. "But I couldn't."

"Why?"

"Because you don't love me." Phantom stated. "You love Wally, though."

"W-what?"

"I can see it." Phantom noted. "The way you look at him, and the way he looks at you. You're both too stubborn to admit it, but you want to be together."

"…" Artemis looked away.

"And truth be told…there is someone else for me too." Phantom noted. "Red Huntress."

"I see…" Artemis nodded slowly. "And how long has that been going on."

"Not that long at all." Phantom stated. "Plus…"

"Plus what?" Artemis questioned.

"It's just…" Phantom frowned. "I don't want to be the guy that's not good enough."

"What do you mean?" Artemis questioned.

"I haven't had the most stable love life." Phantom noted. "I've been with girls that only liked certain parts of me, but hated the other. I've had a girl use me to get back at her boyfriend. And now I've had a girl try to deny her real feelings by going after me. In each one, I'm the guy that's okay to be with for a while, but not good enough in the end. I…I don't want that."

"So then…Ember was the most stable relationship you've been in, huh?" Artemis noted.

"Yeah…pretty much…" Phantom gave a small smile. "She didn't ask me to be anyone other than myself. That's what I want, and why I won't let myself become the guy that's second best."

"…Then I guess I better get over it, right? I'm sorry for putting you in that position." Artemis apologized. "And…thanks…for being honest."

"No problem. Come on, we should get those presents." Phantom smiled.

"Right."

"Oh, and one more thing…"

"Yeah?"

"I think you should tell him."

"…I'll think about it."

* * *

><p>Everything hurt. In fact, the pain had been a constant for a while now. Joel missed his Numb ability a lot. He now knew that he had grown reliant on it. It allowed him to ignore so much. When it disappeared, though, he was all the weaker for it.<p>

"Gah…" Joel groaned. He was having trouble breathing.

His body was weak now. The lack of food and the experiments had taken their toll. It was a struggle to just stay awake now. Every second felt like an entire eternity.

This was especially true after his talk with Agent Z. They had found a way to utilize his powers into a machine. That meant he was no longer necessary. Yet, they hadn't killed him. No, apparently, he was an investment.

What did that even mean?

Joel didn't know what was going to happen to him next. For all he knew, it could be even worse than this. That thought made him shudder. He didn't want to suffer through this anymore…

For once, Joel was thinking that death was a viable option. He believed that life was far too sacred to give up on, but was this really living? The boy was being treated worse than a diseased, caged animal. What was even the point of his life?

Joel, by no means, feared death. It was a force that no mortal could defy forever. It was the end of life. Granted, there was ghosthood, but Joel didn't know where ghouls stood on that spectrum.

Being trained by the Shadows had left Joel with a simple acceptance of death. It happened to everyone. Not even the Great One could last forever. Eventually, his mind would not be able to handle the resurrecting effects of the Lazarus Pit's resurrection ability. That was why he was looking for a successor in the first place.

It was the Shadow's training that ironically strengthened Joel's beliefs in the sanctity of life. To Joel, every second was precious…but if every second proved to be worse than the last, what was the point? Was it better to fight to live a hopeless existence or merely accept the peace of death? Joel wasn't sure…

But he did know one thing. He was far too tired to care anymore. Damn…he just wanted some peace…

Perhaps it would be better to give up. He had served his purpose in the Ghoul Project. They wouldn't force him to live if he did stop trying. Nothing was stopping him from giving up.

Closing his eyes, Joel stopped fighting. He couldn't bring himself to care anymore. No one else did, that's for sure, so why should he?

Slowly, the pain began to fade. It was different than when Joel used his Numb ability. Usually, the loss of the pain would lead to nothing. He was filled with a void. Now, though, he felt…pleasant. It was like he was gently being rocked to sleep.

Joel never had felt so at peace in his life.

Taking in a full lung's breath, Joel sighed out slowly until he no longer had any air left. His body relaxed and slumped in the chair. His face was one of content. He would finally be getting some sleep…

…His chest no longer rose…

…His body no longer gave off heat…

…Joel could no longer move…

…

…

…

"_No…You can't do this. It is not your time, young Dusk. The world still needs you."_

"Gasp!" Joel's eyes snapped open as he took a huge breath. He gasped for air and looked around frantically. He was no longer alone. There was someone standing a few meters in front of him. It wasn't a scientist, soldier, or even Agent Z. It was a girl.

The girl appeared as a teenager that was a few years older than Joel. She was pale and was wearing pure black clothing. A black cross hung around her neck. In fact, black seemed to a consistent color for her with her black hair and makeup.

"_Hello, Joel."_

"W-who are you?"

"_Me?"_ The girl gave him a gentle smile. It was filled with compassion and appreciation. _"I go by a lot of things, but most people tend to call me Death."_

* * *

><p>"Gah!" Youngblood grunted as several different snowballs bombarded him.<p>

"Ha!" Dani shouted from behind her snow fort. "Got you!"

The group of children were enjoying their snow day. Dressed in coats and winter clothing, Dani and her friends had spent most of their day outside. They built snowmen, snow forts, snow angles, and snow canons…that actually worked thanks to Rachel's magic. Needless to say, it was the snow ball fights to end all snowball fights.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

And Nyx was loving every minute of it.

"Ahahahahahaha!" Nyx laughed as Dani's fort was blasted away with the canon. "I am loving this!"

She turned the canon to Victor.

He raised his hands and yelled. "I give up!"

Boom!

"Ack!" He was blasted back by snow.

"No surrender! No mercy!" Nyx grinned in glee.

"Secret…" Greta eyed Nyx from her position to the side. The blond ghost was rather opposed to violence for the most part unless it was absolutely necessary.

Rachel shared a look with Greta. The look on Nyx's face slightly disturbed the two girls. Perhaps they were imagining it, but Nyx seemed to be…crueler than before. She seemed to delight in the pain of others. That much wasn't all that new, but it seemed a little more noticeable lately.

Perhaps they were just imagining it…

…Unlike that… Secret pointed up. "Secret."

"…Well, that's not good." Rachel noted as her control slipped on the canon.

"Hey! What the hell?!" Nyx glared at Rachel as the canon dissolved. "What's with that? We had them on the ropes."

"…" Rachel did not answer.

"Gah!" Youngblood pulled himself out of the snow. "We done?"

"W-we b-better b-be…" Victor shivered off the show. "I-I d-don't h-have the cold t-tolerance you g-guys have…"

"We'll get to your wimpiness later, right now…" Dani followed Rachel's line of sight. "Well, crap. I should have known that this was too good to be true…I am not going to hear the end of this from my family."

Above them was a giant flying fortress. It was huge and seemed to have incredibly tough defenses. Not only this, snow and ice were being released from all sides of the fortress. That meant that the fortress was the cause of all the snow.

"That reminds me of an anime movie." Youngblood frowned. "But I can't remember which one…"

"Castle in the Sky?" Rachel suggested.

"Yeah…kind of. Except that its releasing ice instead of being covered in trees and plants." Youngblood nodded.

"Either way, we're going to have the take it down." Nyx mentioned.

"You guys do that, I'm going to go inside and get hot chocolate." Victor said through clenched teeth.

"I'd ask you to save us some, but that thing is huge. It might take a while to take down…." Dani grinned though. "What a great snow day."

* * *

><p>Young Justice, in stealth gear, stood in front of Batman's image on the screen in the middle of Mt. Justice. It turns out that after all their work, Wally's surprise birthday party was cut short by Batman's demand that they prepare for a mission. Granted, Wally probably would have been depressed for the rest of the party anyway when Artemis revealed to him that M'gann and Conner were in a relationship.<p>

The poor guy looked like a kicked puppy at that point, while Artemis looked completely satisfied. Oh, yeah. It was only a matter of time now before they got together. Maybe Phantom should start a betting pool or something…

"Where's Flash?" Kid Flash questioned.

"Flash and Red Tornado already have their assignments." Batman answered. Phantom had to question how the Dark Knight got such good reception in this weather. Hell, even the Zeta Tube system shut down. "A massive ice storm has paralyzed North America from coast to coast. Satellite surveillance has detected six flying ice fortresses, source unknown, which seem to be responsible and must be stopped."

"Can't the Watchtower blow them out of the sky or something?" Kid Flash suggested.

"Wait? Is your space station weaponized?" Phantom blinked in confusion.

"Watchtower? Space station?" Zatanna blinked.

Batman sighed. "No, the League's orbiting headquarters is not weaponized. And with the Green Lanterns off world, I need all hands on deck."

Good. Finding out that his hometown could be blown to bits by the League with such ease would be beyond troubling. Besides, how dumb would it be for the Watchtower to be weaponized? If it were ever compromised, then cities could easily be blown to bits…

"Does that mean what I think it means?" Robin smirked. "The League and Young Justice fighting side-by-side?!"

"Woah!" Kid Flash smiled. "Really?

"Everyone but Phantom." Batman stated. "There is an ice fortress above Amity Park. The ghosts have already began their assault on the ice fortress. I am going to let them handle that one. Considering your ties to them, I'm assigning you to assist your friends in taking down the fortress."

Phantom nodded. That made sense. Besides, he probably would have rushed home anyway after hearing about it. This saves both time and face.

Batman gave his instructions to the rest of the Team. Each one was excited about their assignments…except for the birthday boy, that is.

"Uh, Batman, I think you skipped…"

"Kid Flash, a young girl in Seattle is in desperate need of a heart transplant. With all conventional air traffic grounded by the storm, you'll need to pick up the donor heart in Boston and run it 3,000 miles cross country."

"Who is this girl?!" Kid Flash exclaimed.

"Does it matter?" Batman questioned.

"No, of course not…But can't we Zeta-"

"Zeta Tubes are off line." Robin reminded him. "Sorry…"

"What about me, then?" Phantom stepped up. "I can fly so I can skip any on ground obstacles. Plus, my intangibility and ice powers can help keep the heart safe."

He hated the idea of leaving his family to fend for themselves, but there were a lot of them in Amity Park. They most likely could handle this easily without him. Besides, Wally had enough disappointments on his birthday.

"No, even at your top speed, you would never be able to make it in time." Batman stated. "Kid Flash is our best option."

"Right…then how can I say no…" Kid Flash forced a fake smile. "Guess I won't be needing stealth…" He deactivated stealth mode and stated. "Speedy delivery boy at your service…"

"Everyone get to your assignments. Batman out." Batman's image disappeared.

"Sorry, Bro." Phantom placed a hand on Wally's shoulder. "I tried."

"It's fine…" Kid Flash sighed. "Thanks anyway, though."

"We need to get going." Kaldur stated to them.

"Right…" Kid Flash frowned.

"Look on the bright side, Wally." Zatanna smiled. "Maybe the girl you're getting the heart for is cute and will give you a thank you kiss."

"Yeah…maybe…"

* * *

><p>"Death?" Joel blinked. "You…are Death?"<p>

"_Yes, I am. It's a pleasure to meet you, Joel."_ Death smiled gently. _"I'm just sorry that it had to be in such terrible circumstances."_

"…Are you here to take me away?" Joel questioned carefully. "Is this when I die?"

"_No, it's not your time yet."_ Death answered. _"There is still a lot you have to do. A lot you have to accomplish."_

"Accomplish? I haven't accomplished anything in my life." Joel noted.

"_Not yet, but soon…very soon, your story will become very important."_ Death suddenly sighed. _"I hate spoilers, but Destiny just had to make sure I knew that you would be important. At least he didn't tell me how this all ended…"_

Joel was very confused. "Your words make absolutely no sense."

"_I doubt they would." _Death noted. _"Even my chosen had a hard time understanding it all."_

"I still don't understand anything. If you are Death, and you don't want to kill me…Why are you here?" Joel questioned.

"_You were about to give up, Joel."_ Death gave him a sad smile. _"I can understand why, but that doesn't mean that I can just let you surrender your ideals. That can't happen according to Destiny. If you give up, this world is doomed."_

"Doomed? I'm just one boy." Joel felt like laughing at this girl. "There is no way that I can make such a difference."

"_Just as Phantom is one person? Just as Spirit is one person?"_ Death gained a distant look. _"Destiny spoke of it. Three pieces of halves. Phantom, Spirit, and Dusk. The three people who will be able to stand against the threats ahead."_

"Dusk? Who is Dusk?" Joel frowned. He had heard of Phantom and Spirit, but who was that third person.

Death laughed. Joel expected it to be harsh and mean. Instead, it was soft and comforting. "_Why, it's you, of course."_

"My name is Joel, not Dusk." Joel stated.

"_Many ghosts tend to gain a new name once they form."_ Death held up three fingers. _"Names have power and meaning, after all. For example, a boy who was once weak and was merely a phantom to this world, but later became a bringer of hope. A girl with a cheerful and compassionate spirit that can see the true intentions of those around her. And a boy who preservers through the dusk darkness of life to find the light and peace that makes life worth living."_

"…And you said three pieces of halves…"

"_There may be more… or there may be less later. Like I said, I hate having too many spoilers."_ Death shrugged. _"But as of right now, you three are the ones I know of. It will be you three that has the power to stop those that mock the Endless."_

"…This is a hallucination, isn't it?" Joel noted. "I'm dreaming."

"_No, I am here. It is only because you were so close to giving up and your connection to my chosen that you can see me."_ Death explained. _"No one else can, though. Right now, it's just you and me."_

"Okay, I'll just go with this…" Joel sighed tiredly. "But…even if I'm important, why should I keep fighting when I have nothing to fight for?"

"_You have one of the strongest wills I have ever seen."_ Death stepped forward and stroked his face gently. Joel thought he would be embarrassed, but he wasn't. Death's actions was comforting. She almost looked motherly as she looked at him. _"Only a handful of people could even dream about going through what you have and not crack. None of them, however, are still a young child. And for that, I'm so sorry. I hate to see suffering so much, especially with children. Unfortunately, the only way I can end suffering is by bringing the peace of the afterlife, and most people won't accept that. So I watch with sadness and tears as this world makes itself bleed."_

"It does do that…" Joel slumped down a little.

"_No! You cannot act this way! I know it hurts now, but this is darkest point before the dawn."_ Death knelt down and smiled with glee. _"My chosen will come soon. With him, he will bring Cheer. Hope and Cheer will find Peace and together escape hell. All you need to do is hold on a bit longer, and then you will find everything you ever wanted. Life, love, liberty, happiness, hope, family…"_

"How do I know that you're not lying? Hell…how do I know this is even real?" Joel questioned.

"_Belief, Joel. Sometimes, you must abandon logic and merely hold onto blind faith that everything will work out."_ Death stood and began to walk away.

"W-wait!"

"_I'm sorry, Joel, I'm out of time. Please, keep holding on. It will soon all be worth it."_ With one last gentle smile, Death was gone, and Joel was once again all alone.

* * *

><p>Crash! Bang!<p>

The metal of the gatling gun caved in under the pressure of Spirit's kick. It was merely one of the many, many, many weapons on the ice fortress. They had spent hours already trying to take the thing down. It was obvious that this thing was meant to take and deal a great amount of punishment. In fact, even with the great number of ghosts tearing the fortress apart, it would still take a while to destroy it completely.

Spirit grinned. Best snow day ever!

"This is pretty insane!" Nyx yelled while using her shadow energy to blow some of the weapons up.

"Isn't everything we do insane…" Raven mentioned. Her magic caused the guns and canons to turn on each other.

"True!" Youngblood yelled from his position of riding one of the machine guns like a bull. It was surprisingly effective on causing the machine to destroy other parts of the fortress.

"Secret…" Greta seemed to agree since she was using her powers to twist and distort the metal of the fortress.

On other parts of the fortress, the other vigilantes and superpowered residents of Amity Park were doing their part to take down the fortress. The entire ice fortress was covered in blasts of ectoplasm. It was a wonder that the machine was still flying.

This thing was obviously meant to last…

That led to the question as to what was the purpose of this thing? The ice fortresses were spread across all of North America. An entire content was covered in snow because of this. The point of these things was obviously something big. Most likely, they were meant as some sort of distraction or attempt to use the weather to cause some sort of chaos.

Why station one over Amity Park, though? This fortress would go down hours before the others did considering the amount of people attacking it. It could be used as a distraction for someone to get something in Amity Park, but everything worthy of value was heavily guarded. Masters Mansion, Fenton Works, Axion Labs, hell even the museum because it seemed to be a hotspot were all under constant surveillance and protection by automatic weapons. They would know if something happened.

Maybe someone just wanted to keep the ghosts in one spot. But if that was the plan, then they would be going after something the ghosts and Red Huntress would care about. To Spirit's knowledge, there wasn't a whole lot outside of Amity Park and the Ghost Zone that they cared about.

Wait…an attack on the Ghost Zone maybe? No, that would be stupid. The Ghost Zone was full of other Council members ready to fight. It would be stupid to attack with Colossus, Pandora, Frostbite, and Scribe ready to fight. Unless you had an army of Necromancers, of course, which was doubtful considering the lack of ectoranium available now.

So…what exactly was the end game here?

Logically, Spirit couldn't think of one. In her gut, though, Spirit felt that something was wrong. It was like something was poking her in the back of her mind. She had been feeling it for a while now. Something was off…

"Vision." Spirit spoke into her Fenton Phones. "I need to retreat for a moment to contact Danny."

"_Understood."_ Vision noted.

Flying away, Spirit called Danny.

"_Hey, Spirit._"

"Danny, I need to talk to you about this ice fortress thing."

* * *

><p>"I can see your point." Phantom agreed with Spirit's arguments. "Something is definitely wrong about all this, but we'll have to wait to find out."<p>

"_What about that feeling you and I had?" _Spirit questioned.

"That, I have no idea…" Phantom stayed closer to the ground to make sure the wind didn't interfere with his Fenton Phones. He was about fifteen minutes away from Amity Park at this point. "But I don't like it. It almost feels like the time I met…her after my fight with Agent Z."

"_Her?"_ Spirit questioned knowingly.

"Her." Phantom agreed.

"_Does that mean someone we know is going to die?"_

"I have no idea, but keep a close eye on everyone. I don't want to lose anyone." Phantom ordered. "I'll be there soon to help."

"_Roger Dodger."_

Phantom sighed when he canceled the call. What else could go wrong today?

…He just had to ask that, didn't he? Because as soon as he said those words, he felt a giant hand grab him and pull. Red energy flashed before his eyes, and he was dumped into a pile of snow.

"Hey there, Phantom!" Klarion cackled as he stared down at the halfa. "Long time no see. How you been? In fact, better question, how's Nyx?"

"Witch Boy!" Phantom jumped to his feet. He quickly slid into a self-defense stance.

"Oh, no need for that, Phantom." Klarion nonchalantly checked out his finger nails. "I'm not here for that."

"Then what are you here for?" Phantom glared. "What do you want?"

"What do I want? Absolutely nothing. It's about what my friend wants." Klarion's features became demonic.

"Friend?" Phantom glanced over his shoulder and saw a man standing several meters away.

This man was incredibly tall. He also looked like a complete wall of muscles under his dark blue coat with a red stripe on the edges. Despite his massive size, what really drew Phantom's attention was the three deep scars that ran across his face.

"Vandal Savage." Phantom growled.

"Danny Phantom." Savage grinned. "We have a lot to discuss."

* * *

><p>Joel breathed deeply. Was…was that a dream? He didn't believe it. The ghoul had actually met Death, the real personification of Death. Not only that, Death was a teenage girl. How weird was that? He half expected a skeleton in a hooded rope.<p>

Considering the world he lived in with aliens, wizards, and ghosts, Death being alive wasn't exactly the strangest thing that could have happened. In fact, at this point, Joel was sure that Death was coming for him. The conversation he got instead was confusing to say the least.

Death's words struck Joel to his core. Her gentle tone and promises of better tomorrows brought a Joel didn't know he had anymore. Part of him was now curious and hopeful about what was to come.

That part, however, could easily be crushed by Joel's reason. The ghoul was tried, hunger, in pain, and desperate. Of course his mind would play tricks on him. After all, there was no logical way that he could even hope to come out of this for the better.

Yet…Joel felt like he would. Once again, Joel felt like fighting on with his life. He no longer wanted to give up.

Soon, Hope and Cheer would find him. Soon, he would be on the path to find peace. Soon, he would be free of the Ghoul Project.

Because of what just happened, Joel believed that now. So, even if it was for a little while longer, Joel would continue on. He would wait and see where this all went and where it would all end. For a bit more, he would endure this hell.

This was merely the darkness before the dawn. All he had to do was preserver a little longer. If he did that, everything would work out…hopefully.

"Dusk…" Joel said this word carefully. He tasted it and how it sounded. It was a little weird, but he liked it.

Dusk. The darkness before the dawn. The fight before the end of the war. The suffering before the peace.

Joel liked that. It suited him and his life very well. If a ghost needed a new name, that was as good as any he supposes.

So, Joel would be Dusk. He would be the last push to the end of this story.

* * *

><p>Spirit flew across the ice fortress with ease. She twisted and turned to dodge the various explosions and bullets sent her way. As she moved, the halfa girl used her Spectral Claws to cut through the various weapons on the ice fortress.<p>

Despite her motions and battle expertise, Spirit was worried. She felt like something was wrong. Yet, nothing seemed to be wrong. All of her friends and family were quickly tearing the fortress apart. It wouldn't be too long before the threat was gone.

Well…there was one problem.

"_Where's Daniel?"_ Plasmius's voice sounded through the connection in Spirit's Fenton Phones. _"I thought that he would be here by now._"

"_Perhaps he stopped to help some civilians. The ice and snow must be causing quite a few accidents."_ Fright Knight suggested.

"_That does sound like him."_ Vision acknowledged. _"But it wouldn't take him this long unless there are a lot of accidents."_

"There is a ton of snow and ice." Spirit tried to reason. "Who knows what problems it could be causing by this point."

"_True. Perhaps I just worry too much._" Vision agreed.

Maybe, but Spirit had her doubts too though. Danny wasn't one to break a promise. If he was delayed, why hadn't he called yet to inform them?

He might be in trouble…They needed to end this.

"I'm going to try to go to the core." Spirit stated. "I think we destroyed enough of the defenses, but try to keep the rest of them distracted.

Her answer was several positive responses.

Turning intangible, Spirit passed through the metal of the fortress. They tried destroying the core before, but they quickly learned that they needed to destroy as many defenses as possible in order to avoid being blown to bits or hit by an energy backlash. By now, though, the fortress was damaged enough to get to the center of the fortress without much trouble.

Despite this, though, Spirit was still forced to dodge a lot of bullets and energy blasts when she entered the core room. Her Premonition and dodging instincts made this simple, however, and she was made it to the energy source with relative ease.

Activating her Spectral Claws, Spirit smirked. "And now the fun part…"

* * *

><p>"Discuss?" Phantom glared. "What would I ever want to discuss with you?"<p>

"You would be surprised, Phantom." Savage began to step towards Phantom. "After all, I know about so many of your problems."

"Oh, I'm sure. I've read the League data banks." Phantom grounded out. "Vandal Savage. Caveman that's lived over 50,000 years. Enemy of the Flash. A man that has eyes and ears everywhere. Definitely, an enemy that can't be trusted."

"Good, you've done your research. That's smart." Savage stopped a mere few feet in front of Phantom. "Klarion, could you please give us five minutes?"

"Kukukukukukukuku…" Klarion chuckled. "Of course." He then disappeared in a blaze of red energy.

"You sent him away?" Phantom frowned. "Why send you ally away? Do you think I would be that easy to defeat?"

"No, it's more that I don't want him to interfere. Klarion tends to stir people up. I want this to be civil." Savage explained. "Besides, you may be strong for your age and have unlimited potential, but I have faced a ghost that would cause even the mighty Superman to crumple like a small babe."

"Who exactly? Pariah Dark? Colossus? The Reaper?" Phantom questioned.

"Yes…Nekron the Reaper. The single greatest threat this world has ever seen." Savage traced the scars on his face. "He was a threat brought about by the Reality Gauntlet. A threat brought about by me."

"What does that mean?"

"Who do you think even created the Reality Gauntlet?" Savage questioned.

"…You?"

"Of course. It…was by far my greatest mistake." Savage sighed. "At the time, I thought that I could help people. But I was mistaken. I quickly learned that altering reality through force leads to devastating consequences. I could never imagined, though, that it would lead to the creation of ghosts. So, in a way, I was the one that created ghosts. Perhaps, I am the father of ghosts."

"Yeah, you're really fatherly." Phantom clenched his fists.

"I will admit. A lot of my creations and children have come back to try to destroy me." Savage almost looked reminiscent. "None more so than Nekron, though. Most people tend to think I had these scars before my ascent into immortality. Perhaps in another life that might be the case, but no. I really gained these scars from Nekron. He is the only being with the power to hurt that which is immortal. It was not a good day for me."

"How sad…" Phantom frowned. He was thinking of trying to get away. Right now, though, there didn't seem to be any huge threat, and he was really curious about this history he had not never heard before.

"It was not that way with every one of my children, though." Savage noted. "You met my daughter on more than once occasion. She is a very useful ally."

"Daughter?" Phantom was surprised. "You have a daughter?"

"Yes…Jinx." Savage answered.

Phantom's brain shut down. "W-what?"

"That is not what this is about, though." Savage noted. "I just came from a meeting with you speedster friend."

"Kid Flash!?" Phantom's eyes narrowed. "What did you do to him?!"

"Nothing more than distract him. I'm sure you'll find out why soon enough." Savage chuckled. "This ice fortress plan has allowed me to accomplish several goals for today. That was one. Another is finally being able to meet with you without any interference."

"Meet me? Don't you mean kill, maim, or capture?" Phantom inquired.

"Of course not. I would never threaten the chance to gain a potential ally." Savage stated.

"Ally? You got to be nuts if you think that I would ever work with you." Phantom growled.

"You will change your mind in time." Savage noted. "After you see what I have planned, you'll join me willingly."

"I doubt it!" Phantom's hands began to glow.

"Please. I do not wish to fight." Savage raised his palms to show his compliance. "I just wish to speak with you. I want you to join my side because I have seen what you can become. You have the potential to become a god. Your strength, speed, and stamina were unmatched during the war, and you leadership ability is far beyond most people twice your age."

"Flattery will get you nowhere." Phantom stated.

"Of course it won't." Savage grinned. "But cold hard facts will. You see, I have lived a long time. So, I have acquired vast fortunes, incredible experience and knowledge, and connections that cannot be surpassed."

"Where are you going with this?" Phantom asked.

"Don't you think that it is weird how everything seems to be connected in some way?" Savage questioned. "Think about it. The Guys in White work with the Shadows to obtain Fenton's knowledge on weapons and the Necromancers to start a war which allowed Lex Luthor and other sources to obtain energy for the Ghoul Project."

"H-huh?"

"And then, your enemies find a way to work with the villains. Walker gets into the Shadows easily. Various villains work together to create connections of drugs, technology, and magic that made Undergrowth so powerful." Savage explained. "All the coincidences. All the conspiracies. All the different people who seem to hate each other actually managing to work together. Do you really think that any of that would be possible if I didn't instigate it all?"

Phantom froze in though. It…it all made so much sense. He could see the dots connect. There was a conspiracy going on. There were people working in the background causing massive disasters and catastrophes.

And Phantom was at the center of it.

When Fenton was kidnapped…when Fenton works was destroyed…when the Guys in White obtained Necromancers and attacked Amity Park…when the Anti-Ectoterrorist Act was passed…When the GIW War happened…

Then there was almost every mission Phantom went on with the Team. They were all connected in some way. Every single problem Phantom had faced after the Nasty Burger Incident was planned about from the beginning, and it was all Savage's fault.

Phantom was stunned beyond words.

"It was you…" Phantom mumbled in shock as he stared at the large man standing a few feet away from him. "It was all your fault…everything…"

"It was." Savage acknowledged with a grin.

"W…why?" Phantom numbly asked.

"For the betterment of mankind…"

"…I have heard that before…is that your moto?" Phantom questioned.

His answer was merely that same dark grin.

"Damn it…" Phantom fell to his knees in frustration. "I can't…"

"As you can now see, I have connections to do anything I want really." Savage stated. "Even this is all because of me and my acquaintances. We have chosen to remain hidden for now, but that will have to change soon. But if the League finds out too early that would be a problem. So if someone happens to tell the League before we are ready, then my colleagues and I would become very upset. We might even be angry enough to destroy an entire city and every human and ghost that lives in it."

"You…"

"After all, we still have dozens of Necromancers, assassin's armed with ectoplasmic weapons, superpowered villains, and now ghouls to fight for us. It wouldn't be all that hard." Savage chuckled.

"…I won't say anything, but I won't join you either." Phantom glared. "You're a monster."

"Perhaps, but I know I can change your mind if I give you the right incentives." Savage noted. He pulled out a flash drive and tossed it to Phantom. "Consider that an act of good will for our potential partnership. That contains every little bit of data available on the Ghoul Project. You may go collect the scraps that remain. Soon, you'll have your chance to go there."

Phantom stared at the flash drive. "…I don't care about that anymore. That's why I left Vision to investigate it."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll care after you see the data." Savage laughed. "Now I must take my leave. I am a busy man with much to do. Klarion."

The Witch Boy appeared in a blaze of red from a ring that was on Savage's finger. "You done?"

"Yes. Let us go."

"Alrighty then. Kukukukukukuku!" Klarion and Savage disappeared into Klarion's portal.

Phantom stared at the now empty space. He didn't know how to react. He didn't know how to feel. All that he knew now was the things would never be the same after this.

* * *

><p>"Kekekekekekekekeke…" Nyx grinned widely. "Now that was a good snow day."<p>

"I would have preferred to stay home with some hot chocolate." Youngblood noted honestly. "I got shot by a lot of canons today. Usually, I like to be on the other end."

"You going soft on us, Chuck?" Spirit questioned. "I thought this was a blast."

"You would. I agree with Youngblood." Raven sighed as she floated above the wrecked fortress. "I'm ready for some hot chocolate. What do you think, Greta?"

"Secret."

"We seriously need to teach you more vocabulary." Spirit noted. "Maybe we can get Wulf to help you."

Hearing his name, Wulf looked up. He and Cujo had been investigating the wreckage of the downed fortress for any clues. They found none. "Que?"

"Nothing, Wulf. Just a joke." Spirit noted.

With a snort, the canine ghosts turned back to their tasks.

"Danny's still missing…" The children turned to see the adults talking. Red Huntress seemed extremely worried.

"Yes, perhaps we should start searching for him?" Plasmius suggested.

"No need." Vision stated. "My birds saw him heading this way."

"Was he harmed?" Fright Knight questioned.

"He did not appear to be so." Vision stated.

"I'm not…" Phantom flew up to the other ghost. "And you do know that you people talk really loudly?"

"Danny!" Red Huntress rushed to Phantom. She looked like she wanted to hug him, but she settled for flicking him on the forehead. "Why didn't you call or answer your phone?!"

"Sorry. A lot of people needed help with car crashes. I figured you could handle this while I helped other people." Phantom smiled at his girlfriend. "I would have called, but I was distracted. A lot of people were hurt."

"Oh…" Red Huntress deflated. "Gah…You are a hard person to stay mad at, you know that."

Phantom chuckled. "Yeah, I know."

* * *

><p>"Goodnight." Valerie kissed Danny's cheek and turned to leave Masters Mansion. "I'll see you tomorrow."<p>

"Night, Val." Danny stated.

"Bleh!" Dani groaned from her spot on the couch. "I thought we were done with that when Ember left."

"You'll understand when you're older, child." Vision soothed.

"I doubt it…"

"Daniel…" Vlad frowned at the television. "Did you know your friend was delivering a heart to a queen?"

"What?" Danny blinked as he turned to the screen. Apparantly, the queen of Vlativa was the girl that Wally was delivering the heart to. According to the report, Wally wasn't fast enough. "Damn. Poor Wally…"

"…Queen Perdita's uncle is Count Vertigo, the man from the Injustice League." Vision noted. "With her out of the way, he is king."

"That is incredibly convenient." Vlad frowned.

"Do you really think that was the point of all this?" Dani questioned.

"Perhaps. I lack the necessary information to say for sure." Vision frowned.

"Either way, that's a problem for tomorrow." Danny noted with a sigh. "I'll call Wally tomorrow and see if how he's dealing with this…"

"Yes, perhaps everyone should retire early tonight." Vision nodded. "It was a long day."

"But I'm not tired!" Dani argued.

"You always say that when you're about to pass out." Vlad noted.

"I do not! I'll have you know that I'm not…tired…yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawn…at all."

"Sure you aren't."

Smiling, Danny walked up the stairs and to his room. Once he was there, though, the smile fell. Walking over to the computer, Danny sat down in his chair and pulled out the flash drive.

Danny had to tell his family at least, right? What he learned today changed everything. They needed to know. But…what would Savage and his friends do? Would he attack with a full assault if he spoke out at all? He wasn't sure.

If they did, though, people would die. After all, the ghosts needed to protect both the Ghost Zone and Amity Park. If they shifted too many people to protect one of their responsibilities, then the other would be exposed. For all he knew, they would do a kamikaze attack and just blow parts of the city up…

…He couldn't be sure. Danny would stay quiet for right now until he figured this all out. Right now, he had to deal with this.

Because of all that had happened lately, Danny had basically ignored the Ghoul Project. He left the investigation up to Batman and Vision. Perhaps he shouldn't have, but it was too late to change that now. Besides, they had absolutely no lead left…

Except for this.

"What if it's a trap or a virus or something…" Danny questioned to himself. It could very well be that. At the same time, though, the halfa knew he couldn't ignore this. He would have to check. If there were any viruses, he could deal with that later.

Danny plugged in the flash drive. He saw everything.

The Shadows…

The Guys in White…

Lex Corp…

Bialya…

Solomon Grundy…

Failed ghouls…

Agent Z…

And…A boy with dark hair, blue eyes, and a scar that reached above his right eyebrow up to his hairline…The most successful being in the Ghoul Project…A kid named Joel…Danny recognized him. Ra's Al Ghul once threatened this Joel in order to get Danny Fenton to cooperate with the Shadows...

Looking at the data, Danny realized something very important.

"That kid…Joel…is a halfa."

…Danny had to save him…

* * *

><p><strong>Bonding Moment: Zatanna<strong>

"Welcome to Young Justice by the way." Phantom stated as he and Zatanna stood in the middle of the Cave. "I heard a lot of good things about you from the others."

"Thanks. I'm glad to be here. I thought that my Dad would never let me join." Zatanna smiled.

"He does seem like the strict type." Phantom noted.

"Yeah…but I'm lucky to have him." Zatanna stated.

"Hmm?" Phantom blinked. That was random. "Where'd that come from?"

"I don't know. I just feel that things could be a lot worse for some reason." Zatanna shrugged.

"Well, things could always be worse." Phantom agreed.

"Yeah…so what do you do for fun around here?" Zatanna looked around the Cave.

"It depends who you ask." Phantom shrugged.

"But I'm asking you."

"Good point." Phantom paused in thought. "I really just do what everyone else is doing."

"Oh? So it's up to me, then?"

"I guess."

"Excellent…"

(Five minutes later…)

"…I don't think that this will work." Phantom noted.

"Of couse it will, just watch." Zatanna noted as Phantom turned them invisible while the stood in the kitchen.

"Babe! You in here? I thought I smelled…" Wally looked at the counter. He saw a jawbreaker. "Ooh! A piece of candy!"

He popped it into his mouth.

…

…

…

"Ah! It burns! My mouth is on fire! Someone just cut off my tongue already! It would be less painful!" Wally ran out of the room screaming.

Phantom and Zatanna burst out in laughter. That was hilarious. Besides, it was a good way to keep Wally humble after he basically saved a country by delivering that heart to Queen Perdita of Vlatava and tricking Count Vertigo into revealing his plans. "Well, I was wrong. I can't believe he didn't even try to smell it first. He would have smelled the hot sauce. I guess he does tend to eat before he thinks."

"You got to love the fun of a good prank." Zatanna smiled. "I thought that you would be too big of a stiff to enjoy it, though."

"Are you kidding?! I am the king of pranks. Not even Spirit can beat me."

"Oh, I doubt that you could even beat me in a prank off."

"…Challenge accepted."

(Later…)

M'gann turned on the TV. She was expecting her cooking show. Instead, she got Chainsaw Masacre.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!" M'gann went screaming out of the room in ten minutes. No matter what she did, she couldn't change the channel or turn off the TV. Even unplugging it didn't work.

And apparently, M'gann did not like horror movies.

(Later…)

Conner was getting ready for his workout. He walked up to the punching bag and prepared to get out some of his aggression.

Punch! Splash!

He was covered in red paint.

"What?" Conner blinked at the disintegrated punching bag. "Punching bags don't bleed…do they?"

(Later…)

"Lolipop! Lolipop! Oh, loli lollipop!" Music rang through the Cave.

Artemis clutched her ears. "Ah! My ears! Stop it! I think they're bleeding! You know I hate this song, you jerks!"

She had been hearing the song all day. Even at school! Yet, no one else heard anything besides her. So, not only was she annoyed, people thought she was crazy too.

(Later…)

"Okay!" Robin yelled angrily. "Who replaced my uniform with a pink leotard? I am not feeling the aster on this one!"

(Later…)

Red Tornado awoke from his deactivation mode. He had to schedule an update to his systems. Luckily everything went well.

It would be two hours later that he realized that his body was covered in graffiti and bumper stickers. He had most of them removed. Oddly enough, he kept the bumper sticker that said, "hot rod."

(Later…)

"Okay, this is going to be the best one yet." Phantom smirked. "I called Captain Billy to come meet us at the Cave. He should Zeta hear any minute."

"And when that happens, my magic glue and feathers will explode on him and make him look like a giant chicken." Zatanna chuckled.

"Oh! That sounds so funny!" Captain Marvel noted.

Phantom and Zatanna's heads snapped to him. "Captain! What are you doing here?"

"I got your message." Captain Marvel noted. "We're going to see a movie?"

"No…but…if you're here…crap! We need to take down the trap before-"

**Recognized: Batman 02**

Boom! Pook! Swish!

…

…

…

"Uh oh…" Captain Marvel's eyes went wide.

"He looks mad." Zatanna noted.

"Yep." Phantom agreed.

"What should we do?" Zatanna asked.

"I suggest running like hell." Phantom stated.

"That sounds like a good plan."

"After you then."

"Thank you kind sir…AAAAAAHHHHHH!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Suffice to say, no one in the Cave was pleased that day…especially the Batchicken…er, Batman. Later, when the culprits were tracked down and punished, they gave the following statement.

"It was totally worth it."

* * *

><p><strong>Random fact, the episode this chapter was based off of, "Coldhearted," was my favorite episode in Young Justice besides "Usual Suspects." It was the perfect character development for Wally, so I didn't change anything regarding his story.<strong>

**Gah! The season premier of the Walking Dead was so good. I was literally yelling at my TV at some parts. No spoilers, but I got to say one character drastically changed into a badass in my mind. That's the type of person I want in my zombie apocalypse group.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW **


	22. Ghouls

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Nothing can make injustice just but mercy." Robert Frost

* * *

><p>Chapter 22: "Ghouls"<p>

(Monday-November 22, 2010)

"I'm going with you." Valerie stated firmly.

Danny looked up from his station. He was packing weapons into his Portable Fenton Crammer. "You are?"

"Yes." Valerie nodded. "I am. I was with you when you first investigated the Ghoul Project, and I want to be with you when you finish it."

"This is different." Danny noted. "This time, I'm working with Young Justice at the same time. This is a two sided mission. Not only that, this is Bialya. If this goes wrong, we could cause an international incident. I don't want you to get caught in that."

"But you're taking Wulf, Cujo, and Dani?" Valerie frowned.

"I need Wulf for a quick escape if necessary. Dani's decided to come no matter what, and I know Cujo will look out for her." Danny explained.

"So it's okay if Dani forces you to let her go, but not me?"

"You know Dani. If I said no, she would just follow anyway." Danny sighed. "And she wonders why we won't show her duplication. We would never be able to control her. Besides…she is…she has…"

"She has superpowers and I don't." Valerie clarified.

"…Basically. Look, she can take a ton of punishment without even flinching. You twist your ankle the wrong way, and you can't walk." Danny stated. "This is clearly going to be a trap. And…I don't want to worry about you."

"On the level of being my boyfriend, that's sweet. However…" She flicked him on the forehead. "You're being an idiot. I'm going. No arguments."

"But-"

"Look, I already regret spending all that time being disappointed in myself about the war. I could have helped, but I didn't. I won't let that happen again by letting you go off to the Ghoul Project without me." Valerie smiled. "From now on, I will always have your back, Danny."

"I know…and thank you…now I have to explain that to Batman…" Danny sighed.

The halfa had presented the data he got from Savage to both his family and the League. Danny claimed that the data came from a contact in the Shadows. Thanks to Danny's practice and skill in lying, he managed to pull it off. Thankfully, the story was believable.

Batman agreed that the Ghoul Project needed to be stopped, but they couldn't just charge in. Both the ghosts and the League had to remain political. So, they waited until an opportunity arrived. Luckily, well, not really for the people of Qurac, Biayla was having an…incident with its neighboring country. This meant that things may be chaotic enough to do something.

So, there would be two teams acting in Biayla. With Kaldur and Artemis busy, Robin would lead a squad of Kid Flash, Superboy, and Miss Martian to stop Queen Bee's attempt to take control of Qurac. On the other hand, Phantom would lead a squad of his own to infiltrate the Ghoul Project, rescue its captives, and shut it down.

Danny knew this was most likely a trap. Why else would Savage give him this data? He couldn't ignore this, though. The halfa had to at least look into it.

"It think it will be fine." Valerie stated. "A squad of five isn't that big."

"Some people will have to fly outside the Bioship, but yeah…" Danny sighed. "But I have to clarify this. When we're on the mission, I'm not going to act as your boyfriend. I'm going to act like team leader. I don't give special treatment, and I expect you to obey orders with minimal argument."

"Oh? So you're the big bad team leader?" Valerie questioned as she draped herself over his back. She leaned around and kissed his cheek. "That's fine, as long as you know I can still kick your ass."

"How could I forget when we spar every other day…" Danny grumbled.

Valerie chuckled. "Good boy. Oh, and by the way. If find assertive men very attractive."

"Do you?"

"I do." She turned him and gently kissed his lips.

"Val, I still need to get ready. I don't think we have time…"

"We can make time…"

* * *

><p>"Okay, we're almost to the drop off point." Phantom addressed everyone in the Bioship. "When we get there, Robin's in charge."<p>

"Yeah…right…I got this…" Robin nodded.

"We're going to handle the Ghoul Project. You guys make sure you find out what's going on with the leader of Qurac." Phantom noted.

"Roger that, captain." Kid Flash soluted Phantom.

"What happens when we both finish?" Superboy questioned.

"The drop off point will be the rondevu location." Phantom explained. "We'll wait there once we're finished."

"Wouldn't it be better if we went to back up them after we're done? We'll finish long before they do." Spirit rationalized.

"I have no idea what condition we'll be in after this." Phantom explained. "It's possible that we'll be too injured or tired to help."

"If that's the case, then how about we send the coordinates of a safe location if we find one." M'gann offered. "That way, you're not in the open."

"Sounds good." Phantom nodded.

"Try not to make it too far, though." Red Huntress suggested. "If everything works out, we'll be bringing back two to three people, if not more. We might have trouble carrying them."

"There's always a Fenton Thermos." Spirit suggested.

"Might not be the best idea if they're too injured." Phantom stated. "Cramming them all in there might kill them if they're too injured or unstable."

"True…" Spirit nodded slowly.

"Alright. Anything else?"

Silence.

"Okay. Miss M, how close are we?"

"Almost to drop point." Miss Marian stated.

"Alright." Phantom placed a hand over his ear and activated his Fenton Phones. "Wulf, we're going out now."

"_Si!"_ Wulf grunted. "_Ready!"_

"Okay. Miss M, open the hatch."

A hole appeared in the floor of the Bioship. Spirit and Red Huntress both dropped through the floor and flew next to Wulf and Cujo.

Before he jumped, Phantom stated. "Stay safe, guys. I'll see you soon."

Hearing the words of agreement, Phantom leapt out of the ship and flew beside his fellow ghosts and ghost hunters. The group of five turned and began to fly in a different direction from the Bioship. The coordinates of the Ghoul Project had been programmed into Phantom's Tucker Phone, so he could lead them right to the facility.

"You have a layout of it, right?" Spirit questioned.

"Yeah. I know where everything is." Phantom nodded.

"And you got that from the assassin? Why did she change her mind?" Red Huntress frowned.

"She's a weird one." Phantom shrugged. "Jen does what she wants."

"I see…" Valeire looked away.

"Grr…how many enemies?" Wulf growled.

"Enough to make us cautious. It will be one hell of a fight." Phantom sighed. "It isn't going to be easy…"

"When is it ever easy for us?" Red Huntress raised an eyebrow.

"Good point."

* * *

><p>"Wake up." Agent Z's voice caused Joel to snap back to the land of consciousness.<p>

"…What?" Joel blinked tiredly.

"I know what the big bosses are planning." Agent Z grinned. "Turns out this is good news for everyone. You and Grundy get to go free, and I get what I want most."

The ex-GIW agent grabbed Joel's chair and ripped it out from the ground. He then dropped it down and began to drag it away. Joel looked around as he was dragged out of the room. Guards were dropped everywhere. He couldn't tell if they were dead, though.

"What did you do?" Joel questioned.

"Poisoned them." Agent Z snorted. "Put something to knock them out in their food. They won't wake up for a while."

"Why? Won't this ruin your deal?" Joel questioned.

Agent Z snorted. "Deal? My deal was for them to stabilize me. Thing is, they don't have anything to stabilize ghouls yet, and I am out of time. In a few days, I'm gone. They said that they had something that might help in a different location, but they were lying. No, they were just trying to get me out of this place without finding out that my other goal was coming here."

"I don't understand." Joel noted.

"You will soon enough." Agent Z laughed.

Joel observed the now quiet Ghoul Project. Several of the cages were stained with green blood. They must have been killed. The soldiers were killing the least stable ghouls to get them out of the way. Does that mean that the others were going to be moved like Agent Z?

"They were going to move everything?" Joel questioned.

"Everything but you and Grundy. You're the investment after all." Agent Z stated.

"What do you mean by that?" Joel watched as Agent Z dragged him into the Ghoul Project's arena.

"It means that they were going to leave you here for Phantom to find." Agent Z explained. "They want him on their side, so they were going to give you to him out of good will. Not like it mattered too much. You're going to dissolve in less than a year and Grundy's wanted by the League. This was just a show to make it look like they're cooperating."

"Phantom?" Joel's eyes widened.

"Yes, and this give me the perfect opportunity. I may not get to live, but I sure as hell am going to get my revenge." Agent Z grinned darkly as he dragged Joel to the far side of the arena. They were far away from the door. "That's what you are for. I'm going to use you as bait."

"…I see…" Joel frowned. "Are you going to kill me?"

"We'll see. I know that Phantom will most likely come with back up. You're to make sure they stay out of it." Agent Z explained. "After I kill Phantom, you'll be free to go, but if I'm forced into a corner, I'll do what I have to..."

"How will you keep the others out? They can turn invisible after all." Joel reasoned.

"Don't worry…" Agent Z laughed. He held a tablet. On the screen, it said 'Lockdown.' "I have a plan…"

* * *

><p>"This is it?" Spirit questioned. "This is literally a hole in the ground."<p>

"There is a door, though." Red Huntress shrugged.

They were both right. The Ghoul Project was, in fact, metal doors leading down underground. Part of them thought that the Ghoul Project would be something more. Something like an outlandish building or hovering fortress. This, however, was just another underground lair.

"The interior will be a bit more impressive." Phantom stated. "Wulf and Cujo, tear open those doors. Spirit, RH, and I will blast the guards and form a shield to stop the bullets."

Everyone got to their positions. With combined roars, the canine ghosts ripped the doors right out of the ground. The others were about to attack the now open facility, but stopped when they saw the downed soldiers. For a second, they thought it was a trap, so they didn't put their guard down.

Slowly, the group made their way into the facility. As they went, they saw more and more downed soldiers. They were met with no opposition.

"What's going on?" Spirit questioned.

"No idea…" Phantom frowned. "Something's definitely wrong, though."

"Is this part of a trap?" Red Huntress questioned.

"Woof!" Cujo barked.

"Smell is wrong…" Wulf sniffed the air. "Poison. Soldiers…"

"They were poisoned?" Spirit knelt down by a group of soldiers. She checked on them. They were alive, but their pulse was faint. "But why would they be poisoned?"

"This has to be a trick." Red Huntress frowned.

"No…it's not that…" Phantom stated. "It's something else…"

This place…it felt odd. The air was heavy. Energy seemed to be flowing around him. It caused his head to buzz gently. The halfa recognized what this was. This was the weight of Death in the area. A lot of people had died down here.

"_Hello, Phantom."_ Agent Z's voice sounded throughout the entire facility.

"Agent Z?" Phantom questioned. "I thought you were a prisoner…"

"_No, I've taken this place over."_ Agent Z explained. _"All in preparation for this. I'm ready for you, ghost. It's time for our rematch."_

"Z, you need to stop this!" Phantom yelled. "You can get out without getting hurt. But if you fight, we'll be forced to take you down. I've read your files. You can't handle much more."

"_I know that I'm going to die. That means that I have nothing to lose._" Agent Z laughed. _"You know the layout of this place, right? Come to the arena, and be quick about it, or I might lose my patience and take it out on my hostage…"_

"You think he really has a hostage, or is he just messing with us?" Red Huntress questioned.

"He probably does." Spirit noted. "From what I remember about the jerk, he's not afraid to hurt people. Who would he take that would interest us, though? Grundy can take a lot of punishment."

"No…It's the kid." Phantom frowned. "He knows that I would never let a kid get hurt. Damn it, let's go."

As they walked, Wulf spoke up. "Trap."

"I know." Phantom grunted. "But what can I do?"

"We need a plan. We can-" Red Huntress was cut off.

"_I can see and hear everything you do."_ Agent Z's voice called out. _"You can't do anything without me knowing. Now get to the arena, or I cut off Joel's ear!"_

"Fine!" Phantom and the rest of the group ran the rest of the way to the arena. The doors were wide open to reveal Agent Z and a boy that was tied down with chains to a concrete chair.

"Phantom…" Agent Z smiled cruely. "It's good to see you. You look terrible."

"You're one to talk, Z." Phantom scowled. "You look like you aged twenty years."

"This place takes its toll." Agent Z did nothing to argue with the halfa.

"What do you want?!" Spirit yelled into the arena.

"I just want a rematch. That's all." Agent Z explained.

"Fine, you got it." Phantom was about to enter the arena when he was stopped.

"No you don't!" Agent Z placed a hand over the boy's head. He began to squeeze and caused the boy to groan out in pain. "Not yet unless you want me to kill the boy. Take off your jacket and empty your pockets. No weapons in this one."

"Fine." Phantom complied. He took off his trench coat and threw it to the ground. Then, he emptied his pants pockets.

"Danny…" Spirit warned.

"I'll be fine. Go find Grundy. I'll deal with Z…" Phantom stated to the others and walked into the arena.

"Before we begin, do you give your word that you don't have any weapons." Agent Z glared. "I know you and your type. Your honor won't let you swear on something lightly."

"…I swear on my honor that I don't have any weapons." Phantom stated.

"Good." Agent Z grinned. He then lifted the tablet he had in his free and used his thump to press a button.

Alarms blared around Phantom as the doors closed behind him. With a groan and crash of metal, he was completely cut off from the others. "You got what you wanted. Let the boy go."

"Fine." Agent Z shoved the boy away.

"Gah…" Joel grunted as he hit the floor. "…Phantom…You need to warn your friends…The other ghouls…"

"Huh?" Phantom blinked at the boy on the floor.

"The button I just pressed didn't just close the arena doors." Agent Z smirked. "Before I killed them, I had the scientists hook up the whole system to this tablet. When I activated the system, all the cages in the facility opened. Your allies are being swamped by ghouls as we speak. I don't want to give them a chance to find another way in after all."

"I see…" Phantom frowned.

"Now come on…" Agent Z crushed the tablet and threw it to the side. "Let's finish what we started during the war."

* * *

><p>Bang! Crash! Smash!<p>

"Come on!" Spirit roared as she, Wulf, and Cujo rammed themselves into the door. "Damn it! What are we supposed to do now?! He needs our help!"

"That won't work." Red Huntress noted as she examined the metal. "This thing was made to hold back ghosts. No way through like this. We need to find another way."

"Create portal?!" Wulf questioned.

"That could work…" Red Huntress nodded. "But it's not very subtle or completely accurate. Z has a hostage, after all. One wrong move from us, and the kid's dead. We need to be careful."

"What do we do, then?" Spirit questioned.

"Danny gave us each a copy of the layout. I'm sure we can find something." Red Huntress stated. "We just have to look."

"Right!" Spirit nodded. "Let's get-GASP!" Blue smoke escaped her mouth in waves. Spirit trembled and shook from the sudden tsunami of coldness. "Holy crap…what's with that."

"…not good…" Wulf snarled.

"WOOF!" Cujo barked and bared his teeth.

"What is it?" Red Huntress questioned.

"An army…" Spirit froze at the dull roar that seemed to be sounding though the halls.

A wave of green appeared in front of the group of four. Dozens of ghouls were charging right at them ready to attack. The four Amity Park dwellers' eyes widened in shock and fear.

"Crap!" Red Huntress shouted. "What do we do?!"

"Fight or run!" Wulf exclaimed.

"We can't leave Danny!" Spirit scowled. Her hands began to glow. "I'm taking a stand. They're unstable ghouls after all, all we need to do is knock them out.

"Easier said than done…." Red Huntress raised her wrists guns and fired at the charging ghouls. The blasts knocked a few of the ghouls away, but not too many of them.

"We can do it!" Spirit activated her Spectral Claws. "We just need to be careful!"

"Careful? Us careful?!" Wulf argued.

"…Good point. Be reckless then!"

* * *

><p>Joel struggled and pulled against his restraints, but like before, he could do nothing to break them. No matter what he did, though, he was stuck. If only he could use his powers, then he might be able to help Phantom out. As it was, though, he was no help.<p>

So, all Joel could do was watch as Phantom and Agent Z faced off against each other.

"You don't have to do this, Z." Phantom tried to reason. "It's not too late to surrender yet."

Agent Z chuckled. "It's been too late since I first attacked Amity Park, spooks."

Phantom sighed. "You know you're too unstable to fight me. If I win, you die. If I lose, my friends will probably kill you. There's no way for you to win."

"It's not about winning." Agent Z's arms began to glow. "It's about killing you."

"Fine then." Phantom slid into a self-defense stance. "I'm waiting."

With a roar, Agent Z extend his arm into a punch. The arm shifted into goo as it stretched at neck breaking speeds towards Phantom's head. The white-haired teen managed to dodge the blow and following attacks. He then sent a barrage of ectoplasmic blasts at Agent Z.

Seeing the approaching barrage, Agent Z prepared. He created shield in front of him. Phantom's blast's hit the green ectoplasmic shield. There were several small explosions, but the shield managed to hold back the attacks.

Not being idle, Phantom flew towards Agent Z. As he went, the halfa continued to blast at the ex-GIW leader. Unfortunately, the teen's approach to his enemy slowed his ability to attack. This gave the failed ghoul a chance to lower his shield and instead dodge the blasts coming his way.

Hoping to stop Phantom's approach, Agent Z used his ability to extend his limbs to try and hit the halfa teen. This proved to be useless. His white-haired opponent flew around the attacks with practiced eased. Soon, both fighters were close enough to move to hand-to-hand combat.

Joel grew worried. Agent Z was a formidal hand-to-hand combatant even without his powers. The only reason Joel even survived their fight was because of Joel's experience in using his powers and the older man was trying to incorporate unfamiliar powers into his fighting style. Now, though, the ex-GIW leader had a lot more experience in using his powers. Phantom might be in trouble…

…Wait…No, it appeared that Joel was wrong…

Once Phantom was close enough, Agent Z sent a quick roundhouse kick at the halfa's head. In response, the ghost ducked under the attack. When the kick passed him, the vigilante raised his fist to uppercut Z's chin.

This caused the man to lean back in order to dodge the blow. He then tried to kick the teen back. Phantom, however, rolled out of the way. As he came up, the halfa spun and sent a spinning back to the ex-GIW leader's head.

The blow was blocked by Agent Z. His arm stopped the blow and managed to grab the arm that was attacking him. Pulling the halfa, the veteran punched at the halfa's head in an attempt to break open the boy's skull. In response, Phantom brought his leg up and kicked Agent Z in his ribs.

Both blows hit their marks. Agent Z was forced to let go of Phantom's arm, and both combatants were forced to go skidding back. Each one of them was clutching their new wounds as they glared at each other.

Joel blinked. That was rather impressive. From what he saw in the reports and news, Phantom relied more on raw power than anything else. He never hat this kind of finesse before. These couple of months must have changed something in him.

"I'm surprised, spooks…" Agent Z grunted out. "Didn't expect you to get so good so fast."

"I have good teachers." Phantom noted. "Your blows are a lot stronger than I thought. It's not near at the Exoskeleton's level, but you know how to make them hurt. I guess the Ghoul Project gave you a power up, huh?"

"That it did. The cost was high, though." Agent Z grinned nonetheless. "I may die, but I won't be going alone."

"You keep saying that, but you don't have to die. I have ectoplasm boosts in Amity Park." Phantom stated. "They won't stabilize you, but it will postpone your degradation."

"Right. And why would you want to help me? I killed your best friend, started a war against you, and tried to kill you multiple times." Agent Z rationalized. "If I was in your position, I just kill you and get it over with."

"I'm not you." Phantom sighed. "I forgave you a long time ago."

"…Then you are a batter man than me." Agent Z clenched his fists. "I cannot forgive. I cannot forget. I…always knew that what I was doing was wrong. I just never cared. I was too far gone to care."

"Everyone deserves a second chance." Phantom stated passionately. "I don't think that there's a point where you can't find at least a little redemption."

"You're wrong." Agent Z chuckled. "Some people are beyond redemption. For example…"

Using his ability to extend his arms, Agent Z punched to the side. His arm extend and flew across the room. It landed on the only other person in the room.

"GAH!" Joel cried out and spit out blood as the fist landed on him. Unfortunately, his restraints and chains till held out, though. Agent Z had made sure not to hit those.

"What are you doing?!" Phantom yelled.

"I'm using the boy as leverage." Agent Z chuckled. "If we keep fighting, he might accidentally get hurt by our stray attacks."

"You…" Phantom growled.

"Of course, if you don't fight back, then I'll be able to control my attacks better." Agent Z smirked cruelly. "That way, Joel doesn't get hurt.

Phantom paused. He couldn't let the kid get hurt because of him. Perhaps he could free the boy? No, that wouldn't work. Agent Z wouldn't give him enough time to break the chains. If only he could do duplicates, then maybe he could do something. Unfortunately, his ectoplasm boost didn't restore his duplication of Ghostly Wail. He was trapped…

"I thought you wanted a fight?" Phantom glared.

"No, I want you dead." Agent Z stated. "And I'm going to get it."

The ex-GIW leader punched Phantom in the face.

"ACK!" Phantom was sent tumbling back.

"This is going to be fun…"

* * *

><p>Things were not going all that well for Spirit and the others. That was basically how the situation could be summed up. Things were not going well at all.<p>

They were outnumbered ten to one and were being pushed back. Luckily, their power and intelligence were vastly superior compared to the failed ghouls. Thus, they managed to hold out and soon they would push them back.

"I need to find a way to help Danny!" Red Huntress yelled after a few minutes.

Spirit frowned. While she did agree that Danny could use some help right now, it wasn't like they had a lot of people to spare. They needed all of them to make sure they didn't accidentally kill the failed ghouls. Their unstable forms couldn't take a whole lot of punishment right now. "If we all work together, we can finish this quickly, though!"

"By that time, Danny could be killed!" Red Huntress argued. "Agent Z has a hostage to use, after all! You know Danny won't fight if the kid is threatened!"

She had an excellent point. None of them thought that Agent Z was above using the boy as leverage again. If that happened, Phantom would be helpless. They had to at least find some way to get the kid away from the fight.

But if Valerie left, then the numbers would be even more unmatched. There was the possibility they could be hurt. However, some of the failed ghouls were already unconscious. They might be able to win with minimal injuries if Valerie went to help Danny…

"Go!" Wulf roared. "Help friend!"

"WOOF!" Cujo barked.

"…Right. Go!" Spirit nodded. "We can handle this."

"Thanks! I'll be back as soon as I can!" With that, Red Huntress flew off to find another way into the arena. Some of the ghouls chased after her. That would help them here.

Spirit turned her attention back to her attackers. These failed ghouls were less intelligent than the ones that made it to Amity Park. That meant that there was a difference between them. It could be genetic, luck, or just the different ways the experiments went. No matter what, though, these ghouls were acting more like wild animals.

This meant they were more vicious but less strategic in their approach. Spirit could easily handle that. She was kicking away the unstable ghouls with practiced ease. Her dodging abilities and Premonition made it that none of her wild enemies could hit her. All she had to do was be careful of their numbers and hope that her friends didn't get overwhelmed.

It would take a lot more to rattle her than a couple of wild animals.

"RAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWW!"

Everyone paused when they saw a violent Solomon Grundy charge in like a tank. He caught a few of the failed ghouls off guard and flung them into the wall. Each one of the beings that were hit by Grundy slid to the ground unconscious.

"Grundy!" Spirit exclaimed.

"GRAW!" Grundy kept charging into the group. He sent wild punches at everyone. Even Wulf and Cujo were forced to dodge the brute's attacks.

"Stop it!" Spirit yelled. "We're here to help you!"

Solomon Grundy refused to listen. He continued to attack everything that moved. His eyes were crazed and fearful. Spirit realized now that he didn't recognize any of them. The Ghoul Project had taken its toll on the zombie's mind. He was completely mindless at this point.

"We're going to have to knock him unconscious…" Spirit noted.

"AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhh!" Grundy managed to grab Wulf and swing him around to hit several of the failed ghouls away.

"Stop it!" Spirit leapt into action. She flew up to the back of Grundy's head and sent an ectoplasmic empowered kick to his head. The force caused him to let go of Wulf.

Retreating, Wulf clutched his wounds and growled. "Grundy…"

"Wait, Wulf." Spirit yelled as she dodged Grundy's blows. "Don't get mad! He's been tortured! He's scared and confused! But we still need to stop him! Just try not to be too brutal!"

"WOOF!" Cujo barked as rammed into Grundy and caused the large zombie to stumble.

"Fine…" Wulf grunted. He could understand what Grundy went through. The brute got a free pass this time…

"Rack!"

"Graw!"

"Nwa!"

The failed ghouls seemed to gain their bearings and once again attacked. With that, they were all forced into an all-out brawl. Spirit frowned as she danced around her attackers. This wasn't good. With this chaos, they wouldn't be able to limit the damage the ghouls received.

That meant that these failed ghouls would most likely die in the mosh pit.

'Damn it!'

* * *

><p>Crack!<p>

Phantom groaned in pain as Agent Z's foot landed on his ribs with great force. The blow caused him fall back and clutch his broken ribs. He was already incredibly injured, and his regeneration wasn't working right now. All he could do was withstand the punishment right now and hope that he gained some help soon.

"Get up." Agent Z ordered.

"Gah…" Phantom forced himself to his feet. "Why? Don't you want me broken on the ground?"

"Yeah." Agent Z nodded. "But I want to draw this out as long as I can."

He then proceeded to punch Phantom in the face. The force caused Phantom's nose to break. The halfa covered his now bleeding nose and closed his eyes in pain.

"What's the point in revenge if I don't enjoy it as much as possible?" Agent Z chuckled.

As this was happening, Joel continued to struggle against his restraints. It was no use, but he had to try. Phantom was being hurt because of him. The ghoul couldn't let the teen get killed because he was being held hostage.

Like before, though, the chains did not budge. Without his powers, he didn't have the strength to break the chains. There was no way for him to move right now.

The only way he could get free is if someone helped free him. Right now, though, the only people that could were Phantom and Agent Z. Neither were likely to free him, though, considering the circumstances. They needed help, and they needed it now…

* * *

><p>"Get away!" Red Huntress yelled as she fired shots at the failed ghouls with her wrist guns. The half-breeds managed to dodge the attacks, though and continued to charge.<p>

Using the schematics of the facility that she received from Danny, Red Huntress managed to find the entrance to the observation room of the arena. Her movements were delayed heavily by the ghouls on her tracks. They were a persistent bunch, but she didn't have the time to deal with them properly. She could feel it. Danny was in trouble and needed help now.

Grabbing the door to the observation room, Red Huntress moved into the room that overlooked the arena. As she went, Red Huntress flung a grenade behind her to blast back the ghouls. They would probably dodge the blast, but all the ghost hunter wanted to do was to buy time. That's why after she shut the door, she also used her wrist guns to burn the door shut and fill in the cracks.

"Okay…I don't have a lot of time…" Red Huntress whispered to herself. She ran to the window and looked down. "No!"

Agent Z was beating Phantom to death. The halfa was on the ground bleeding. It wouldn't be long before Phantom ran out of time. She had to do something now.

Red Huntress tried to shoot through the glass that showed the arena. Unfortunately, the glass was durable and was resistant to ectoplasm. This made sense considering that the arena was meant to contain ghoul fights. Too bad that meant that her attacks had absolutely no affect.

"Damn!" RH looked around the room desperately. There had to be a way to get something in there…

Thinking quickly, the ghost hunter tore through the electrical equipment. Maybe there would be an opening. All she needed was a small one. One quick shot was all she needed.

Bang! Crash! Bang!

The failed ghouls were trying to smash through the door. Red Huntress's actions delayed them, but it wouldn't hold forever. The ghouls had enough power to break though. It was only a matter of time.

"Come on…" Red Huntress looked in through the now completely destroyed equipment. There had to be something…

Yes! There was! On the far side, there was a speaker. If she unhooked it, the she could get her wrist gun though. Then she might be able to help Danny.

Reaching her hand into the space, Red Huntress managed to unscrew the speaker to the room and create an opening. Peaking though, she saw that she had a perfect shot to her target. While shooting, though, she wouldn't be able to see all that well. She would have to be careful.

CRASH!

The ghouls had managed to get into the room. They were swarming towards Red Huntress. The ghost hunter didn't have any more time. She would only get one shot at this. By the time she was able the disable all the failed ghouls, Agent Z would kill Danny.

Memorizing the angle, Red Huntress shoved her hand through the opening. If she tried to shoot through the opening, the wires and metal scraps would get in the way. So, she had to shoot blind. That was okay, though. She could do this.

This time, it would be her that saved Danny.

Boom!

Her wrist gun managed to get one shot off before the ghouls over took her. Almost anyone else would have missed the literal shot in the dark. The chances that she would hit her target the exact way needed was near impossible. Even the slightest error would have caused her to fail. Even the best archers in the world would say that the shot would be impossible the way she was trying hit.

Logically, it was impossible.

Fortunately, Red Huntress didn't care about that, because she had just saved Danny Phantom's life.

* * *

><p>Joel heard when the speaker came undone. It came from the observation deck. He had been so focused on Agent Z's assault on Phantom that he completely ignored what might be going on above him. The speaker falling quickly caught his attention, though.<p>

He was confused at first about why would that happen, but when he saw the hand come through, he knew. The boy didn't know who or how, but he did know the why. Someone had come to save them.

Boom!

The blast of ectoplasm soured through the air. It rocketed towards Joel in a blaze. Joel had to force himself to stay completely still. One twitch might make the shot miss. His efforts proved fruitful when the blast hit his chains perfectly and caused them to snap.

Joel was free.

White rings formed around Joel's waist instantly. It separated into two and began to travel up and down Joel's body. In a blaze of white light, Joel turned into his ghoul form. It felt good. For the first time in months, Joel felt whole. But…it was also different, because Joel was different. He was no longer just Joel now. No…

He was Dusk.

Feeling the Numbness fill him, Dusk jumped to his feet. The damage was still there, but he could now ignore it. Turning to Agent Z, Dusk smirked. It was payback time.

"Too late, brat." Agent Z stated as he raised his fist above Phantom. "I win."

Agent Z's hand fell. It was aiming at Phantom's head. The ex-GIW leader was planning on crushing Phantom's head and putting him out of his misery. It would have worked if Dusk didn't use his Pendulum Nunchucks to trap Agent Z's arm and stop it from falling.

With a tug, Dusk pulled Agent Z away from Phantom.

"Not so fast, baldy." Dusk stated. "You'll have to deal with me first."

* * *

><p>Kicking a couple of ghouls away, Spirit flew towards Grundy. The brute saw the charging halfa and responded. He sent his huge hand towards the female halfa's body. If the blow would have hit, Spirit was sure here bones would have cracked. Thus, she decided to drop down out of the way.<p>

The thing about such massive powerhouses was that they were often extremely heavy. Throwing them would be extremely difficult. Carrying them was even more difficult. Thus, you could imagine the stain on the knees as they carried the massive Solomon Grundy. Even the giant will fall without his knees.

So, when Spirit spun around sent an ectoplasmic empowered kick to his knees, the giant of a man could do nothing to stop from collapsing to the ground.

Jumping on his back, Spirit placed her foot on the back of Grundy's head to hold him down. "I'm not the same person you fought back in July, Grundy. I won't flinch because I see a little blood. I've gotten past my second guesses."

'Lung at girl. Tear her to pieces.'

Listening to her Premonition, Spirit lunged back to avoid being hit by the ghouls. This allowed Grundy room to move, however. Using his massive strength, the brute flung himself into the air. This caught the ghouls that attacked them and sent them crashing into the ceiling. Both ghouls were smashed between the monster and the ceiling.

Gravity came into play again. Grundy fell back down to the floor and landed on his feet. The ghouls on his back slid to the floor unconscious.

Head lowered, Grundy heaved and panted for air. "Gack! AH! Raw…"

"…Huh?" Spirit blinked as Grundy raised his head. Tears were running down his face. His eyes and face screamed terror as he looked around in alarm.

"Gah! Stop hurting Grundy! Stop it! STOP IT!" Grundy sobbed.

Spirit gave him a look of pity. This was different than the first time they fought. That time, he was fighting and rampaging out of pure rage. Now, he was frightened and terrified to the point that he couldn't think straight. She couldn't even begin to imagine what he went through. Right now, he wasn't an unthinking brute.

Right now, he was like a small child that felt scared and alone. Fighting him would do nothing to ease his soul. She couldn't fight him. Perhaps, she could reason with him…

"Grundy…" Spirit smiled gently. "Grundy, it's me."

"RAW!" Grundy roared at her.

"I know that why we are alike now. I know that we both come from Danny." Spirit gently stated. "The only difference is the circumstances. I come from a time of peace, and you come from a time of war. That's where the anger comes from. But Danny let go of the anger. You can to."

"GRAW!" Grundy began to charge at the halfa girl.

This time, Spirit did nothing to move. "I won't hurt you anymore. I'm sorry. Please stop, and we can go home. We can go to Amity Park, and you'll be protected. You won't be hurt anymore."

"AH!" Grundy raised his fists high into the air and brought them down.

"You don't have to be angry anymore." Spirit stated.

Grundy's arms froze above Spirit. Slowly, he moved his staking arms away from her. His tear stained face looked at her. "D-Dani?"

"Yes, it's me, Grundy." Spirit nodded encouragingly.

"Grundy…Grundy sorry… Grundy doesn't want to hurt sister…" Grundy sobbed.

"I know, Grundy. I know." Spirit smiled.

"Grundy wants to be free." Grundy cried. "Please help free Grundy."

Looking over to Wulf and Cujo, Spirit noted that they had defeated the rest of the failed ghouls. Both Canine ghosts were looking over to them. Spirit nodded. It was over.

"It's already done…." Spirit hugged Gryndy's massive arm. "Let's get Danny and go home."

…Wait...

"Crap! Danny!" In the chaos she completely forgot. They still had to help Danny. Hopefully, Valerie managed to do something.

* * *

><p>Phantom groaned from his place on the ground. His injuries had proven too much for him to move. All he could do was lay there bleeding. It wasn't as though he wasn't trying, but his body didn't want to respond.<p>

So, all he could do was watch as the boy fought Agent Z.

Dusk formed his Burst Gauntlets and tried to punch at the ex-GIW leader. His wounds and fatigue caused him to be rather slow in his approach, though. His opponent dodged and responded with a vicious kick to the boy's side.

Grunting, the boy slid back. He tried to get further away, but Agent Z did not let him. The failed ghoul continued his assault to the boy. Several blows struck the ten year old's body. His Burst Gauntlets crumbled as he was pushed back.

The boy was too injured and weak to defeat Agent Z right now. It was only a matter of time before Joel was defeated. Phantom wasn't sure what Agent Z would do to the boy. Would he kill him? It was hard to say…

He had to do something.

"Come on…" Phantom tried to force himself up, but his arms gave way and he landed on his face.

The halfa couldn't do it. Agent Z's attacks had broken his body. The attacks had been brutal and devastating. The ex-GIW leader was looking to hurt Phantom as badly as physically possible. It had worked apparently.

The pain was too much for Phantom. He was forced to clench his eyes shut as blood trickled out his mouth.

Damn it! He needed to move! Why couldn't his powers work just this once!? He needed them!

_They can work._

…What?

_Your powers can work now. You just need to listen._

Listen? He was listening. He heard the random voice after all. Was he going crazy?

_No, not to me, my avatar. Listen to the others. The voices of the fallen ghouls. They scream for blood._

Voices of the fallen? Why did that sound familiar? He heard that once. It happened back during the war when he had died. Danny could absorb the power of ghosts that were either touched by death or recently died. That was how he reformed his body. When he did it, though, he could hear the wills of the ghosts that had fallen. The energy of a ghost were tied to the user's will after all. That was why it was difficult to control the opposing energy if the will of the ghosts opposed Phantom's will.

_Their wills won't oppose you, though. Listen._

"Okay..." Phantom focused.

"_Help us!"_

"_It hurts so much!"_

"_I want this place to burn!"_

That was the voices of the failed ghouls that had passed on. The voices of the dead were speaking to him. They wanted the Ghoul Project to be destroyed.

"Gah…" Phantom opened his eyes as he rolled into his back. Someone was standing above him.

It was Death.

"_Use their power."_ She said soothingly. _"Do this and destroy the Ghoul Project once and for all."_

Phantom's attention was shifted away from the girl when Phantom saw Agent Z and Joel finish their fight. Agent Z had knocked out the boy and was now approaching him.

"Now then, let's finish this." Agent Z grabbed Phantom by his throat and lifted him up into the air. This caused Phantom to close his eyes from the pain of the choke.

"_Danny, reach out and take it. The power is yours to use."_

"Goodbye, Phantom." Agent Z raised his other fist to smash open Phantom's head. It almost hit the halfa until the teen's hand rose to catch the fist. "Huh?"

CRACK!

"Ah!" Agent Z shouted as his hand was crushed. "What?"

Phantom's eyes opened. They looked at Agent Z and caused him to shake in terror. The ex-GIW leader remembered those eyes. He saw them in his nightmares. They were the eyes of a judgmental god. Phantom's eyes were pure white as white and slightly golden ectoplasm danced around him. It was just like what happened during the war.

Once again, Phantom had managed to obtain the power of the ascended ectoplasm.

"No…" Agent Z whispered fearfully.

"**Yes…**" Phantom stated. He took his free hand, placed it on Agent Z's chest, and pushed.

"Wha…" Agent Z blink as he was sent flying from such a small gesture. His back rammed into the far side of the arena with great force. "Gack!"

"**You wanted a fight, Z, so you got one. This time, though…**" With a wave of his hand, a white and gold shield formed around Joel's now unconscious form. "**You won't be able take any hostages to use against me.**"

* * *

><p>From the observation deck, the Red Huntress gasped as she fell the power that hung in the air. It had caused the failed ghouls that were attacking her to fall to the ground in whimpers. It wasn't like Red Huntress was any better, though. It felt like there were a ton of bricks on her back.<p>

Despite this, Red Huntress still dragged herself to her feet. She looked out the window and was in awe by what she saw. Danny was wrapped in a halo of white and gold. She recognized it instantly.

"He did it again…" She whispered in awe.

Across the Ghoul Project facility, similar things were being thought.

"What that?!" Wulf flinched as a wave of pressure hit all of them.

Cujo whined and placed his head on the ground as he whimpered.

"Gah!" Grundy trembled in fear. "Power…"

"I recognize this…" Spirit whispered. "It's just like during the war. Ascended ectoplasm."

"That means…" Wulf looked towards the locked door.

"Yeah, I don't think Danny needs our help at all."

* * *

><p>(Play: My Songs Know What You Did in the DarkLight 'em Up by Fall Out Boy)

Dusk could only watch in awe as the energy around Phantom danced. It seemed like it was a miniature sun. Strands of energy seemed to whisk out and wave in the air. It looked dangerous, like it would lash out at any moment.

At the same time, Joel could feel a sense of peace and warmth from it. When he reached out and touched the shield protecting him, he didn't feel like it wanted to hurt him…if that made any sense. While the energy was powerful beyond words, it wasn't anywhere near malevolent.

"No…Not again! I won't let this happen again!" Agent Z roared.

The ex-GIW leader used his extending limbs ability to send a barrage of blows to Phantom. Each strike hit its mark. It didn't seem to matter, though. The halo of energy around Phantom blocked each blow. The halfa didn't even flinch as the blows pounced off him as if they were nothing more than a slight breeze.

"**This doesn't have to end the same way. Surrender, and I won't have to hurt you.**" Phantom stated.

"Shut it!" Agent roared. He then formed a massive ball of energy above his head and threw it at Phantom. Once again, the halfa did not move. Joel watched as the teen was blasted by a wave of green.

"See! I can still win!" Agent Z smirked.

"**No, you can't**." Phantom's voice appeared behind Agent Z.

In shock, Agent Z whirled around. He moved to attack, but was stopped. He was easily sent flying back by Phantom's backhand. It wasn't a vicious or relatively strong blow at all. Yet, his fist managed to almost break the failed ghoul's jaw.

"Ack…" The ex-GIW agent grunted as he pushed himself up. "Shit…"

"**Will you stay down now?**"

"Not until you're dead!" Agent Z rushed to Phantom. He did everything in this power to hit the halfa and knock him down. Punches, kicks, attempted throws and sweeps, and even headbutts were all thrown to Phantom. Nothing worked, though. He was like unbreakable wall.

"Damn!" Agent flew back to gain some distance and avoid being hit again.

He didn't get too far, though. Phantom caught up to him in an instant. In fact, the halfa moved faster than the failed ghoul. He surpassed Z and sent a massive roundhouse kick to Z's midsection. The ex-GIW leader instantly crumbled as he felt his ribs crack and insides shift.

"**With this power, I beat you while you were using you're the Fenton Exoskeleton. You don't even have a fraction of that power right now. It is impossible for you to win.**" Phantom stated.

"Raw!" In fit of rage, Agent Z flung himself Phantom.

Joel watched as this continued. Phantom would knock Agent Z down. The failed ghoul would get up and attack again, and he would get knocked down again. It was a brutal process. The boy was finding it hard to watch.

And, apparently, Phantom didn't like how this was going either. It was apparent that Agent Z would keep getting up while he could. In order to defeat the ex-GIW leader, Phantom would have to make sure he would stay down, but if he did that…Agent Z might become unstable. If it continued like this, though, the same thing would happen. That meant…

Either way, Agent Z was going to die.

"**You couldn't have just made this easy…**" Phantom sighed. "**Okay, then. I'll end this.**"

"As if! I won't let you win again!" Agent Z went for one final punch. Phantom's block knocked him completely off balance. He went stumbling back like he was hit in the head with a bat.

While this was happening, Phantom waved the energy around him in a swirling pattern. A white and golden vortex formed around him. It was almost beautiful in away. Destructive and dangerous, for sure, but the white and golden lights were worthy of awe.

"Gah..Wait!" Agent Z cried.

It was too late, though. With a wave of his hand, Phantom sent the vortex of energy at Agent Z at speeds that were nearly impossible to dodge. The failed ghoul was covered by the wave of energy.

Boom!

The force of the ensuing blast knocked Agent Z back into the far wall. That wasn't all, though. Agent Z was blasted through the nearly impenetrable anti-ghost steel wall. The metal twisted and distorted as Agent Z went through it and into the hall behind it.

Phantom waited for a second, but Agent Z did not get up this time. It was over.

Joel watched as Phantom walked to where Agent Z had went. As he walked, the shield around Joel disappeared. The boy no longer needed it.

The ghoul tried to get up, but couldn't. He was too hurt and tried to move anymore. His body was too damaged. But…he didn't have to fight anymore. Joel could let himself rest. So, after Phantom walked out of his line of sight, Joel allowed himself to lay down and enter the land of sweet unconsciousness.

* * *

><p><em>Phantom approached the downed Agent Z. The force of his last attack sent his foe into a hallway outside the arena. It was away from the entrance, though, so no one else was around.<em>

_The halfa looked down at the ex-GIW leader. The man was bruised, burned, and beaten. His body was now too damaged to do anything other than lie on his back while in pain._

"_Gah…I lose it seems." Agent Z grunted out._

"_**Yeah…but it didn't have to be this way.**__" Phantom sighed. "__**I gave you every chance to give up. You were the one that chose this, not me. This one isn't on my conscience.**__"_

"_No, I suppose it's not…" Agent Z chuckled, but stopped when the pain hit. "Gack! Cough! Cough!"_

"_**You seem pretty calm. Do you want to die?**__" Phantom questioned._

"…_Don't know. I suppose a part of me wanted to die for a long time now...or was dead inside at least. I guess just wanted to go out my way." Agent Z stated._

"_**Well…It looks like that's how it is.**__" Phantom watched as Agent Z's body began to dissolve. His body began to bubble and turn green as he melted on the floor._

"_AH!" He yelled out in pain. "Ah…huff…pant…Yeah, I guess this is it. Not like I don't deserve this, though."_

"_**No…you kind of do deserve this. You've done some terrible things.**__" Phantom responded honestly._

"_That I have." Agent Z agreed._

"_**...Do you regret any of it?**__" Phantom asked as he knelt down. "__**Are you sorry for anything that you've done to the ghosts?**__"_

"_No, I'm not. They deserved it for what happened to my family." Agent Z said with conviction._

"_**Family?**__"_

"_Yeah…Back before the GIW killed ghosts, we tried to capture and reason with them. I was so stupid. Ghosts don't listen to humans. You hate us. That's why when one of them escaped, it attacked my home." Agent closed his eyes at the memory._

"_**You can't blame all ghosts for the sins of one.**__" Phantom stated._

"_Better than blaming myself and losing the will to live." Agent Z didn't know how much that hit home to Phantom._

"…_**I see…**__"_

"_I…I still remember. I relive it every day. The ghost set fire to my home. My poor baby girl was inside at the time. I wanted to go in and save her, but the ghost attacked me." Agent Z began to tear up. "Then, while I fought the ghost back…My son ran inside. He wanted to save poor Ellie, but he never made it out. I still remember their torched bodies. The image haunts me."_

"…_**Ellie?**__" Phantom frowned. Why did this sound familiar._

"_I wasn't the best father. I worked a lot and was grounded too much in reality. My kids had big dreams that I never supported. I wanted them to be more realistic. But if I knew what would have happened, I would have supported their dreams more. Hahaha…I guess it would have been kind of cool to be the father of a famous rockstar and a professional fighter." Agent Z let the tears fall._

_Phantom froze. He recognized this story. "__**W-what were the kids' names?**__"_

"_Trever and Ellie."_

_Memories flashed in Phantom's brain._

_When Ember told him about her story back in March…_

_"I know, I want to." Ember looked at the ceiling. "When I was alive…I wasn't all that popular."_

_"I know the feeling." Danny admitted._

_"Yeah, it sucks." Ember sighed. "All I really had were my dreams of becoming a rock star. But one day this guy-a really cute guy too. He had these-"_

_"Please, I don't need to hear that." Danny groaned._

_Ember chuckled evilly and grinned. "Yeah," Her grin fell. "Anyway, he asked me to go to the movies with him. I was so excited that I was probably jumping for joy. The night of the date, I spent hours getting ready and made sure to get to the movies early._

_"I was there a half hour early. I was so ecstatic that first half hour. The next hour I was still on cloud nine. The hour after that was worse. And it only got worse from there. Damn…I was so naïve. I kept saying, 'He's just running late.' I waited there all night like an idiot." Ember sighed._

_"I would have done the same." Danny comforted. "Well…you know if it was a girl who asked me out. I'd probably not be as excited if a guy asked me. Flattered, maybe, but not excited."_

_"Nice save," Ember gained a dismal look. "When morning came, I dragged myself home. I was so tired, I passed out as soon as I got home. Next thing I know…I'm a ghost."_

_"What happened?" Danny questioned._

_"There was a fire." Ember explained. "I was so tired that I slept through it…I didn't make it."_

_When Torch told him about his story last month…_

_"…" Torch paused for a moment, but then spoke up. "When Torch was alive, his name was not Torch. It was Trever. Trever…was not the smartest person. Trever dreamed big, though. Trever dreamed of becoming a famous fighter. That man trained every day, but no one thought that Trever could do it. Not even Trever's parents…But there was one person. One girl thought that Trever could become something big._

_"She was a sweet girl. Far better than Trever deserved, and Trever knew it. So, Trever cherished her. She was Trever's most precious person." Torch began to tremble. "But then…but then something happened. An accident happened. She was trapped under all that metal and concrete. Trever knew the explosion was coming, but Trever couldn't stop himself. Trever tried desperately to save her, but…Trever wasn't fast enough, and Ellie died."_

_"Torch…" Phantom mumbled._

_"When Trever died and lost Ellie, Trever wanted to give up. To move on and let go, but Trever remembered his dream and Ellie's encouragement…It was then Trever decided that he can't give up and forced himself to live on. That was when Torch was born."_

_No…It couldn't be…_

_"You know, when I was alive, I never thought I would be in a situation like this." Ember admitted. "I'm not a strong enough ghost to have all my memories from my first life, but I remember a few things. The day I died is one. The fact that I had a brother and dad was another. But I also remember my dreams. I wanted two things. To be a rockstar and to fall in love."_

_There was no possible way they were connected like that…_

_Finally, Dora turned to Torch. "Torch…I'm sorry…But, I…"_

_"You don't have to say anything. Torch understands." Torch gave her a sad smile. "Torch…has never been one to hold someone back. Torch accepts you decision because this is what you want."_

_Dora walked over to him and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you. You're such a good man. I…I'm just sorry that this has to happen to you again."_

_Was...was that why Torch had such an interest in his dating of Ember?_

_"You and the ghost Ember are dating, right?" Torch questioned._

_"Yeah, why?"_

_"Because so many ghosts have love!" Torch cried. "Plasmius and Vison. DP and Ember. Even Box Ghost and Lunch Lady! Torch needs to find some love!"_

_"Why don't you ask out Dora?"_

_"She said no!"_

_"Oh…Sorry?"_

_"I-It's fine…" Torch mumbled. "But just remember, treat your lover right. You don't want to lose her or make her unhappy."_

…_It all made sense…It all connected...How did he not see it before?_

"_**Oh my god…**__" Phantom whispered. "__**Did…did you ever think about if your kids became ghosts?**__"_

"…_No, I guess I didn't. I was too blinded by hate and rage to even consider that." Agent Z stated._

"_**What if they did?**__"_

"_Then…what I did was worse than I could ever imagine." Agent Z shook his head weakly. "Harming your own kids…There aren't many sins greater than that."_

"…_**Damn it!**__" Phantom snapped. "__**Don't make me pity you! After everything you did…After everything you put me and my family through…You don't deserve pity!**__"_

"_And I never asked for it…Gah!" Agent Z trembled in pain. His body was now halfway dissolved. His face was distorted in absolute pain._

"…_**If you had the chance to say anything to your kids, what would it be?**__" Phantom questioned._

"_I..ack… would…gah… say…" Agent Z spit out green blood. "I love you, and I'm sorry…for not being a good enough father for you…"_

"…_**Okay…**__" Phantom nodded and stood. He would pass on the message._

"_I wish I could get to see them in the next life…" Agent Z whispered tiredly. "But I would never get to go to the same place they did…"_

_Phantom sighed and looked down at him in pity. Not even Agent Z deserved this. To slowly dissolve into a pile of goo…it was torture. He couldn't in good conscience leave him like this. It could take fifteen minutes for him to die. That was far too long._

…_He had to end this…_

_The halfa formed a frozen broadsword in his hands. _

"_What are you doing…" Agent Z gasped out._

"_**Giving you a warrior's death.**__" Phantom answered as he raised the sword above his head.._

"…_I see…You don't have to do this. I'm not worth the effort."_

"_**You may be a terrible jackass, but you're still my enemy…my rival. I can't leave you to die a slow and painful death.**__" Phantom gave him a look of compassion. "__**Know that I don't do this out of hatred, but out of mercy. Rest in peace, George Zempell.**__"_

_He brought the sword down and ended Agent Z's suffering._

_It was over._

* * *

><p>"I'm glad that you had Wulf take Grundy back to Amity Park himself." Spirit stated as she and Phantom walked out of the Ghoul Project.<p>

"Yeah…" Phantom, who had long since released the borrowed ectoplasm back into the air, nodded. "It kills two birds with one stone. Now, RH, Cujo, and Wulf can get medical attention while we secretly hide Grundy. I need to talk to Batman about him before anyone else sees him. He doesn't deserve to be in prison."

"I know, but you think Batman will care?" Spirit questioned.

"No, truth be told, Grundy never really did too much to deserve being in prison. As long as we keep him under control it will be fine." Phantom answered.

"But what about him?" Spirit pointed to the boy being carried on Phantom's back. "Doesn't he need medical attention or to be hidden for now?"

"No, I looked over his wounds, he'll be fine for now at least. Plus, I need to meet with my team, and I'm the only one he knows. He might be scared when he wakes up. A somewhat familiar face might calm him down." Phantom stated. "But I'm feeling really drained right now and might need some help…

"Say no more." Spirit grinned.

"Good let's…" Phantom blinked as he turned. A figure stood in front of them. Behind her were several vehicles with soldiers.

"That was quite impressive." Queen Bee stated. "Z cut off the surveillance in the facility, but anyone could feel that burst of energy. Was that the ascended ectoplasm? It was incredibly impressive."

"You…" Phantom frowned.

"What do you want?!" Spirit glared at the soldiers behind Queen Bee. "You picking a fight?!"

"Of course not. Why would I hurt my future allies?" Queen Bee smiled sweetly. Phantom was awestruck by her beauty. If he wasn't in his ghost form, the halfa was sure that her enthrallment would immediately work on him. He was thankful that his ghost form was extremely resistant to pheromone control.

"Allies? Why would we work with you? We saw what you did in there. You're a monster!" Spirit shouted angrily.

"There are plenty of ways to control people, dear child. My favorite is seduction. You may be young, but one day you'll find that men will do almost anything for a beautiful woman." Queen Bee smiled.

"She's not wrong in that one…" Phantom admitted to his sister.

Spirit merely huffed.

"But I still refuse to work with you or Savage." Phantom glared to the queen of Bialya. "Your enthrallment won't work on me, and I won't be bought just because of Joel and Grundy."

"We still have other ways." Queen Bee chuckled lightly. "But that's another day. For now, I'll thank you for defeating Z. I should have known that he would do something like this. The fool cares more for revenge than for survival. What did you do with him?"

"He's dead. Our fight made him too unstable." Phantom noted.

"A fitting punishment." Queen Bee noted. She walked to Phantom and notted. "You may go, but I'm sure we will meet again soon, Phantom."

Her hand brushed his arm. It sent shivers down his spine. Her look was that of lust, but of one of the body. It was more like one when someone saw a tool or weapon they wanted.

"I doubt it…Come on, Spirit." Phantom noted as they began to walk away. "Oh, and by the way, I destroyed all the equipment down there, and the failed ghouls died. There's nothing left down there besides a bunch of unconscious soldiers."

"Oh, it's the principle of the matter. You should know what I mean." Queen Bee laughed. "We're both very possessive people after all."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-November 23, 2010)<p>

"Gah…" Joel opened his eyes slowly. "Where…where am I?"

"You're at the Logan Animal Sanctuary." Phantom answered from his spot by Joel's bed. "I brought you here after we escaped the Ghoul Project. My Team says that this is a safe spot, so I brought you here to rest."

"Escaped?" Joel blinked.

"Yeah, don't you remember?" Spirit drew Joel's attention to the other side of the bed. "We totally tore that place apart."

"Yeah, you said that…" The redheaded Marie Logan frowned at them from the door. She heard some noised and decided to check up on them. "Are you sure that there won't be any retaliation? Your friend's actions caused them to nearly kill Garfield."

"They won't come here because of that." Phantom stated. "Trust me, they were actually glad that we were there."

"Hmm…" Marie stared at him for a moment and then sighed. "Fine. Gar seems to idolize you and thinks that you can do no wrong, so I'll take your word on it for now. If anything does happen, though, its on you."

"Fair enough." Phantom nodded as she walked off.

"Man, what's got her panties in a twist." Spirit frowned.

"Her son just got hurt. Give her a break."

"Doesn't mean she can be so rude…"

Joel looked back and forth between the two bickering siblings. "Wait. What happened? Why…how did you find me?"

"We actually have been looking for a while." Phantom noted. "But we only recently got enough info to find where the Ghoul Project is."

"We had to wait until there was an opportunity to come find you, though." Spirit added. "There was a thing going on with Quarac, so we snuck in while we had the chance…although, we got found out…But that's just a small detail."

"What about Grundy and Agent Z?" Joel questioned. "I remembered you fought Z, but I don't know what happened after you won."

"Agent Z died. The fight made him unstable. We managed to rescue Grundy, though. He's back in Amity Park already." Phantom explained.

"And the Ghoul Project?"

"We destroyed everything." Spirit smiled. "It's gone."

"Gone…" Joel paused. He couldn't believe it. "This has to be a dream. Please…tell me this is real…"

"It's real." Phantom chuckled gently. "There's nothing left."

"So…it's over…" Joel's eyes widened. Relief washed over him in a wave. "I'm…free?"

"Yes, you are." The ghoul was met with smiles.

"Free…" Joel chocked out. "I…I'm free…I can't believe it…"

"It's okay." Phantom placed a hand on his shoulder. "You can let it out."

The boy looked back and forth between the friendly faces. He shifted in the soft bed below him and pinched himself. He felt the slight pain and knew they were telling the truth. The ghoul was no longer in his cell in the Ghoul Project. He was no longer trapped in that hell.

Joel trembled and fought back tears. He couldn't let himself cry. Crying was a weakness. It got you nowhere. It only brings more pain. The ghoul couldn't let that happen. He couldn't show that weakness to the people that rescued him.

"Hey…" Spirit leaned in and hugged the boy. He froze at the gesture. He had never been hugged before… "It's okay to cry when you're happy."

"Ah…." Joel shook as he finally let the tears fall. The adult presence around him shattered. He now looked like the kid he was. That was fine, though. He no longer had to be hard and tough through everything. He was safe. "Ah!"

"There you go…" Spirit hummed as she rubbed his back.

Phantom smiled. "Everything's going to be okay now…"

Joel cried for a long time. He let out many years' worth of stress. When he finished, though, he was completely drained. Finally feeling completely safe, Joel quickly fell asleep in the warm bed that he was in. The other two halfas in the room quickly followed suit. Spirit laid down next to Joel and drifted into a peaceful slumber. Phantom continued to sit in his chair and settled for laying his head on the bed.

Together, all three halfas forgot the struggles of the Ghoul Project and entered the land of sleep. It was one of the deepest, most sound sleeps that any of them had. This was because they knew that this chapter of their lives were over. The Ghoul Project was dead. Joel and Grundy were safe. And now, finally…

The Phantom Family was complete.

* * *

><p><strong>You have no idea how good it feels to get this chapter out. I've been setting all this up since Torch's depute in Obsession.<strong>

**In nerd news..."I had strings/but now I'm free/there are no strings on me"...And a freaking Hulkbuster? I was already going to see Avengers 2, but now I'm pumped...for a movie that's seven months away. Every second seems like torture.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	23. Family

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Without a family, man, alone in the world, trembles with the cold." Andre Maurois

* * *

><p>Chapter 23: "Family"<p>

(Thursday-November 25, 2010)

"Damn you, Phantom! You dare come to mock me in this prison!" Undergrowth yelled.

"Calm down, you imbecilic." Technus glared at the ghost that was in the cell across from him. "You know it is not in the halfa's nature to kick people while they're down."

"…No, he just beats us to the point that we can't even think straight…" Betrand mumbled from his cell. The green blob did not look up at the half ghost. Instead, he stared down at his green blobby hands.

After the ghosts' defeats, they had been moved to the Ghost Zone Prison. The League was not completely happy with it, especially with Undergrowth; but Dr. Fate's assurance that the prison was far more secure and ready to handle ghosts than Belle Reve, and the new inhibitor collars Torch acquired helped, that's for sure. But they all knew that if even one of the ghosts escaped, then there would be trouble with the League.

"That wasn't my fault, Bertrand. Spectra did that to herself." Phantom looked to the psychiatrist's assistant.

"…I suppose she did…" Bertrand sighed.

"Why are you here, child?" Technus questioned.

"It's Thanksgiving. I didn't think that this was the day to be alone." Phantom answered.

"Bah! A foolish human holiday! One which isn't even celebrated in most countries!" Undergrowth growled.

"Besides, what is there to be thankful for exactly?" Bertrand questioned.

"You're alive." Phantom answered.

"Says the ghost." Technus laughed.

"You know what I mean." Phantom stated.

"The only life I care for is that of Mother Earth!" Undergrowth proclaimed. "And that life is slowly dying! You humans are torturing and destroying this planet! That is why the human race must be extinguished."

"You were working with humans only a few months ago." Phantom retorted.

"I was using them! I was going to betray them when they finally got their money. If it wasn't for you, I was have destroyed the disgusting human threat." Undergrowth snapped.

"And why do you hate humans?" Phantom questioned.

"I just said why! They are ruining this planet! It cries for help! You can't hear it, but I can! All of you humans ignore the crying planet on which you live!" Undergrowth clenched his teeth. "I saw it as soon as I was formed! New York City…It disgusted me! I immediately knew that humanity was beyond saving."

"Huh…I wonder what would have happened if you formed somewhere else…" Phantom turned to Bertrand. "And what's your story?"

"What does it matter?" Bertrand mumbled.

"Because I need to know what made you my enemy." Phantom answered.

"Your enemy? I never considered you my enemy. You are Spectra's enemy. That's all I care about." Bertrand responded. "That's all I ever cared about. I don't remember too much, but I remember that. Even when we were alive. All I ever wanted to do was please her, but I was beneath her. It didn't matter to me, though. I loved her. So, when she died in an office shooting, I couldn't force myself to keep moving on. I needed to be with her again."

"It was all for Spectra, huh?" Phantom frowned.

"Yes…she…she wasn't always like she is now. She used to want to help people. That was why she became a psychiatrist. She wanted to make people's lives better…better than what she had. But when she died, she was consumed by her own misery and desired nothing more than to make others miserable." Bertrand sighed. "I went along with her because I loved her, but when she started feeding me some of the misery as payment…I became addicted to it as well."

"I see…" Phantom nodded slowly.

"Why all the questions, child?" Technus spoke up.

"Recently, I saw that there was more depth to an enemy than I ever cared to learn about." Phantom noted sadly. "It made me realize that some parts of us are created not because of our choices, but out of circumstance. I think I need a wider spoke of what drives people."

"So you're finally starting to see. People are who they are and will never change." Technus grinned. Phantom already knew his origins. How he used to be an inventor who was betrayed by the woman he loved…

"No, I still don't believe that. But I do know now that not all of us get to move on from the circumstances we are put in." Phantom stated. "While we don't get to choose that, though, we do get to choose how we respond to it."

"Very astute, Phantom." Bertrand finally looked up. "So we responded to our circumstances poorly?"

"I think so. But I wonder…would you be different if your circumstances were different?" Phantom questioned.

"That, child, is something we will never know." Technus responded.

"Maybe, but it's a thought that's worth pondering." Phantom mentioned.

"Fool! I could never be different! All humans take the planet for granted!" Undergrowth roared.

"And I don't think that I would ever be in a situation where I didn't follow Spectra." Bertrand noted. "Even now, I would never escape without her. And I know that she can't leave. She'll only hurt herself if she's out of that padded cell of hers…"

"See, child? People don't change no matter how much you want them to." Technus laughed.

"No…It's not about me wanting you to change. It's about you wanting to change." Phantom retorted. "That's the difference. And If you don't want to change, then you'll never become better than what you are."

* * *

><p>Joel blinked as finally opened his eyes after the long rest he had. The ghoul felt a soft bed underneath him. The air was clean and smooth. He was no longer tied up or chained down. This was a change. It was vastly different than how it normally was in the Ghoul Project.<p>

No…He wasn't in the Ghoul Project anymore. He was rescued by Danny Phantom and Spirit. The ghost heroes of Amity Park. That was what he remembered. His last memory was being with them in that animal sanctuary. After that, everything was blank.

His body was stiff and sore, so Joel probably slept a long time. Thus, he was probably moved again. The question was where? They most likely took them too their home base in Amity Park. That would make the most sense.

…But sense kind of went out the window when he saw that the ceiling was made of ice…

"Ah! You're awake, young friend." Joel turned his head.

Blink. Pause. Blink.

…What was that? Was that a yeti?

"Ah, you're confused. That's understandable considering the circumstances." The yeti creature with an ice arm scratched his head. "My name is Frostbite, leader of the Land of the Far Frozen and close friend to the Great One?"

"You're friends with Ra's Al Ghul?" Joel frowned. He didn't recall the Shadows having yeti minions…

"What? No, I'm speaking about Danny Phantom, hero of the Ghost Zone." Frostbite smiled.

"Oh…" Joel calmed down a lot. "So…you're a ghost then…"

"Yes, I am, young friend." Frostbite nodded.

"…" Joel looked were several yet creatures around him. They all seemed to be moving around and doing something in the medical facility, but they were all staring at him. "So…I'm guessing that I'm in the Frozen Wonderland you spoke of, Mr. Icebit. And that this place is in the Ghost Zone."

"Er…" Frostbite blinked at the boy's poor memory on names, but still smiled. "Well, It's the Land of the Far Frozen and I'm Frostbite, but essentially yes. You are in the Ghost Zone. The halfas brought you here for medical attention. Some of my people are skilled doctors."

"I see…Well, thank you for your help, Mr. Frozenclaw." Joel bowed his head in thanks.

"It's Frostbite, young friend." Frostbite gently reminded.

"Oh, I apologize. I have a terrible memory for names…Mr. Frostbite." Joel apologized.

"It's quite alright, young friend. I've long since learned that most ghosts have their unique quarks. This is even more so true for half-ghosts like you." Frostbite laughed.

"Half-ghost? What's that?" Joel questioned.

"Oh…The Great One must not have told you…I'll let him explain it to you. I'll just say that you're a rare form of ghost." Frostbite shrugged.

"Is that why all of your friends are gaping at me like that?" Joel questioned bluntly.

"Yes!" Frostbite grinned. "There aren't many half-ghosts in existence. This is a rare sight."

"…Can I point out, that I'm the guys that's surrounded by giant yeti people and I'm still the rare sight?" Joel noted.

"Yes, but we see each other every day."

"…Fair point. Stare away."

* * *

><p>"Come on, Miss Roth! Please!" Spirit struggled to pull Rachel's mother into the Specter Speeder.<p>

"No! I don't want to go to the Ghost Zone!" Angela Roth pulled back.

"I assure you, Miss Roth, it will be perfectly safe. The ghost Council has assured our safety." Jason Blood smiled from the back seat.

"Not only that, once you spend time with the weirdos, it's only a matter of time before you realize that they only want peace." Harriet Chin did not look up from her phone. She seemed to be glaring at it angrily. Then, she muttered to herself. "Although, they do tend to avoid talking about an important meeting that's coming up in a few weeks...stupid boy..."

"Yeah, Mom, it's not really that big of a deal." Raven stated neutrally. "You traveled to other dimensions before."

"Not to one that's for the dead." Angela frowned. "Why can't we have Thanksgiving dinner in the human world? Mr. Masters' mansion is plenty big enough."

"Because Frostbite's people, Mom's followers, and Vision's servants are cooking a giant feast." Nyx stated from the shotgun seat. She was leaning back and had her feet up.

"Oh…I suppose my effort to bake apple pie will go unnoticed…" Jason Blood frowned at the pie in his hands.

"No it won't. Hand it here." Youngblood took the pie. "Did I mention that you're the best teacher ever?"

"Hey! Why do you get all the pie!?" Nyx glared back at Youngblood.

"Because I just licked it."

"No you didn't…" Pause. Lick. "Oh…never mind. I don't want it anymore…"

"I still don't know…" Angela frowned. "Being so close to the land of the dead…will it be save for Rachel and me?"

"Miss Roth, the Ghost Zone has even more ectoplasmic energy than Amity Park. No one will know your daughter's true nature…or mine for that matter." Jason Blood explained.

"Well…"

"Yeah, plus there's only a fifty percent chance one of the ghosts there will think that you're part of the dinner." Nyx grinned.

"Nyx! You're not helping!" Spirit admonished.

"I know! But this is funnier!" Nyx laughed.

"Mahahmmm…" Youngblood stated with his mouth full of apple pie.

"Swallow your food, you pig." Raven glared.

"No, I don't think that I should go…" Angela stated with a frown.

"Secret…" Greta placed a gentle hand of Angela's arm. Her wide innocent eyes looked up at the woman. "Secret secret…"

"…I have no idea what you mean, but it's still hard to argue with you…" Angela sighed. "Fine, I'll go."

Raven turned to Dani. "Did you teach her to use her cuteness to her advantage?"

"Yep. She's a natural, huh?" Spirit beamed.

"Quit corrupting the only innocent friend we have…" Raven muttered dryly.

"Secret…" Greta crossed her arms and stared at the magic use.

"I know you can make your own choices…" Raven stated.

"Secret. Seeeeeeeeecret." Greta stated firmly.

"Fine. I'll just let you be corrupted by Dani." Raven sighed and rolled her eyes. "Ungrateful girl."

"You have learned well, young padawan." Spirit placed a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Secret!" Secret beamed.

* * *

><p>"And Savage threatened to destroy Amity Park if I told the Justice League about him and his group." Phantom informed the people in front of him. They were all in Vision's meeting hall. He asked them here to discuss everything he learned.<p>

"But you still waited to tell us about this." Plasmius noted.

"I didn't know how what to do. He put together an assault of the Ghost Zone before." Phantom sighed. "I just wanted time to think this through. After the Ghoul Project thing, though, I thought it would be best to tell you four."

"Thank you for your trust, my liege." Fright Knight bowed. "It is an honor to know that you hold me in such high regard."

"It wasn't a matter of trust. I trust all my friends." Phantom smiled to the knight. "It was more of that I had to process what I learned before telling anymore."

"I don't blame you." Red Huntress nodded. "To learn that every problem you've gone through for the past year was all one big conspiracy…I'd be in shock too."

"Thanks…" Phantom took her hand and gave it a squeeze. Her support meant a lot to him.

"Yes…this is a lot to take in…" Vision frowned. "I remember Vandal Savage. He did create the Reality Gauntlet. I thought he learned his lesson about meddling after that."

"Apparently not…Wait. You knew that he create the Gauntlet?" Phantom questioned.

"Yes. But I didn't think it would be important to its retrieval." Vision noted. "It still doesn't. Savage's organization won't want to use the Gauntlet after everything he told them about it. In fact, they may be looking to stop Freakshow as well."

"That's a positive at least." Plasmius sighed. "One of the few it seems. Especially considering just how far this problem reaches. Savage's group seems to have almost complete control over the criminal market. What they says goes."

"What about when the Gotham villains came for Dani?" Red Huntress questioned.

"That might be an exception. There are always rule breakers that put their own personal wants over what the leaders want." Plasmius noted. "Otherwise, I think they would have been better organized. Besides, from everything we learned, Ra's Al Ghul and Lex Luther are probably both in Savage's group, and they wanted to recruit Red X, not kill him."

"Good point. But that leads to another problem…" Fright Knight clenched his fists."This secret organization wants to control all of Lord Phantom's personas. Danny Phantom. Red X. And most likely Daniel Fenton considering his fame and skill. Plus the kidnapping thing."

"They're going to blackmail each part of you." Red Huntress mumbled in horror. "And when they do that, they might figure out that you're all the same person."

"You're right…what do we do?" Phantom questioned.

"Isn't the answer simple? You cooperate." Vision instructed.

"What?!"

"This group seems to be relentless in gaining what they want. The GIW War proved that much. Fighting them will only lead to problems." Vision stated. "I need you to completely cooperate with what they want for now. Buy me time to find a way to protect both Amity Park and the Ghost Zone. Until then, you'll fool them into thinking that you work for them. In the matter of keeping your identities secret, that's simple. We have Amorpho disguise himself as Fenton or Phantom and then use the Red X suit remotely…or perhaps create an AI."

"Hmm…" Plasmius stroked his chin. "Building remote controls for the suit would be simple. An AI, though…that might take time to get it to be able to fight properly. It would have to fight like a real person and not rely on superhuman abilities…"

"Woah! Why do we even need to the Red X suit?" Phantom questioned. "I retired that thing."

"That's what you said the first time, my Liege." The Fright Knight stated. "The thing is that it's too useful to just ignore. Besides…we could use it as more than a simple mercenary."

"What do you mean?" Red Huntress inquired.

"I mean that people already know that Red X and Fenton are connected. Why not use that? Make Red X Fenton's personal bodyguard." Fright Knight explained.

"That…is brilliant." Plasmius grinned. "It could give Daniel the freedom to move outside of Amity Park without fear of being kidnapped again and give the supervillains another reason to avoid Amity Park."

"Plus, Savage's group will focus on Fenton instead of Red X. That means there will be less of chance they'll find out all of Danny's secrets if more than one is called to a single location at a time." Vision nodded.

"Do I have a say in this…" Phantom muttered as he crossed his arms.

"Oh sweetheart…" Red Huntress placed a hand on her boyfriend's shoulder. "Of course you don't…"

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you want to see the others?" Frostbite questioned the ghoul that was still in the hospital bed. "Perhaps it would be better to rest some more."<p>

"I've been asleep for a full day. I think that's enough rest for now." Joel noted.

"Alright, but still lie down. I'll bring them in here." Frostbite nodded to one of his followers. They immediately exited the room and brought back the people Joel wanted to see.

"Grundy…" Joel nodded to the giant man.

"Small boy…" Grundy grunted as he stopped in front of Joel's bed.

"I'm glad they rescued you as well." Joel stated.

"Grundy is too. Dani came to help Grundy because she is a good sister." Grundy nodded at his own perceived wisdom.

'Dani? Who's Dani?' Joel thought.

A snort grew Joel's attention away from Grundy.

"Ah, Grundy is softy." Wulf noted as he walked next to the brute. "Need tissues to wipe tears?"

"Quiet dog, or Grundy crush you." Grundy glared.

"And I cut you open." Wulf glared right back.

"Bark!"

"Oof!" Joel grunted as a green dog jumped onto his chest.

"Bark!"

"Uh…You're pretty heavy for such a small thing…" Joel mentioned to the puppy version of Cujo.

"Bark!"

"You okay?" Wulf questioned the boy.

"I should be asking you that." Joel reasoned neutrally. "You helped save me, didn't you? I owe you a debt that can't be repaid."

"No, no…" Wulf shook his head. "Know what like. Prisoner…bad. Freedom worth fighting for."

"That, I do agree with." Joel nodded in complete understanding.

"Besides…new friend always good." Wulf gave a sharp grin.

Friend? Joel never had a friend before. The closest thing he had were comrades, and even then, they weren't close to each other. They were just co-workers…people with common goals. A friend was someone so much more. Someone you cared for more than yourself.

"Friend…" Joel tasted the world.

"Yes, we friends." Wulf stated.

"Gah, this is getting sappy." Grundy noted.

"Says guy that goes on and on about sister." Wulf grunted.

"Say that again, doggy!" Grundy glared.

"Grundy have a hearing problem?" Wulf snickered.

"Wulf, I don't believe it is smart to antagonize him." Frostbite suggested.

"He deserve it!" Wulf barked. "Fought twice! Hit me and friends dozens of times!"

"Grundy apologized for that!"

"Not enough!"

Joel blinked as he watched to two squabble. "Should…we stop them?"

"I don't think so." Frostbite chuckled lightly. "They are both similar in personalities. From my experience, while they can be close friends, people with very close and strong personalities often clash. Much like Master Torch and the Great One. And Miss Nyx and Lady Spirit."

"…So Phantom and Spirit have people like that?" Joel questioned. "And they are…friends?"

"Yes. They are very close friends too." Frostbite nodded.

Joel nodded. "I see…are all friends like that?"

"No. Some get along very well." Frostbite explained. "Like all relationships, friendships are different."

"Hmm…That makes sense, I suppose." Joel reasoned.

"Bark!" Cujo curled up into a ball and went to sleep on his chest.

"…What are you doing?" Joel questioned.

He received no answer.

"Please get off."

Nothing.

Laughing, Frostbite stated. "I think he likes you!"

"…Yeah…" Smiling lightly, Joel reached up and petted the sleeping dog. "I think he does…Good dog…"

* * *

><p>"Come on, let's go somewhere else…" Nyx muttered as she dragged her friends behind her.<p>

"Secret?" Greta questioned.

"I don't know, Secret." Spirit shrugged. "What's wrong, Nyx?"

"I don't want to talk to my mom…" Nyx glared back at Pandora talking with Vision and Plasmius.

"Are you still mad at her?" Raven questioned.

"Of course I am!" Nyx huffed. "She lied to me all my life!"

"Technically, she didn't lie." Youngblood noted. "She just didn't tell you."

"Do you want to get slapped?" Nyx glared.

"No, just saying. I don't think it's that big of a deal. My mommy never talked about my dad…" Youngblood shrugged.

Everyone blinked. Youngblood never talked about his life before he died. None of them really thought to ask because they all had their own demons and secrets. His mention of it seemed so nonchalant, though…

"Wait…" Raven blinked as she realized something. Because of the fiasco with her mother earlier, she didn't think too much about it. "You're not dressed up. It's Thanksgiving. Shouldn't you be a Pilgrim or an Indian or something?"

"Naw, I'm not too big on Thanksgiving." Youngblood shrugged off the fact that he wore a simple t-shirt and sweat pants. "But I do enjoy eating. That's why I'm wearing loose clothing. Time to be a glutton. Got to enjoy eating while you can."

"Secret…" Greta frowned. She didn't like how he put that…

"Why don't you like Thanksgiving?" Spirit questioned.

"I don't know. What's there to really be thankful for? Right, Polly?" Youngblood questioned his companion on his shoulder.

"Rack! I'm staying out of it…" Polly muttered.

"Fine…" Youngblood pouted. "I guess, it's kind of frustrating, Nyx. You still have your mom, yet you're holding a grudge against her. Some of us don't have the luxury of having a mom to be angry at."

"Secret…" Greta nodded slowly. She agreed with Youngblood.

"Wow…" Raven blinked. "That's oddly wise of you, Chuck."

"It's not wisdom. It's the truth." Youngblood shrugged.

"That's what makes it wise." Polly noted. His correction this time, however, was not scarcastic or meant to be humorous. This time it seemed oddly gentle.

"Meh…I guess." Youngblood didn't seem to care though as he walked off. "Every kid would miss his mom when she's gone…"

The girls watched as he walked away. That was both strange and enlightening. They never knew Youngblood had such thoughts. It made them wonder what their friend's past was. His word's also made them stop and think what they were actually thankful for.

"I'm still mad…but I'll talk to Mom." Nyx stated.

"Yeah…I think I need to spend more time with my mom." Raven agreed.

"…I wonder what Vision and my Dad are doing."

* * *

><p>"I managed to convince my Dad to come." Red Huntress noted as she and Phantom landed onto the icy ground of the Land of the Far Frozen. "I have to go and pick him up, though. He's kind of freaked about coming into the Ghost Zone."<p>

"I'm surprised he even agreed." Phantom chuckled. "He doesn't seem to like the whole ghost thing."

"I think he likes the 'my boyfriend being a ghost thing' even less." Red Huntress smiled as she took his hand. "It bothers him that there is no way to threaten you father style considering that you could throw him through a wall."

"Yeah…I'm surprised he hasn't had that talk with me yet." Phantom chuckled as they walked to the village.

"He's figuring out how he could do it." Red Huntress laughed as well.

"Good luck with that." Phantom snorted. "But at least you got him to come. I couldn't get anyone from Young Justice to come. They're all doing something with their families. M'gann and Conner might have come if Megan didn't think that people would be mad at her for the simulation think."

"Well…I don't hold a grudge against her. You already forgave her, so that's enough for me. Besides, you're fixing it." Valerie responded. "The ghosts, however…They might hold a grudge."

"That they might…" Phantom paused as they reached the edge of the village.

"What is it?"

"…That…" Phantom smiled.

The village was filled to the brim with people. Everyone was rushing around to get everything ready for the dinner or more technically feast. Phantom watched them. He recognized many of the faces. It was unusual to see everyone so carefree.

"That?" Red Huntress blinked. "What's that?"

"Peace. Happiness. Friendship." Phantom took a deep satisfied breath. "I haven't seen that in a long time. Even in Amity Park, there's tension. Every day there seems to be a new problem to worry about. I can always see it on someone's face. This, however…I don't see the worry and stress."

"Oh…" Red Huntress nodded slowly. "I guess you're right…"

"A day of rest. A day to forget all our worries…" Phantom smiled contently as he gently gripped her hand. "I needed this…so much."

"I think so too…although, I don't think all our problems are gone…" Red Huntress noted as her face shield slid down.

"What do you mean?"

"Hey, Babypop."

Phantom's eyes turned to see his ex-girlfriend. "Ember…"

"Hey, how's it going?" Ember gave them an easygoing smile.

"All right. How about you?" Valerie answered cooly. She purposefully continued to hold the halfa's hand.

"Oh, the tour's been great. I wouldn't miss the Ghost Zone's Thanksgiving Feast for anything." Ember noted. She obviously saw their holding hands, but she said nothing.

"Yeah…" Phantom smiled uneasily. "I…um… I've been meaning to call…"

"Idiot…" Ember rolled her eyes. "You think I'm completely out of the loop? I knew you and Miss ghost hunter hooked up."

"I wouldn't call it that…" Valerie muttered.

"But I ain't mad." Ember shrugged. "We broke up. You moved on. It's what happens in life."

"Oh…I thought you would be angry…" Phantom noted.

"Naw…" Ember smirked. "You're a really hard person to stay mad at…"

"That he is." Valerie agreed.

"Well…okay…" Phantom nodded before he remembered something important. "Oh…I, uh, need to talk to you about something else, though. It's personal, but not about me and Val."

"Alright. Shoot." Ember nodded.

"It…might be easier without Val…" Phantom looked to his girlfriend. Despite telling everyone how Agent Z died, Phantom kept his last conversation with the ex-GIW leader a secret. Only two people deserved to know right now…

"…Okay…" Valerie nodded slowly. "I'll just-"

"HEY!" Torch yelled as he rushed in, grabbed Phantom, and began to walk off. "TORCH NEEDS TO BORROW DP! THANKS!"

The fire ghost didn't look at the girls as he dragged the halfa away. Despite the teen's protests, Torch continued on. He didn't look back as the girls called out for him to stop. In fact, he seemed to be avoiding eye contact completely.

"That…was weird." Valerie noted.

"It was…" Ember frowned.

"What's wrong?" Valerie questioned.

"That was the first time I saw Torch in person." Ember realized. "He looks…familiar."

"Oh?" Valerie blinked. "Maybe you knew him before."

"Maybe…" Ember shrugged.

"Anyway…" Valerie frowned at the girl. "Are you sure that you're cool with me and Danny?"

"I wouldn't lie about that. I'm not good at hiding my anger." Ember pointed to her blue hair. "It tends to turn into fire when I get mad."

"Yeah…That I do know." Valerie nodded. "But…you cared for Danny. You were there for him when I wasn't."

"And that's why you backed down before." Ember noted. "I'm not stupid. I knew how you felt…More than just with Danny. That's why I didn't make him stay away from a girl that obviously loved him. But when I left…I didn't leave him without someone to care for him the way he needed. I left him in your hands."

"Ember…"

"Treat him right. He's hurt beyond what he lets anyone see." Ember stated. "He needs someone to care for him. To look past what he lets people see."

"…I know…" Valerie noted.

"Good. So take care of him, because if you hurt him…I'll kill you." Ember's hair flared.

"I know." Valerie nodded. "But I won't hurt him."

"Even if he can't give you a normal future?" Ember questioned. "He is part ghost, after all. A lot of ghosts have sex, but never have children. Ghosts need to have a bond beyond something physical to procreate. An almost spiritual bond is needed. After all, we don't have bodies based on life. We are beings of death, so creating life isn't really as easy with other races. His being a half-ghost complicates it even more. Genetics, bond, and a whole lot of luck is going to be needed for you to have children with him. Are you okay with that? With a possible future with no children of your own?"

"Yes." Valerie agreed immediately. "I already knew that going in. Mr. Masters and Vision already explained it to me. I'm fine with it."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." Valerie chuckled. "This is the future I chose, and I won't go back on it."

"Good." Ember smiled. "Make sure that you don't."

* * *

><p>"Hey!" Phantom shouted as Torch pulled him out of the village. "Hey, Torch! Stop pulling me, will ya!?"<p>

"No. Not until no one is around…" Torch mumbled as he continued to pull the protesting halfa along.

"What? Why?" Phantom questioned.

"Because you and Torch need to talk." Torch answered. He reached an icy plain and stopped pulling Phantom. With that done, he turned and frowned at Phantom. "Torch heard about what happened with Agent Z. He's dead, right?"

"Yeah…Vision told you?" Phantom questioned.

"She informed all of the Council using her birds." Torch nodded. "But Torch needs to know more…What did he say to you?"

"What do you think he said?" Phantom asked.

"Torch thinks…that DP knows." Torch sighed and sat down on the ice.

"I do." Phantom nodded. "I learned that you left a lot out of your story…not that it was any of my business in the first place."

"No…it wasn't…" Torch sighed. "But Dad told you everything…"

"He did, and he gave me a message to deliver to his kids…" Phantom mentioned.

"You told him about us!?" Torch hissed.

"No. He didn't know about you and Ember. I just asked what he would say to his kids. I'm honor bound to tell both of you." Phantom answered.

"No, you're not!" Torch glared. "You act like this is some big deal. Like this is something Torch and Ellie should be mourning, but you're wrong."

"He was your father." Phantom noted.

"Yes, he was. A long time ago…He wasn't a great one, though. He was cold and too grounded in reality. He never supported our dreams…But…we did love him. He could have been worse, and he did love us." Torch sighed. "But that man died when we did."

"Torch…"

"Why do you think that Torch never said anything during the war? Torch knew that the man that was Torch's dad had long since died and was replaced by a monster." Torch stated. "Torch knew he needed to be stopped. So Torch said nothing. Torch didn't want pity or concerns about where Torch's loyalties lied. Torch had long since decided that Agent Z was beyond redemption."

"…I see…" Phantom frowned sadly. He always believed that everyone deserved a second chance. "What about Ember?

"What about Ellie?"

"Should I tell her?"

"No."

"But…You told Dora?"

"Torch was courting Dora. She deserved to know everything." Torch explained. "Ellie, however…she doesn't need to know."

"And why's that?" Phantom questioned.

"As you know, many ghosts don't remember much from their first lives besides the events surrounding their deaths. Only the strongest ghosts remember their entire life before death. Of course, they could look into their pasts, but many don't. It might be too painful to remember everything that was lost. S-rank ghosts don't have the luxury, though. That is Torch's curse. Torch has to remember. Ellie, however, doesn't need to carry that burden because it won't make her happy." Torch noted. "Think about it. If Ellie knew that her father was Agent Z and that he died a monster…what would she feel?"

"She would feel…terrible…" Phantom realized.

"Yes. She would. Ellie would hate him for what he did and hate herself for not being able to help him." Torch reasoned. "Her motivation would be lost. She wouldn't be able to sing. She would lose her obsession and fade."

Phantom looked down. He knew that was exactly what would happen. "But…what about you?"

"What about Torch?"

"You're her brother. Don't you want to reunite with her? Don't you want to be her brother?" Phantom questioned.

"Of course Torch does!" Torch yelled.

"Then why not tell her that much?" Phantom questioned.

"Because it would not make her happy." Torch answered simply. "Torch would only hold her back from her dream. Ellie would want to be here with Torch in the Ghost Zone. She would give up being a rockstar. Torch can't have that. Torch only wants Torch's sister to be happy. So, Torch will let Ellie go, even if it hurts Torch."

"I…I never thought…" Phantom mumbled.

"Why do you think Torch asked you to take care of her? It's because Torch knew you could. You cared for her, and she cared for you. Torch knew that you would never hurt her. And Torch was right." Torch smiled at the halfa. "You let her go. You let her be happy. You have Torch's upmost respect and thanks for that."

"…I did it because I loved her…"

"Torch knows…"

"…And you let her go because you love her…"

"Yes, Torch does."

"…Okay…" Phantom nodded slowly. "I won't tell her."

"Good."

"But, I'm still honor bound to tell one of his kids." Phantom reasoned. "Let me tell you what he said."

"Fine…" Torch frowned as he stood up. "What did he want Torch…Trever to know?"

"He said that he loved you, and that he's sorry for not being good enough." Phantom noted.

"Ah…" Torch turned around. "Torch sees."

"Are…you alright?" Phantom questioned.

"Of course. Torch mourned Torch's father long ago." Torch snorted.

"…Okay…" Phantom nodded. "I'll just…be going."

"Good…" Torch answered simply.

As Phantom left, he ignored the quiet sobbing that was coming from Torch. The halfa knew better than to call Torch out on his sorrow. The fire ghost deserved a chance to be alone.

"Dad…" Torch removed his shades and wiped his tears. "You fool…Torch…Trever will miss you, you damned fool…"

* * *

><p>"What happened?" Valeire questioned as her boyfriend returned to the bustling village.<p>

"Nothing. Torch wanted to rant to me about how hard his job is." Phantom shrugged.

"Oh…" Valerie nodded slowly.

"So, you wanted to talk, Babypop?" Ember questioned.

"Naw. I just wanted to talk to you about the 'Hero Boy' song. Now that I thought about it, though, it's kind of stupid to talk about. In fact, I'm flattered." Phantom chuckled.

"Well don't let it go to your head." Ember smirked.

"Don't worry." Phantom smiled. "I won't."

* * *

><p>"Hey…" Spirit blinked as she saw an old friend. "Hey, Colossus!"<p>

The giant sitting at the edge of the village turned and grinned at the girl. "Ah! Hello, young warrior!"

"Long time no see, man." Spirit grinned as she approached the red skinned giant. "What are you doing way out here with…the Spectre?"

"Hello, female half-ghost." The green cloaked Spectre greeted emotionlessly.

"Well, Frostbite didn't want me destroying anything until dinner, and the Spectre isn't good with crowds, so we're just chatting out here. Less destruction that way, and it give me the chance to catch up with this weirdo." Colossus chuckled.

"Like you're one to talk, General." The Spectre noted.

"Oh…" Spirit nodded. "Well, have you seen Vision and my Dad? I wanted to talk to them."

"Hmm…I think I saw them heading to the medical building." Colossus suggested.

"Okay, thanks! Bye!" Spirit waved as she ran off.

"What an unusual ghost…" The Spectre noted. "She's different. Not in a bad way, but in a way that makes me feel that there's still joy in the world."

"Yes, you can't help but smile when around her. Of course, I think all the half-ghosts are strange by ghost standards. But in a good way. After all, Phantom did manage to injure me, and Plasmius actually won the heart of Little Vision." Colossus agreed.

"Both seemingly impossible tasks by normal standards." Spectre mumbled.

"Hmm…They do seem to pull off the impossible, and now there's four of 'em…" Colossus raised a huge bottle of rum to his lips and chugged it.

"And that last one is even more different." The Spectre noted. "I could feel it as they moved him in. His demeanor is different. It's…calm…neutral…objective. I've never felt a ghost like that."

"How did you get all that from a few seconds of looking at an unconscious body!? That's totally creepy!" Colossus roared out in laughter.

"I always evaluate potential threats and allies." The Spectre noted.

"Oh? An you actually consider people to be threats or allies? That's knew. With your power, you always just thought of others as weaklings." Colossus grunted.

"Being connected to a human has changed some things." The Spectre stated.

"I see…So you now know that brute strength can't solve every problem…" Colossus sighed.

"What? Did you really just say that?" The Spectre's face actually showed shock.

"Fool…I always knew that battle was more about brute strength. The thing is…raw power is the most fun way to fight…but it isn't the most efficient." Colossus stated. "I've known that…for a very long time. Why do you think that I always let Vision take charge? It's because that she's the voice of reason. She sees how things are rather than how they should be. Every army needs that. Every group needs someone who can mediate ideals with facts."

"I'm surprised you think that way." Spectre mentioned.

"Of course, I'm glad that it's my job. Like I said, brute force is more fun." Colossus bellowed out a laugh. "After all, being the cold voice of reality is a hard job. It's something only the toughest of souls can do."

* * *

><p>"Mom..." Nyx said as she slowly approached the giant blue skinned woman.<p>

"Oh sweetheart..." Pandora looked down at her daughter. She turned away from the servant she was talking to and turned her full attention to the girl. "It's good to see you before the dinner. Have you washed up yet?"

"No..."

"Oh, well please make sure that you do. We will be eating soon and..." Pandora blinked as she felt a pair of arms hug her leg. "Dear?"

"I'm sorry." Nyx stated. "I was being stupid and selfish. I know that you were only trying to help me by keeping me away from him."

"...No, I should have told you sooner." Pandora apologized as she knelt down and hugged the girl.

"I guess we both made mistakes." Nyx snorted.

"That we did. Let us move past it." Pandora smiled.

"Yeah...lets..." Nyx frowned. Despite this, Klarion's words still rang in her mind. Was she really suited to be around a being of order? She loved chaos so much. It was only a matter of time before the differences between Nyx and her mother drove them apart...according to the Witch Boy at least.

She did not want that to happen, but...what if he was right?

* * *

><p>"Hello, child, my name is Vision." Vision looked down at the child. "And this is Plasmius."<p>

"Hello…" Joel looked at the woman and man standing in front of him. He could see that they were close by the way the stood so close to each other. Their exact relationship, however, was unclear to him.

"We have heard about what happened to you." Plasmius stated. "I'm sorry that you weren't rescued sooner, but who would have thought that the Ghoul Project was actually in Bialya…"

"Understandable…" Joel noted. "I didn't even know until I caught sight of Queen Bee…"

"You will be happy to know that the facility has been completely destroyed." Vision mentioned. "With that done and you and Grundy rescued, the Ghoul Project is dead."

"No…" Joel shook his head. "It's not. They managed to copy one of my abilities. I think they made a machine that can do my unique power."

"Unique power…" Plasmius frowned. "It can't be that dangerous, right?"

"I can turn ectoplasm into solid matter."

"…What?" Vision questioned.

"My ability. I can turn my ectoplasm into solid matter. Usually weapons…but still matter." Joel explained.

"Is that even possible, Joel?" Plasmius questioned.

"Dusk."

"Excuse me?"

"My ghost name. It's Dusk." White rings traveled across Joel's body and turned him into his ghost form. "And yes, it is very possible. Watch."

Dusk formed his Burst Gauntlets.

Vision examined the weapons. "This…I have never seen this. I've seen ectoplasm shaped and condensed to look like something, but this…you actually turned raw energy into matter."

"I know. They called it Matter Make." Dusk nodded. "And now, they have the power to turn ectoplasm into anything. That's why they shut down the Ghoul Project. They could make as many weapons as they want now."

"Dear God…" Plasmius whispered.

"Luckily…the weapons I create lose their stability quickly if I'm not in full contact with them." Dusk stated. "This makes it so they can't make any long lasting weapons."

"A bomb or Neckromancer would only need to last a few minutes, though." Plasmius mentioned.

"True…" Vision sighed. "This is a problem…One that I will deal with tomorrow. Today is a day of celebration and relaxation. Let us enjoy it while we can."

"Agreed." Plasmius nodded. "Goodbye, Joel…er, Dusk. I hope to see you at the feast, young man."

"Wait. I need to talk to you about something. What's going to happen to me? What's a half-ghost and how am I one of them?" Dusk questioned.

"I think that we'll leave those questions to someone else…" Vision noted as she pulled Plasmius out of the room.

They almost immediately passed Phantom as he walked to the room containing Dusk.

With his hand over his ear to signify his talking on his Fenton Phones, Phantom spoke. "Okay, so you went back to Cadmus…why?"

"_Because I found out that there was another Superman clone…his name is Match."_ Conner's voice rang through his ear.

"What happened?" Phantom nodded to Vision and Plasmius as they walked by.

"_I found him…fought him…put him back on ice…_" Superboy grunted.

"I see…." Phantom walked into Dusk's room and out of Vision and Plasmius' hearing ranges.

"That seemed interesting." Plasmius noted.

"Yes. I grow worried about Young Justice. Savage seems to know too much." Vision agreed. "There has to be a mole somewhere, and I completely trust the people around us in Amity Park."

"So…either Young Justice or the League…" Plasmius frowned.

"Or someone connected to them." Vision sighed. "But like I said earlier…a problem for tomorrow."

"Right. For tonight, I think that we should focus on enjoying ourselves." Plasmius grinned. "In fact, I wanted to ask-"

"Dad! Vision!" Spirit interrupted Plasmius as she ran through the halls to them. "Glad I found you!"

"Is something wrong, Dani?" Vision questioned the halfa girl.

"Well…no, not really. I, er…I just needed to see you…" Spirit pouted. This conversation sounded so much easier in her head.

"What is it?" Plasmius questioned.

"I…Well, my friends and I talked and we realized that we didn't really know what we were thankful for." Spirit looked up at the older ghosts. "But then we realized that Rachel, Nyx, and I have parents that care for us, and I…um…needed to say thanks. Thank you…for caring so much…"

"Oh?" Plasmius chuckled. "That's odd of you to say, Danielle, but thank you. It means a lot to hear."

"Not just you…" Spirit turned to Vision. "Thank you, Vision…for everything…"

"Dani…"

"I know that I don't show how grateful I am a lot, but…I think today's a good day for it." Spirit noted. "So…I wanted to ask…"

Vision blinked. Spirit was never this shy. "What is it?"

"Can I call you Mom?" Spirit looked away in embarrassment.

"Danielle…" Plasmius muttered.

"I know, you aren't really my Mom, but…I think you're like one. I mean, I see how Miss Roth and Pandora look at their daughters, and I think, 'Hey, that's how Vision looks at me.' And I…" Spirit stopped when she felt arms grab her and hold her close.

"Yes…" Vision hugged the child. "Call me Mom. I always wanted you to…"

"…" Spirit hugged the woman back. "Okay…Mom…A-are you crying?"

"Yes…" Vision allowed the tears to fall. "I am. I always wanted to be a mother."

"…Well, you're good one…" Spirit smiled.

"Thank you…" Vision mumbled.

Plasmius smiled at the two. "…I hate to ruin the moment, but we do need to get going to the feast soon.."

"Right…" Vision nodded. "Perhaps, we should get Danny and Joel as well. I'm sure that Danny has explained everything by now, and Joel most likely wants to get Cujo to stop sleeping on him."

"What did you just say?" Spirit's eyes widened.

"Hmm?" Vision frowned.

"Did you just say that Cujo…was using Joel as a bed?" Spirit trembled.

"Er…yes?"

"That…that CHEATER!" Spirit's eyes burned with unhidden rage. "HOW DARE THAT DOG SLEEP WITH SOMEONE ELSE! UNACCEPABLE!"

"Danielle, please calm down. It's not that big of a deal." Plasmius tried to calm the girl down.

"RAW!" Spirit broke out of Vision's embrace and charged down the hall to Joel's room.

"…Well, that moment is ruined." Plasmius mentioned.

"No…" Vision rose to her feet with a smile. "It was perfect."

"Oh?"

"Yes, I don't think this day can get any better for me…" Vision sighed happily.

"Are you making an assumption?" Plasmius snorted. "That is so out of character of you, Vision. I guess Danielle's actions shocked you even more than me. Of course, I was going to do this anyway, but Danielle's blessing makes this even better."

"What do you mean…" Vision turned and was shocked by what she saw.

Plasmius was down on one knee and was holding a beautiful diamond ring. "Will you marry me?"

* * *

><p>"This…is a lot to take in Conner." Phantom noted as he stepped into the room. He instantly drew the attention of Joel in halfa form. "Are you okay with what happened?"<p>

"_Yeah…I just needed to talk about it. I'm heading back to the Cave. I'm sure M'gann's worried."_

"Are you going to tell her?" Phantom questioned.

"_No, not yet. I just…I know that you wouldn't make a big deal about this or try to tell anyone._" Superboy's voice answered.

"Alright. I'll talk to you later. Happy Thanksgiving." Phantom noted.

"_Yeah…Happy Thanksgiving."_ Superboy ended the call.

"Can you actually get good reception in the Ghost Zone?" Joel questioned.

"Oh, you'd be surprised. The Ghost Zone is basically a filter for excess energy and radio waves." Phantom chuckled. "It gets better reception than most places in the human world."

"I see…"

"Anyway, I just wanted to come by and say hi, Joel." Phantom grinned.

"Dusk…my ghost name is Dusk…" Dusk stated.

"Ah…I see…Fair enough." Phantom nodded.

"And…you're lying. You want something more than just saying hi." Dusk stated.

"Oh damn…you're one of those guys that can see through me pretty quickly…" Phantom sighed. "Well fine, there's something I wanted to talk to you about. You see, you're different from regular ghosts. You're a half-ghost."

"I heard that before. What does that mean?" Dusk questioned.

"It means that you're part human and part ghost at the same time. You defy the laws of death." Phantom explained.

"…So it's just another word for a ghoul." Dusk nodded. "Fair enough. I didn't think the ghosts would have a word for it, though."

"Most ghost just call us halfas." Phantom snorted.

"Oh…Wait…us?" Dusk blinked.

Phantom grinned. "Did you really think that you're the only complete halfa? Counting you, there's four of us now."

"Who?"

"You, me, Spirit, and Plasmius." Phantom answered.

"Then…" Dusk's eyes widened.

"That's right, Dusk…" Rings appeared around Phantom and changed him. "You're not the only one with two names."

"Daniel Fenton…" Dusk muttered.

"Yeah…It's a long story…You see-"

"HOW DARE THAT DOG SLEEP WITH SOMEONE ELSE! UNACCEPTABLE!" Spirit roared as she charged into the room. She flung herself at Dusk and kicked him in the head.

"Wha?" Dusk muttered as he rubbed the side of his head.

"You jerk! How dare you try to seduce my dog away from me!" Spirit glared as she grabbed Cujo and pulled him away. "You dog thief!"

'Thief?' Dusk thought.

"Dani!" Danny yelled. "Don't call him a thief!"

"Stay out of this! I ruined a perfectly good moment for this!" Spirit glared at her brother.

"How is that my fault!?" Danny shouted.

"Because you're interrupting my stupid and unpredictable moment of the day!" Spirit yelled. "I need this moment! It's like my daily cup of coffee! If I don't have it, I got through withdrawls!"

"I don't need to know about your crazy life!" Danny huffed.

"…Excuse me?" Dusk spoke up.

"What?!" the other halfas in the room yelled.

"I would just like to say that if she didn't want her dog to go sleeping with other people, then she should have taken better care of him." Dusk mentioned. "Because I literally did nothing to get his attention. One minute I'm lying here, and the next he's jumping on my chest and taking a nap. It really wasn't all that hard."

He received wide-eyed stares.

"Are…are you joking?" Spirit mumbled.

"No. I'm always serious." Dusk noted calmly. His face gave away no indication that he was joking…until he smirked.

"Oh…That is perfect! Hahahahahahahahahaha!" Danny laughed.

"You…" Spirit muttered.

"Does that count as your stupid and unpredictable moment of the day?" Dusk asked with genuine curiosity.

"…Yes it does…" Spirit smiled. "You know what? I think I like you."

* * *

><p>Soon, all three halfas managed to get Dusk out of bed and were walking to the feast. As they walked, the more experienced ghouls were explaining everything to the newer halfa.<p>

"I see…" Dusk noted as they walked. "I have to say. That is a rather unbelievable tale. Two people being one…It doesn't make a whole lot of sense considering that your identities have appeared at different points on the globe at the same time. I mean, there is a resemblance I guess, but your hair, eyes, and skin tone are so different…"

"We worked hard to keep this secret. We have disguise belts, reporters on our sides, and even ghost to impersonate us." Phantom, who recently changed back, explained.

"Yeah, sometimes it's a pain, but we make it work." Spirit shrugged.

"So…now what?" Dusk questioned. "What's going to happen to me and Grundy?"

"You'll stay with us of course." Spirit stated mater-of-factly.

"No, that's your choice…although, you don't really have a lot of options…" Phantom shrugged.

"You're right. I'll stay, and I'm sure Grundy will stay…" Dusk nodded.

"Good!" Spirit smiled.

"Grundy will have to stay in the Ghost Zone for now." Phantom stated. "But we can set you up in Amity Park if you want. Maybe we can even get you in school to start a normal life."

"Won't that alert the Great…Ra's Al Ghul and Queen Bee's allies?" Dusk questioned.

"Probably, but they know we have you. I doubt you showing up in regular life will surprise them…although, you'll be living at Masters Mansion and will undoubtedly draw unwanted curiosity…" Phantom sighed.

"We'll think of something." Spirit shrugged.

"But…I don't even have a last name." Dusk rationalized.

"That's fine. You can take one of ours if you want, or make own of your own." Phantom smiled.

Fenton or Masters….Dusk didn't like the Masters one too much. It seemed kind of arrogant, but Fenton…

"Joel Fenton…" Dusk nodded. "That works."

"What!? Is my last name not good enough for you?!" Spirit shouted.

"No." Dusk answered without wavering.

"Bah…ah…ack!" Spirit stuttered.

"You can actually get her to shut up…" Phantom laughed. "I'm so glad you're around now."

"Jerks…" Spirit mumbled.

"There may be other problems besides a name, though." Dusk stated. "You see…when I'm not in a fight or stressful situation, my power tends to…go a little nuts."

"What do you mean?"

"My pants keep falling down." Dusk informed them as he gripped his pants to keep them up.

"Psh…Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Phantom laughed. "Don't worry, I had the same problem. I can probably help teach you a thing or two."

"So…you'll be like my mentor?" Dusk questioned.

"Sure. Why not?" Phantom shrugged.

"...Then lead on, Mentor."

* * *

><p>Before the feast, a few more guests arrived. Joel didn't recognize any of them, but they all seemed strange. Phantom did go out of his way to greet them, though.<p>

The first meeting was strange…

"Beware! I am the Box Ghost!" The blue skinned ghost dressed in overalls yelled. Dusk could noticeably see that he had a hook for a hand…

"Hey, Cliff, how's it going?" Phantom chuckled.

"Wha…ack…Dude, seriously, you're ruining my mystique…" The Box Ghost's shoulders fell.

"You don't have any mystique." Phantom turned to the Box Ghost's date. "Hey, Lunch Lady."

"Hello, dear. I brought some ham." The green skinned lunch lady ghost held up the tray.

"Ham!" Spirit cried in joy.

"Gah…" Dusk frowned. "I don't like meat."

"What!" Both Spirit and Lunch Lady yelled. "How dare you!"

"What? I'm a vegan." Dusk shrugged.

"Blasphemy!"

The second meeting was stranger…

"Hey, punk. How's it going?" The blonde hair biker guy with his arms around the green haired lady.

"Johnny." Phanotm nodded. "Everything's fine, how about you."

"Better now that no one has been stealing my bike…." Johnny glared at Spirit.

In response, Spirit stuck her tongue out at Johnny 13.

"Give her a break, Johnny. She didn't hurt it." Kitty chastised her boyfriend.

"But it's my bike!" Johnny argued. "She stole it!"

"I'm sure that you did something to deserve it." Kitty shrugged.

"But she literally did a stunt that not even Evel Knievel would try!" Johnny argued.

"You have to admit, it was pretty funny, though." Spirit noted.

"It was hilarious." Kitty agreed.

"Ah man, I'm not even allowed to be mad now?" Johnny sulked.

"Such is the life of a man that's whipped by his girlfriend." Phantom nodded sagely.

"Danny!" Red Huntress called from far away. "Make sure to get over here soon!"

"Okay!" Phantom agreed.

Then, the strangest thing happened…

In a flash of gold light, Dr. Light appeared. Dusk blinked. He remembered reading about Dr. Fate before. Back in the day, Dr. Fate was a man. This was a change of pace.

"Nabu." Phantom waved to the lord of order. "Does this mean you accepted my request."

"Yes..." Dr. Fate nodded. "I meant to come earlier, but I had a meeting to attend."

"Oh." Phantom nodded. "Okay. What was it about?"

"I'm sorry. I cannot speak of it. Not yet at least. It is not bad news, though." Dr. Fate actually sounded pleased.

"Well, okay..." Phantom shrugged.

"Now, as agreed..." Dr. Fate removed the helmet.

"Dora!" Spirit cheered as she hugged the woman.

"Hahahaha!" Dora laughed as she returned the hug. "It is good to see you again, Danielle."

"Dora..." Phantom smiled.

Dora released Spirit and hugged Phantom as well. "It is good to see you, dear friend. Please tell me things have improved?"

"...I'm still working on it." Phantom stated as he returned the hug. "But I promise, I'll fix myself soon."

"I have no doubt..." Dora caught sight of Dusk and knelt down to the boy's height. "Oh? And who's this young man?"

"My name is Dusk...Miss Dolla..." Dusk bowed his head politely.

"It's Dora!" Spirit rolled her eyes.

"Oh...my apologies, Miss Dora."

"Oh my!" Dora giggled. "Someone with actual manners?"

"This is a new member of the family." Phantom explained.

"Oh?" Dora didn't seemed surprised. "Then I'm sure his manners will quickly disappear."

"Hey! We're not that bad!" Spirit cried.

"I beg to differ." Dora laughed. "But even without manners...you're in very good hands, young man. I'm sure you'll enjoy your place with them."

"Yeah..." Dusk gave her a small smile. "I'm sure I will."

* * *

><p>"DANNY!" All the ghosts cried as the three halfas approached the main table.<p>

"Hey, guys!" Phantom waved.

"..." Dusk turned to Spirit. "Is that normal?"

"Yep. Sometimes you wanna go, where everybody knows your name…" Spirit hummed.

"Don't worry, Dusk." Phantom placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "That's our family."

"Our family?" Dusk looked at the strange people.

"Colossus, you're taking up three seats. Would you sit up right?" The Ghost Writer stated.

"But I'm eating!" Colossus argued.

"That's more than enough reason to sit up." The Fright Knight noted. "Seeing you lounge about is not what we want to see as we eat!"

"But-OW!" Colossus was zapped by Pandora.

"Sit up and act your age." Pandora instructed.

"Fine…" Colossus mumbled.

"Hey!" Wulf roared. "You stole food!"

"No, Grundy didn't!" Grundy roared.

"Liar." Raven noted. "I saw you."

"Knew it!" Wulf glared at Grundy.

"Since when did you become a tattle tale?" Nyx questioned.

"I'm not, but I think that watching them fight would be amusing." Raven noted.

"I know. I'm already taking bets." Youngblood grinned.

Polly then interjected. "Rack! My money's on the big guy."

"How could you bet against a friend?" Nyx questioned.

"Secret." Greta noted.

"You're not helping!" Nyx glared.

"Torch says pass the gravy!" Torch shouted.

"Ask normally, and I will." Red Huntress glared.

"Talk normally? Torch doesn't know what you mean…"

"You have an interesting group here." Jason Blood noted to the man sitting next to him.

"We do." Plasmius laughed as he held Vision close. They decided to save the news for after the feast.

Frostbite interjected with a grin. "It makes things interesting, though."

"That it does…" Blood smiled.

"Hey!" Spirit with Cujo in arm ran to the table. "Save some food for me!"

"Come on, Dusk. Let's eat." Phantom smiled as he walked to his family.

Dusk walked as they walked off. He observed the people at the table. They were all strange and seemed to have wild personalities. Each one was vastly different from the others. He never saw such a diverse group before…

When he imagined a family, Dusk always thought that it would be similar people coming together. This was the opposite of everything he ever thought a family would be. But…it was nice. Everyone seemed happy.

"Hey!" Spirit called over to him. "What are you waiting for?"

Smiling, Dusk stepped forward. This wasn't how he ever imagined his life would go. He never imagined that he would join some ghost family after finally escaping the Ghoul Project. This was beyond his dreams. This was better because…

Joel was home.

* * *

><p><em>That was a good Thanksgiving. Despite the problems on the horizon, every one of us had a great time. Even Raven was smiling. That was a miracle in itself.<em>

_I remember so much laughter and smiles. It was perhaps the first time that we were every together in such a setting. It was a strange but pretty incredible day. One that I will never forget._

_Unfortunately, while it was the first time we were all together in a time of peace, it would also be the last time we were all together at all._

_After all, the road to redemption is a long and difficult, and the last trek is the most perilous part of all._

_-From the personal memoirs of Danielle Masters_

* * *

><p><strong>You know, I wanted this chapter to be completely happy after Joel's rescue, but that did not work out. It seems I can't help myself from dropping a few hints about future conflicts and plot points. Oh well.<strong>

**Recently, the long lasting manga Naruto has come to a finish. Part of me thinks it's about time, while the other part of me is sad. Naruto was actually one of the first anime/manga I discovered when I was a kid. The series really isn't too much younger than I am, so I will miss it. On the other hand...Good God! The last bit was just dragging on and on. The last developments that happened were not well executed and were completely forced. And that epilogue...Parings out the wazoo. Either way, I'll remember it at least.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	24. Decisions

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing." Theodore Roosevelt

* * *

><p>Chapter 24: "Decisions"<p>

(Saturday-December 4, 2010)

"Hello?" Phantom questioned as he stepped into the Cave. He had just been called in with saying the League had something to discuss with him. He was sure that it had something to do with either the Ghoul Project or the Black Ring users. Very few of the members of the League were happy about either of those things.

From the people in Cave, Phantom thought it would the later one this time. That was good. He didn't want to go over what happened in the Ghoul Project for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"Phantom." One of the Green Lanterns greeted. He was a Caucasian man with brown hair and was wearing a mask.

"Green Lantern…" Phantom turned to the other one. He was an African-American man that looked incredibly strict. "Green Lantern…Did you two call me here?"

"Naw, we were just using this as a chance to talk about the Black Lantern Corps." The Caucasian Green Lantern shrugged.

"I figured…Look, there's not a whole lot I know, and you've already talked with Vision. There's literally nothing more I can tell you." Phantom stated.

"That we know, it's just that the Guardians are worried. They've never seen those black rings before, and their energy levels are off the charts. In the hands of ghosts, they're beyond dangerous." The dark skinned Green Lantern noted. "We just thought that since they are your enemies that you would know more."

"Well, I never met the mummy guy and I haven't even seen the Black Power Rings in action…" Phantom sighed.

"So they're avoiding you?"

"Yeah. It seems that way." Phantom frowned. "I have no idea why, though. They've had plenty of chances to attack me, and we all know they have the means and the motives…"

"So, they're planning something?" The dark skinned Green Lantern questioned.

"It seems that way. I know they're destroying threats but…It seems to be more than that." Phantom sighed. "I mean, it's not like anyone could use that sword that Harm was using. So why destroy it after Harm was defeated? It's strange."

"That it is." The white Green Lantern nodded. "I suppose we'll have to investigate more."

"We may even have to recruit Guy." The other Green Lantern noted.

"Oh, hell no. I hate dealing with that guy. The arrogance comes off him in waves…" The masked Green Lantern sighed.

"That I do know, but he's still a Green Lantern." With that, they began to walk off.

"…Hey, if you didn't call me here, who did?!" Phantom called out to them.

"I did." Superman's voice sounded behind Phantom.

"Superman? What are you doing here?" Phantom questioned.

"The League thought it would be best if I was the one that talked to you." Superman smiled.

"Oh…" Phantom looked around. "And you called me here? You haven't been here since the Reds attacked. I figured it was because of Superboy."

"I, uh, heard that he was out. And I thought it would be better to talk to you here…" Superman rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Phantom frowned. Conner did say he was going to take Megan on a date. So, the older Kryptonian was using that to his advantage of avoiding the clone. "Yeah…still avoiding your clone, huh?"

"Can we not talk about that? I don't want to argue." Superman sighed.

"Fine." Phantom rolled his eyes. "What did you want? Is Batman still mad about the Grundy thing?"

"No, as long as that guy stays in the Ghost Zone it's fine." Superman shook his head. "It's about a meeting the League had earlier…during Thanksgiving."

"Oh?" Phantom didn't know where this is going. "Are you kicking me off the Team?"

"No…Well, kind of, in a way." Superman smiled. "You see, it's been decided that we would like you to join our ranks."

"…What?" Phantom blinked.

"If you want, you can join the Justice League."

* * *

><p>"I don't get it…" Joel muttered.<p>

"What's not to get?" Dani glanced at the newest person that lived in her house. They were currently in the living room. "You push buttons, move your cart, and try to win the race."

"But isn't this kind of pointless?" Joel questioned as he continued to play Mario Kart.

"Thank you…" Rachel noted as she continued to read.

"Don't start sounding like Miss Doom and Gloom." Nyx rolled her eyes. "We don't need two cynics here."

"I'm just saying that this isn't really productive." Joel muttered.

"It isn't supposed to be productive, dude." Victor looked over to his new…friend? He wasn't too sure yet. The kid was hard to get a read on. "It's supposed to be fun."

"Can't something be productive and fun?" Joel questioned.

"Wow, you're a real stuff…" Youngblood noted.

"Rack! It's stiff, not stuff." Polly corrected from Youngblood's shoulder.

"Oh, I was wondering why it sounded so weird."

"Shouldn't we be training?" Joel questioned.

"That's what you keep saying. Isn't there anything else you think about?" Rachel questioned.

"Well, in the Ghoul Project I thought about survival…so, I usually think about survival and training." Joel noted. "Besides that, I never really had time for anything else."

"Then why did you just win without even paying attention?" Victor questioned.

"Eh!?" Dani blinked at the screen. It was true. Joel won the race. "How did you do that?!"

"I don't know, it was easy…" The ten year old shrugged.

"You were only using one hand on the controller…" Nyx noted.

"So?" Joel blinked.

"Gah! I want a rematch!" Dani demanded.

"No thanks, this is really boring." Joel handed the controller to Youngblood.

"What? You won't give me a rematch…and you stole my dog again!" Dani pointed to Cujo who was sleeping on Joel's lap.

"Sorry." Joel handed the dog to the girl. "I think I'll go…do something…"

After Joel had left the room, Nyx muttered. "Geeze, what's his problem?"

"Secret…" Greta frowned at the girl and began to walk after Joel.

"It may be hard for us to understand what he's feeling." Rachel looked up from her book. "He was with that assassin group for most of his life, then he was basically tortured in the Ghoul Project. It must be weird for him to be here doing normal things."

"I still can't believe all that. Are there really kids with that big of problems?" Victor frowned. "He must feel so out of place. This makes me appreciate my life a whole lot more…"

"I know…" Dani frowned down at Cujo. "Even Cujo can feel it. That's why he keeps going to Joel. Animals can sense pain, and Joel has a lot of it. I tried to get him to play with us and make a big deal about Cujo to make him feel better, but I don't think it's helping."

"I think he apprece….apprecioa….app…" Youngblood stuttered.

"Rack! Appreciates it." Polly stated.

"Yeah, that." Youngblood nodded.

"Probably, but it isn't helping too much." Dani frowned. "Maybe we should try and help him find something that he can do that will take his mind off everything."

"That sounds like a good idea." Rachel nodded.

"But we'll have to do it tomorrow…" Nyx noted. "He doesn't look like he's in the mood for anything right now."

"Okay. That sounds like a plan." Victor agreed.

"Er…actually, I'm going to be busy tomorrow…." Youngblood shrugged. "Sorry."

"Why? What's happening tomorrow?" Dani questioned.

"I have…things I need to do." Youngblood stated.

"That's pretty vague." Nyx stated.

"Yeah, well…It's personal." Youngblood mentioned.

"Hmm…" Rachel eyed him for a moment before returning to her book. "Whatever."

"Personal, riiiiiight…" Victor chuckled. "Like the time you decided to try and build a mountain of cheese? That took forever to clean up…"

"It was the best lunch I ever had, though. Make sure to do something like that again." Nyx grinned.

"Yeah…Okay…Or something like that…" Youngblood shared a look with Polly.

Dani noticed this look. It was strange. The look seemed oddly personal, like they were sharing information. She had never seen Youngblood look like that before…

Her curiosity spiked. What were they up to?

* * *

><p>"Joel." Vlad smiled as he saw the boy walk into the kitchen. "How are you, my boy?"<p>

"Fine." Joel answered as he grabbed an apple.

"Oh?" Vlad nodded. "And how are you adjusting?"

"Secret."

"Ah! Good evening, Miss Greta." Vlad smiled at the blond ghost.

"Secret." Greta nodded to the man that opened his home to her. She then walked to Joel and stared at him.

"Can I help you?" Joel blinked.

"Secret."

"You know. I bet that gets annoying really fast." Joel mentioned.

"It's something you get used to." Vlad mentioned as he looked over his papers.

"Where's Vision?" Joel questioned.

"She has her duties in the Ghost Zone." Vlad stated. "As I have my duties here."

"Oh. Sorry for bothering you." Joel apologized and bowed his head. "I'll leave."

"No, it's fine." Vlad smiled sadly from his seat at the counter. "There's a reason I'm doing my work down here. I enjoy the noise. It's nice after spending so many years alone."

"…Yeah…" Joel nodded. "I know what you mean. It's just…a lot to get used to."

"That I do know. Hahahahahaha!" Vlad laughed. "I had time to slowly get used to it as more people moved in. You just jumped right in the deep end, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did." Joel sighed.

"Secret." Greta poked Joel. "Secret secret."

"Yes, what is…it?"

Blink. Pause. Blink.

"Secret." Greta hugged Joel.

"Um…" Joel didn't know what to do.

Then, as quickly as the hug was initiated, Greta pulled away and smiled. "Secret!"

With that, she walked away.

"What…was that?" Joel questioned.

"Greta has a unique gift. She can see a person's true nature by just a looking at them." Vlad explained. "She has a great understanding of people just by looking at them. That is why she was originally drawn to Danielle's cheerful and optimistic self. On the other hand, she gets wearier around more selfish people such as me or some of Danielle's friends."

"You?" Joel raised an eyebrow.

"She's given me a chance, but I can be rather conniving and manipulative for my own selfish goals." Vlad noted. "It used to be a lot worse, though. Being around you youngsters has changed me a bit, however."

"…You sound old when you talk like that." Joel stated neutrally.

"Brat, I'm not that old."

"I never said you were old. I said you sound old."

"Ha! Fair enough, my boy." Vlad smiled. "Anyway, Greta is a pure soul. One that is as white as snow. Thus, many of the darker things in life scare her. I don't think she understands grey areas too well."

"…So that's how she sees people? As snow." Joel reasoned. "And in snow, you can see even the smallest bit of dirt and grime."

"Yes. That's very astute." Vlad nodded. "It's not that she sees someone's feelings or thoughts, but merely how 'dirty' their soul is. With you, I think she sees pure snow that has resisted all the grime and dirt thrown at it. Even more than the completely pure Danielle, Greta sympathizes with you as a soul that has resisted contamination. That hug very well could be her way of saying you're not alone."

"Huh…" Joel looked down.

"Nevertheless, everyone can see it, my boy." Vlad noted. "You haven't found where you belong yet in this family. It bothers you, makes you feel alone. I'm sure Greta has similar feelings."

"I suppose. I guess I just don't know what to do with myself." Joel slumped into a chair.

"Then find a passion." Vlad laughed. "Daniel has inventing. Danielle has art. I have my business affairs. You just need to finds what makes you happy."

"But I don't know what makes me happy."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find something soon enough."

* * *

><p>"What do I do?" Danny sat in his room and questioned his two most trusted advisers on personal matter.<p>

"Joining the Justice League…" Valerie whistled as she leaned back in her chair. "That must be a dream come true for you."

"Yeah. Tucker and I fantasized about it all the time…" Danny looked down in pain at the memory. "But…I don't think it would work out all that well."

"And the League trusts you enough for this?" The Fright Knight questioned. "They did suspect you to be a mole."

"That's just Batman and Red Arrow. Plus, there's no proof, so Batman wouldn't say anything to the League about it." Danny shrugged. "I think I created a lot of good will with everything I've done for justice and the greater good."

"Yeah," Valerie placed her hand over his. "You do a lot of good."

"But you are also a member of the Council." The Fright Knight noted as he leaned against the wall. "It could either be a disaster or the connection that we need to ease tensions."

"I think I could do some good as a Leaguer, though. That might be part of the plan for them too. They don't want to fight, they're just scared about what we can do." Danny reasoned. "But imagine it. The first ghost Leaguer. I could help bring long lasting peace between our worlds."

"But if you do it, you'll have to give up a lot. You'll be a full time member of the Leauge and the Council. You'll be gone from Amity Park a lot and when you're home, you'll probably be in meetings." Valerie pointed out. "Not only that…What about that Team of yours? You can't be on both Young Justice and the Justice League."

"I thought of that." Danny sighed. "It won't be easy to give up spending a lot of my time with my friends, but I'll still see them. Plus, I know now that they can take care of themselves. They've needed me less and less to get missions done right. I'm not worried about their safety anymore."

"Then I suppose it will come down to what you want, my Liege." The Fright Knight stated.

"What I want…" Danny mumbled.

"Of course, Danny. You think too much about others." Valerie smiled. "I love you for it, but sometimes everyone needs to be selfish. What you want matters too."

"Yeah…but what do I want?" Danny questioned.

"That is something only you can answer, Lord Phantom." The Fright Knight looked out the window. "But remember this. You only get to be young once."

* * *

><p>(Sunday-December 5, 2010)<p>

"Why do this?" Wulf questioned as he, Spirit, and Cujo flew through the air.

"Why are we doing what?" Spirit questioned.

"Following Youngblood." Wulf rolled his eyes. What else would he be referring to?

"Because we need to…" Spirit glared as the sky in front of them. She had no idea where they were going. In fact, she could not even see Youngblood. The halfa girl couldn't risk her friend seeing her, so she was having Wulf and Cujo lead her by tracking Youngblood's scent.

"Need to? Or want to?" Wulf grunted.

"Both." Spirit glared.

"Woof!" Cujo barked in argument.

"No! I'm not being snoopy and suspicious!" Spirit shouted to her puppy. "Plus, you don't get to say anything you unfaithful cheating dog! In fact, I shouldn't even be talking to you! You would be locked up in a dog house if we had one..."

"Don't change subject." Wulf snorted nonetheless. "Cujo right, you like Vision."

"What?" Spirit blinked. "How am I like Vision?"

"She need know all about everyone." Wulf shrugged.

"Er…" Spirit rubbed the back of her head. Her adopted mother did have the tendency to learn everything about everyone. Knowledge was power after all, and very few had the amount of knowledge on what was happening than Vision. "She is like that, but I'm not."

"Really? What this then?" Wulf questioned.

"This is just my making sure that Youngblood is okay." Spirit pouted. "I'm not meddling or anything."

"Yeah…" Wulf sighed. "Not meddling…"

"…Shut up…" Spirit grumbled.

* * *

><p>"Why are we here?" Dusk asked the other children.<p>

Currently, the group of children minus Dani and Youngblood were all in the Ghost Zone. Dani's friends dragged the youngest halfa out of the mansion and to a random rock in the middle of the Ghost Zone. Despite his apprehension, Dusk allowed them to lead him. He just hoped this wasn't something stupid.

"Isn't it obvious?" Nyx questioned. "We're going to help you find a hobby."

His hopes were brutally crushed in an instant.

"I'm leaving." Dusk stated as her turned away.

"No." Black tendrils of magic reached out and grabbed the boy. Raven glared as she drawled out. "I went to the trouble of coming out here. My time shall not be wasted."

"That's her way of saying she cares." Nyx mentioned.

"No it isn't. It's my way of saying that either he does this, or he suffers." Rachel glared.

"You're bluffing-Ah!" Joel jumped as the tendrils shocked him.

"We are doing this." Rachel grumbled.

"What's got you so mad?" Dusk questioned.

"I think she's mad that I woke her up by pouring a cold bucket of water on her head." Nyx smirked.

"And I will have my revenge." Raven stated without emotion. "But right now, I have to make sure that suffering wasn't in vain."

"Oh, don't act like you don't care!" Nyx grabbed Raven and gave her a noogie

"I hate you."

"Love you too…"

"This is dumb? Why should I even cooperate?" Dusk questioned.

"Secret."

"You know what, I'm starting to think that you're purposefully waiting to use that as a joke." Dusk deadpanned.

"Secret." Greta stared at the halfa. "Secret. Secret."

Dusk frowned. While this wasn't the way he would go about it, he did want to find something that he could enjoy. It was better than lazying around the house all day, after all. "Fine. I mean, how badly could this go?"

(First attempt: Nyx)

"I like pulling pranks." Nyx explained. "That's why I put a paint bomb in your pants when you weren't looking."

"Is that what you were doing? I thought you were trying to kill me, so I put the bomb back in your pocket." Dusk blinked.

"WHAT!?" Nyx screamed.

Boom!

"Ah…" Nyx looked down at her now green colored behind, legs, and armor.

"So…I did good right? I pulled a prank on you?" Dusk questioned. "Because I really don't get why you would do it to other people. It seems mean…"

"Okay, you suck…" Nyx grumbled.

(Second attempt: Raven)

"Reading." Raven stated simply as she and Dusk sat in the Ghost Writer's library.

"Reading? That's it? That's what you do for fun?" Dusk questioned.

"Yes. Now shush." Raven stuck her nose in the old tomb.

"…" Dusk looked at the book in his hand. "And what's the point about reading Shakesperian plays?"

"It's about passion, my young friend!" Scribe notes as he was caring a pile of books. "People who lived centuries ago are able to speak to you like they are in the room. It's beautiful! Writing defeats the hands of time. With it, you can preserve your thoughts, loves, and desires forever. It is truly the most beautiful art form in existence!"

"Done." Dusk placed the book down.

"What?! That's impossible!"

"The Shadows showed me how to skim my readings to learn only the important facts." Dusk explained. "I did that. Got to say, though. It's kind of weird that this Romeo and Juliet are barely in their teenage years. How they even understand something as complicated as love?"

"Ah…er…" Scribe stuttered.

"Plus, I still don't see the point. I already know that love makes people do stupid things." Dusk mentioned. "I didn't learn anything and am bored. Is that the point of reading for fun?"

"Get out." Raven pointed to the door.

"But…"

"GET. OUT." Raven glared. "You don't dare get to mock the beauty of good literature."

"Whatever." Dusk shrugged. "It still seems pointless unless it teaches you how to do something."

"Leave!"

(Third attempt: Victor)

"Let's throw around the old pigskin." Victor tossed the American football in the air and caught it.

"I don't know…" Dusk mentioned. "Even if I turned back into my human self, I'll still be a lot stronger than you."

"I'm sure it will be fine." Victor shrugged. He threw the ball to Dusk, and Dusk threw it back. It hit him square in the stomach.

"OOF!" Victor fell to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Dusk questioned. "I threw it a lightly as I could."

"Gah…I'm fine…I just need some friends without superpowers…"

(Fourth attempt: Greta)

"So what's your hobby?" Dusk questioned.

"Secret."

"So your hobby is comedy?"

"Secret."

"Do you know a word other than secret?"

"Secret."

"…I think we're done here…"

* * *

><p>"So…" Phantom frowned at the archer. "You're joining the Team, huh?"<p>

"Yep." Red Arrow glared. "Got a problem with that?"

"No, but I have to question you motives." Phantom shrugged. "Why do you want to join 'the kiddie team' now? Seems like…very convenient timing."

"And why would that be?" Red Arrow questioned.

"You know why." Phantom stated.

"…So they invited you too…" Red Arrow was not pleased.

"They did." Phantom answered.

Red Arrow frowned. "Whatever…"

"Yeah…" Phantom frowned back at him. "Whatever."

A squad of Phantom, Kid Flash, Artemis, Aqualad, and Red Arrow were currently on the Bioship. They were on a shadowing mission to tail Sportsmaster. Unfortunately, Young Justice as a whole wasn't on this mission because Robin was busy with Batman, and it was decided that a squad of eight would be overkill for such a mission that involved not being noticed.

Originally, Green Arrow, who was left in charge while Batman was away, only wanted the ex-sidekicks to go. Both Artemis and Phantom insisted that they come. Phantom argued that his powers made tailing easy, while Artemis argued that she was the most skilled person after M'gann and Conner on piloting the Bioship.

Phantom didn't know Artemis' true intentions for wanting to be on the mission, but she seemed mad about something. He wouldn't question her about it, though. The halfa trusted her. No, the teen vigilante's true reason for being on the mission was simple. He thought best while doing things. Sitting and contemplating rarely helped him unless it was getting advice from others. After all, one talk with the Fright Knight helped him more in his decision with Ember than a week of thinking ever did. But with that done...perhaps a little action would help him decide what to do.

Of course, it would help if Red Arrow didn't act like such an asshole sometimes. A well-meaning asshole admittedly, but still an asshole. In fact, Phantom didn't want the archer on the Team. He was completely disrespectful to his, yes his, friends and comrades about the existence of Young Justice during the earlier days. Plus, Phantom could tell he was just going to stir the pot and cause more tension.

Yeah, like he needed more tension…

"I'm going to the front." Phantom grunted and walked away.

"Do whatever you want." Red Arrow grunted back.

Aqualad approached the halfa as the Atlantian entered the back of the Biohip. It was clear that the Atlantian saw their interaction, but the halfa knew that Kaldur was far too respectful to eavesdrop on a friend's conversation.

"I wish you would give Red a chance." Kaldur sighed. "He is a good person at heart."

"Yeah, deep down maybe, but the on the surface? Not so much." Phantom rolled his eyes.

"You both picture yourselves as strong individuals. Alpha males if you will. It is probable that you would clash." Kaldur suggested.

"You're comparing me to him?" Phantom raised an eyebrow. "Because I think that I'm a lot nicer and more patient than him."

"Not until you grow close to someone. Until then, you hold them at a distance." Kaldur stated. "And in that aspect, you are both completely the same."

"Yeah, whatever…." Phantom sighed and began to walk to the cockpit of the Bioship. "Whatever you say, leader."

"And that…" Kaldur frowned at the ghost. "Why did you give me the position of squad leader?"

"You can handle it. I trust you completely." Phantom smiled at his friend. "Besides, Red Asshole is more likely to follow your lead than mine."

"Danny…"

"I know. I know." Phantom waved him off as he walked away. "Give him a chance…"

The half would try at least. Hopefully, there wouldn't be too much headbutting…

"You have nothing to prove…" Kid Flash's voice sounded from the cockpit as Phantom approached. "Not to me."

"Okay…" Artemi's voice sounded satisfied and content. "And Wally? It sounded fine out loud."

Phantom paused as he was about to enter the cockpit. Perhaps…He would give them a few more minutes. The halfa wouldn't want to embarrass them after what seemed to be such a heartfelt moment.

No, he would save that for when they actually started dating…

* * *

><p>Boom!<p>

"ARG!"

"RAW"

"SHOOT THEM DOWN!"

"What is happening!?" Wulf yelled.

"I don't know!" Spirit shouted back.

"Bark!"

"Yes, I know they're shooting at us! That much is obvious!" Spirit snapped. "But why?"

"RACK! Hold fire!"

The bullets and blasts of ectoplasm stopped. This gave the group of three a chance to look up at the massive ship floating in the sky. The ghostly pirate ship had a green glow and was filled with green skeletons. All the skeletons froze at the voice.

Youngblood's skeleton parrot landed on the railing of the ship. "Spirt. Wulf. Cujo. State your business."

"Polly! You jerk! Why were you shooting at us!?" Spirit yelled and ranted at the parrot ghost.

Boom!

"AH!" Spirit dodged the ectoplasmic cannon ball. "What was that?!"

"Answer the question." Polly demanded.

"Hmm…" Wulf stared at the ship. While confused, he wasn't angry. Those shots that were sent at them were not meant to even hit them. Plus, the eyes…empty sockets…of the skeletons were not ones that intended harm. "Answer."

"What?" Spirit questioned.

"Please, tell him." Wulf requested. He wasn't good with long explanations.

"…We're here to check on Youngblood!" Spirit answered. "We were worried!"

"We?" Wulf questioned.

"Woof!" Cujo in attack mode seemed to agree.

"Fine…It was just me! I dragged them along!" Spirit yelled with rolling eyes.

"Rack! Well, he's fine." Polly stated. "So, go home."

"No!" Spirit denied the request. "Not until I see him."

"No. You can see him tomorrow." Polly glared.

"…Why? What's happening?" Spirit questioned.

"That is none of your concern-"

"Yes it is!" Spirit exclaimed. "Chuck's my friend. If he's in trouble, then I have to see him."

"I see…So you won't leave?" Polly questioned.

"No!"

"Then…I suppose there is no other choice. You can't see Youngblood until the day is up, but you insist that you must see him…" The bird sighed. "And here I thought that I had the day off from babysitting. I guess I must entertain you until midnight."

"What do you-"

"Fire!"

Boom!

Zap!

"Ah!" Spirit was forced to dodge dozens of cannon balls and ectoplasmic blasts. "What are you doing?!"

"Stalling." Polly answered. "We don't need to hurt you. All we need to do is stop you from getting past us until midnight. And that, we can do."

* * *

><p>"Hello, Grundy." Dusk stated as he sat down. The giant of a man had been sitting in the middle of Vision's garden in the Ghost Zone. Grundy was allowed to stay there because the compound had long since been reinforced to withstand Colossus's random bouts of destruction. Compared to that, Grundy's accidents were nothing.<p>

"Small boy…" Grundy grunted.

"My name is Dusk, Grundy." Dusk stated simply.

"Grundy sees. Dusk boy…" Grundy stated.

"I suppose that's as good as I'll get." Dusk sighed. "Why are you sitting out here?"

"It is peaceful. Grundy likes it. It let Grundy forgets the anger for a while." Solomon Grundy noted.

"Anger, huh?" Dusk nodded to himself. That made a lot of sense. He couldn't remember a time when Grundy wasn't angry. "And what makes you so angry?"

"Almost everything." Grundy grunted. "Grundy can't help it. Grundy is always angry because Grundy is anger."

The brute was, indeed, anger personified. Dusk heard the stories from the war. He knew about Phantom's death, return, and fight with Agent Z. When he forgave the now deceased man, Phantom let go of the anger that he had held onto for so long. That anger was released with the energy the halfa used in the war.

Then, Ra's Al Ghul's group collected the energy and used it in the Ghoul Project. That was why so many of them seemed to share the same tendencies as the old Phantom. Even Joel had been forced to fight off the anger at first. After he adapted and developed his own unique powers, the anger wasn't a problem, though.

For Grundy, however, the anger wouldn't go away. His body was simply a corpse killed and resurrected again and again by the Lazarus Pit. This corpse filled with magical energy was filled with the anger that Phantom had released. As such, even more than the other ghouls, he was an imperfect clone of Phantom. He was a reminder of emotions that Phantom had long since discarded.

"Anger is your nature, huh? And can you change that?" Dusk questioned with honest curiosity.

"Grundy tries, but Grundy usually fails." Grundy frowned. "Lose temper at everything. Feel like punching you right now."

"But you care for Dani." Dusk pointed out.

"Yet Grundy hurts Dani." Grundy seemed saddened by this. "No matter what, Grundy causes pain. That won't change."

"You don't think people can change?" Dusk questioned.

"Grundy never said that." Grundy scratched the top of his head.

"…No, you didn't." Dusk sighed. "But I sometimes think that. People don't really change. You won't stop being angry. Agent Z wouldn't stop his path to self-destruction. And I can't be a fun loving kid that everyone thinks I should be."

"Then what is the Dusk boy?" Grundy questioned.

"I don't know." Dusk stated. "Someone that doesn't really belong with such loud and happy people."

"Hmm…"

"Not that I don't appreciate their efforts to make me feel welcome, but all this…Everything…It's not me. It's not what I'm used to." Dusk frowned. "And I don't think that I ever will be. In fact, I had to run away from those girls because they won't leave me be."

"Run? Grundy thinks that stupid. Just crush the little girls." Grundy blinked as he turned where the ghoul just was. "Huh? Where he go?"

"GRUNDY!" Nyx yelled as she ran up to Grundy. "Have you seen Joel?"

"Who?"

"Secret." Greta stated.

"Now's not the time for that." Nyx rolled her eyes.

"The boy with the scar." Raven floated calmly by her friends.

"Oh…Dusk boy." Grundy grunted. "Grundy don't know. He was just here. Disappeared."

"Damn! It happened again…" Nyx groaned.

"He did have ninja training." Raven mentioned.

"That's no excuse for us." Nyx decided. "We should be able to find him. If only Cujo or Wulf were here. Where are they anyway? I haven't seen them all day."

"Who knows?" Raven shrugged. "Let's just keep looking. Joel needs to try gardening next."

"But where is he?" Nyx questioned.

"Secret."

"You're not helping Greta!"

* * *

><p>Phantom was beginning to think that none of his missions with the Team would ever go as planned. It was supposed to be simple. They would tail Sportsmaster and have him lead them to his destination. Artemis and Phantom would be in the air. Aqualad would follow under water. Red Arrow would use a boat to follow Sportsmaster through the New Orleans swamp, while Kid Flash would be traveling by bike.<p>

As long as they kept their distance, it should have been easy. Too bad that's not how it went. It turned out that Sportsmaster wasn't alone. He had backup in the form of Chesire and Jinx. Needless to say, that complicated things, especially when Red Arrow was about to be attacked by the female assassins.

Both Artemis and Phantom leapt into action to save the newest member of Young Justice. They would have tried to contact Red Arrow using their headsets, but there was a big possibility that the message might be intercepted, jammed, or hacked. Thus, they had to physically stop the duo of female assassins.

Red Arrow wasn't pleased by this development, but they knew that if they hadn't done that, then he might have been killed. Cheshire did seem to be attracted to the male archer, but Phantom knew that despite her flirting, Cheshire was very professional in her work. Plus, Jinx wouldn't even blink at the thought of killing someone like Red Arrow.

Phantom, however…

"Why are you here?" Jinx whispered in a hiss as she and the halfa traded blows.

"Mission." Phantom whispered back as he kicked at her head. "Didn't know you'd be here."

Jinx ducked under the kick and tried to sweep his legs. Unfortunately for her, that didn't work because he could fly. "If a mission of yours involves the Shadows you should tell me."

"But I can't-WHAT THE HELL!" Phantom froze as he saw Cheshire tackle Red Arrow and began to kiss him.

Boom!

Jinx used the distraction as a chance to blast Phantom away and out of sight of the others. Hidden in the woods, Jinx tackled Phantom like Cheshire did. Unlike the other assassin, though, there was no kiss.

"You need to be more careful." She whispered.

"Wha-" His vision faded in a flash of pink.

The next thing Phantom knew, he was being shaken.

"Bro! You okay?" Kid Flash dressed in black and yellow bikers outfit questioned. He helped pull the ghost to his feet.

"Yeah…I think I'll live…kind of. Thanks." Phantom groaned. "Should not let myself get distracted…But wow, that was a freaky sight."

"Yeah…" Artemis approached the boys. "No kidding."

"What happened?" Kid Flash took off his helmet.

"I should be asking you that." Phantom rolled his shoulders. He received a satisfying pop for his efforts. "What happened to the assassins?"

"They got away." Red Arrow frowned as he and Kaldur walked away from the river and towards. "We tried to put a tracer on Sportsmaster and follow him, but he found us out."

"Jinx ran away with Cheshire, but I managed to get a tracer on them." Artemis stated.

"Good job." Phantom nodded to her.

"And what happened with you?" Red Arrow glared at him. "They might not have gotten away if you didn't let Jinx get the better of you."

"Sorry, I was distracted with the sight of you swapping spit with Cheshire." Phantom noted.

"You what?" Wally's jaw dropped.

"She kissed me!" Red Arrow flushed.

"That does not matter." Aqualad stated. "We need to continue on the mission."

"Yeah…" Artemis did not look pleased right now. Phantom thought it might because her sister was kissing the other archer a few minutes ago, but he wasn't sure. The blonde girl did not seem to be in a good mood at all today… "Chesire's heading north."

"Sportsmaster was heading south. Kind of like this mission." Red Arrow mentioned with his arms crossed.

"Maybe he'll double back. Maybe she will." Artemis suggested.

"Either way, they'll rondevu, and we'll find them." Wally nodded.

"We had better." Kaldur stated. "Sportsmaster acquired an attaché brief case. We need to learn what it contained. If you both stayed in the air..."

"We made a call." Phantom argued for them. "Two assassins were approaching Red Arrow, and we were afraid that they might intercept the message. It isn't like we have M'gann to help. Besides…Jinx was just about to kill him. If I hadn't flown down to stop her, you'd be dead, Red."

"Yeah…You had to stop Jinx…" Red Arrow frowned.

"And it is true. We have begun to rely on M'gann's telepathy over our radios." Kaldur sighed.

"Then let's stop placing blame and go find them." Wally stepped forward.

"Fine." Artemis threw the tracker to Red Arrow. "Because obviously, I can't be trusted, you track her."

Wally immediately grabbed the tracking device and tried to hand it back to the archer. "Artemis…"

"It's fine." Artemis sighed and began to walk away. "I'll…follow in the Bioship."

With that, she was gone.

"Go Kid, Phantom." Kaldur stated after a few seconds. "Arrow and I will return to the river, and we will all follow as originally planned."

Phantom began to fly off. When he was out of normal eyesight range, he reached into his pocket. When he woke up, he felt the new weight in his coat. Jinx must have placed it there before she knocked him out. It was a piece of paper and a tracking device.

The note said, "Come find me. We need to talk."

So, Phantom followed the tracking device. He had a feeling it would lead him to Cheshire and Sportsmaster too.

* * *

><p>Spirit hadn't been in a lot of fights where the goal of her enemy was to stall. Usually, they went for the kill. Thus, this was a new experience.<p>

Youngblood's pirate crew's only intention right now was to distract the three other ghosts. Their canon shots and ectoplasmic blasts were merely meant to keep Spirit, Cujo, and Wulf at bay for as long as possible. Obviously, they hoped to keep them at a distance. That meant that they had to get in close.

Of course, it was not as easy as that. They were basically having to move around a minefield of fireworks in the sky. Even Spirit, with her Premonition and dodging ability, had a hard time dodging the constant barrage of blasts in the sky. She could only imagine what Wulf and Cujo were going through.

Growling, Spirit tried to think of what to do. She might be able to get close, but she would have to leave Wulf and Cujo behind. The halfa girl didn't like her chances of taking an entire pirate crew without any backup. She would need their help, but she didn't know how to get it without an accidental injury.

Oh wait…Wulf could rip holes in dimensions.

"Wulf!" Spirit cried. "I'll distract them! You take Cujo and head through the Ghost Zone!"

"Got it!" Wulf nodded.

"Woof!" Cujo growled.

"Alright then!" In a burst of speed, Spirit lunged forward. She got closer to the pirate ship and continued to fly around it. With all the different intentions, she really couldn't get a read on what they would do next. All she really knew was that with the almost literal wall of explosions they were using to keep her back, she would never be able to get close.

Thus, she was forced to dance and move around the explosions without moving a centimeter closer to the ship. That was okay, though. Their attention was completely on her, and that's what she wanted. They would never see Wulf and Cujo coming.

"ARG!"

"WHA?! How did they get here?!"

"Rack! You fools! He can practically teleport!"

Grinning, Spirit noticed as the blasts stopped. She now had the chance to get closer. Using all the speed she could, Spirit launched herself to the ship. Some of the pirate crew saw her coming and tried to react. Their attacks were nothing compared to the wall of attacks from before, though. The halfa girl dodged those blasts with ease.

"Hey! How's it going!?" Spirit shouted as she landed on two of the skeleton's skulls and crashed them into the deck of the ship. Her feet continued to hold them down even though it was clear that that they were unconscious.

Reacting quickly, the ghost pirates reached for their swords.

"RACK! YOU FOOLS! DON'T HURT THEM!" Polly screamed.

This caused the skeletons to pause. Most of them relied on their swordsmanship to fight. It was what gave them their edge. They had to think of what to do if they could not use their blades. This, however, took time, and it was all that time Spirit, Cujo, and Wulf needed. They quickly took advantage.

In the blink of the eye, the three ghosts were tearing through the skeletons. Their surprise and hesitance to use force was their undoing. While they weren't allowed to use force, their three opponents were able and willing.

…Plus, it helped that two of the ghosts were canines that had a craving for bones…

It took a few minutes, but the skeletons were taken down. Once that was done, only Polly was left. The skeleton parrot was still on the railing of the ship. He seemed rather upset.

"Well…that sucked." Polly sighed.

"Yeah! We totally kicked their bony asses!" Spirit raised her hands in victory.

"Yes…Now I suppose you will go after Youngblood." Polly grunted.

"…Huh?" Spirit tilted her head.

"Youngblood. The reason we came." Wulf reminded her.

"Oh! Right!...I forgot…" Spirit rubbed her head in embarrassment. "I was just so into the fight and the plan…"

"Woof…" Cujo shook his head at his master. It always was like this when she was focused on something. Everything else faded away.

"Well, we did manage to distract you." Polly noted. "That was the plan. We just didn't do it long enough."

"Yeah, and now you have to take us to Chuck…" Spirit paused for a second. "Wait a minute! I just realized this! Youngblood had a pirate crew under his command this whole time I've known him!?"

"Yep." Polly nodded.

"Why didn't he tell me?! We could have used them!" Spirit remembered all the fights and troubles they had over the last few months.

"It's complicated." Polly stated. "The Council would get suspicious if Youngblood could command an entire crew of ghosts like it was nothing. The first time, back when he first fought Phantom, could be written off as dumb luck. Doing it multiple time, though, would bring suspicion."

"What? I don't get what you're saying. Why would people be suspicious of Youngblood?" Spirit questioned.

"Tell me, have you ever wondered the why's around Youngblood? Why hasn't he aged when most ghosts age to their prime and only age internally from there? Why does he keep forgetting knowledge that would be common knowledge for someone that should be mentally twenty-two? Why would I stick with him for so long?" Polly questioned.

"Er…" Spirit blinked. "I never thought about it really. I just thought it was a thing."

"And so does everyone else." Polly noted. "…I…I can't let you talk to Youngblood. At least not yet, but I will let you see him."

"Really?" Spirit asked.

"Yes, and then I will explain to you the best hidden secret of the Ghost Zone."

* * *

><p>"Oh?" The Fright Knight stated as he walked into the training room of Masters Mansion. "I didn't know someone was already here."<p>

"Sorry." Joel apologized. He liked to stay in human form when he could, so right now he forwent his ghoul…er, halfa form. "I was just practicing a bit of kata."

"I can see that." The Fright Knight chuckled. "Very impressive for a child. It is rare to see children these days so dedicated to the martial arts."

"It's a force of habit." Joel admitted. "I was forced to practice constantly in the Shadows, and I really had nothing better to do while in the Ghoul Project."

"Indeed." The Fright Knight sat down on the floor and watched as Joel continued to move through the form of moves that was hundreds of years old. "So you are doing this out of boredom?"

"Well, I came in here to hide from Dani's friends. They are really persistent. But I think I finally lost them, but I want to wait and be sure." Joel shrugged. "Then I got bored, and the rest is history."

The Fright Knight laughed. "And why were the other children pursuing you?"

"They want to help find me a hobby or something." Joel mentioned. "But I got sick of it and decided to run away."

"I can imagine. You don't seem the type to take part in such idle play." The Fright Knight noted.

"And what type do I seem to be?" Joel questioned.

"An old soul born anew. An ancient warrior who only knows war, but is forced to live in a time of peace. A man who despises the battle, but knows nothing else." The Fright Knight mentioned.

"…I suppose you're right." Joel sighed and sat down as well. "I hate having to fight and hurt people, but I don't know how to do anything else."

"I can understand how you feel somewhat." The Fright Knight noted. "I more than anyone else, know not what to do in times of peace. Even Colossus enjoys celebrations, drinking, and battles among rivals. I, on the other hand, have only been focused war and serving my master. Many times, I find myself confounded with free time."

"Then…what do you do?" Joel questioned. "What do people who only know war do during a time of peace?"

"We prepare for the next war."

"But…I don't like war, fighting, or hurting people." The pacifist argued. "Why would I prepare for it?"

"Because you know it is coming." The Fright Knight stated. "From my experience, war is always on the horizon. Even when you can't see it…"

"I see…" Joel frowned in sadness. "So no matter what, I can't enjoy peace…"

"That's not what I mean." The Fright Knight sighed. "People like us can enjoy peace. It's just awkward at first. In fact, my time here in Amity Park has probably been the happiest time of my life. There is a balance between war and peace here, and I am surrounded by people that I care for. That's what matters most."

"I see…" Joel seemed calmed by this.

"I know that you might think that some of the things that the family does are pointless or boring, but give it time. Eventually, you will come to enjoy such peaceful activities. If not for the peace themselves, then for at least the company that they give." The Fright Knight explained.

"…Thank you." Joel smiled. "That helps."

"Until then, though. I think we should just ease you in." The Fright Knight stood. "You mentioned that you don't enjoy hurting others, but what about some simple training. Do you know how to use a sword?"

"Yes." Joel nodded and stood as well.

"Then let us do some practicing." The Fright Knight chuckled. "But first…I think you need a haircut, my young friend. That look does not suit you."

Joel moved the hair out of his eyes. His hair was incredibly long and shaggy. Because of the Ghoul Project, he did not really have the resources to get a good haircut until now. By now, he had become used to it, but the Fright Knight was right. He definitely needed a haircut.

"Yes. Will you cut it for me?" Joel questioned.

"As long as you don't move." The Fright Knight unsheathed his blade. "I do not wish to cut off your ear after all."

* * *

><p>"Hey." Phantom landed down by the pink haired girl.<p>

"Hey." Jinx looked up from her spot on a log. They were in the forest that surrounded a warehouse. The girl with horn shaped hair had been looking at building.

"Is that where Cheshire and Sportsmaster are?" Phantom questioned as he pointed to the warehouse.

"Yep." Jinx nodded. "And your friends should be there soon."

"Huh…" Phantom frowned. He didn't want to tell Jinx this, but he didn't know if they would be. Artemis said the tracker was heading north not south. This had confused him as he traveled. Perhaps Cheshire had ditched the tracker…

"Anyway, I'm glad that we ran into each other." Jinx noted. "We have some problems."

"You mean like your dad?" Phantom questioned.

Jinx sighed. "Yes, that's one. He found out. I should have known that he would…"

"Yeah, I bet Savage is good at finding out what he wants to know." Phantom grunted. "The jerk…"

"Don't insult him!" Jinx snapped. "He's still my dadd-father…"

"Sorry…sorry…" Phantom sighed. "I know you wouldn't be so loyal to him if he didn't have any good qualities, but you do know that he's blackmailing me…"

"Yeah, but he's a good Dad. And he didn't have to be." Jinx hugged her knees to her chest.

"Okay. I won't argue against that, but what do I about his blackmailing?"

"There's nothing you can do." Jinx shrugged. "Dad always gets what he wants, and he wants you to be a soldier under his command."

"Why?" Phantom asked.

"Because you have the most potential he has ever seen." Jinx noted. "You unleashed ascended ectoplasm with only a few thousand power sources at first. Then, it was a few hundred at the Ghoul Project. That's a big deal. It took billions of power sources for Nocturne to obtain that power. The amount you need is so low in comparison, and he thinks it's shrinking. That means, eventually, you might be able to use ascended ectoplasm without an outside source."

"I don't want to use that power." Phantom frowned. "It's not a power that should be wielded by a mortal being. It's too powerful."

"Exactly!" Jinx jumped to her feet. "That's why he needs to control you, and why he wants…er…"

"Wants what?"

"…Dad is big on genetics." Jinx blushed. "That's why he approves of our relationship. He knows that we will make incredibly strong babies."

"Oh, come on! We're not even dating!" Phantom sputtered out.

"He thinks long term, and you're the first boy I showed any kind real interest in…Sorry." Jinx shrugged.

"Whatever, I-"

BOOM!

Phantom's head snapped to the warehouse. The door to the building just blew off its hinges.

"What the hell…" Phantom muttered.

"_Arrow to Aqualad and Phantom. I found Cheshire and Sportsmaster. Rondevu at my coordinates."_ Red Arrow's voice rang in Phantom's Fenton Phone.

"It looks like things are going down." Jinx noted.

"Damn! I have to help them!" Phantom was about to rush to their aid, but was stopped as a wall of pink energy appeared in front of him.

"No. You can use me as an excuse. Say that I attacked you and stopped you from helping." Jinx ordered. "We are officially on a time limit before I have to leave."

"But my friends…"

"They won't be killed." Jinx noted. "They're too valuable right now to kill."

"You mean because of Artemis's relations to them." Phantom glared.

"Yes, but forget about that." Jinx stated. "There's something I need to tell you. There's some noise going on in the underground. It's concerning you."

"Look, I'll deal with your dad later."

"It's not about him! You need to listen to me! This is about Danny Fenton, not Phantom!" Jinx snapped.

"What do you mean?"

"There's a contract out for you." Jinx noted. "It's not from the Shadows, but…It's a lot. Like, buy a goddamn island a lot."

"What? Why would someone want to kill Fenton?" Phantom questioned.

"I don't know, but I do know that only the best would take this job." Jinx frowned. "We call Amity Park the Hornet's Nest for a reason. It's suicide to attack Amity Park now. There's an army of ghosts to stop you, and even if you can get to your target…If it's anyone related to Masters, then the attackers are doomed to suffer. Just look at the Gotham villains, Penguine's bankrupt, Croc's had his teeth ripped out, and the Scarecrow's too afraid to leave Arkham now…"

"It's not stopping your dad from threatening my city…"

"Shush! The saying is 'don't poke the hornet's nest,' not 'don't blow it up with dynamite'." Jinx glared. "But no one else has the connections Dad does. That means that the only people that would accept this contract are the best of the best, desperate, or suicidal…or all of them."

"Please." Phantom scoffed. "Why should I even worry about this? Like you said, it would be stupid to attack Fenton in Amity Park…Oh, crap, the conference."

"Yeah, the energy conference you're having with Wayne Tech in New York." Jinx sighed. "That is when they'll strike."

"Damn…and the ghosts won't be able to help me because of the location." Phantom growled. "After the GIW War, I doubt even I would get a free pass of fighting it out in New York. At least as long as…"

"What?"

At least as long as he wasn't part of the Justice League. If he was part of the Justice League, Phantom might be able to help. A combination of the Council and the League working for a common goal might help...or he would be too wrapped up in politics to do anything. Yet another gamble he would have to deal with.

Damn. He just had to choose New York for the meeting. Danny wanted to announce the new renewable energy project they were doing in a neutral city. Gotham was too…Gotham, and Amity Park had too much controversy. New York sounded good until now…

"Damn it! What do I do?" Phantom growled.

"Call off the conference. It's not safe for you out there." Jinx stated.

"I can't do that." Phantom frowned down at the ground. "Like it or not, Fenton's a public figure. One that's been acting pretty jerky to Amity Park. If I cancel another thing, people are going to start poking into my human life, and I can't let people do that."

"Then you'll have to be prepared for anything." Jinx noted. "Because I can tell you that all hell is going to break loose when you leave Amity Park."

"I know…" Phantom sighed.

"Don't worry too much, though. Because I know for a fact that-"

"…Huh?" Phantom tilted his head as Jinx turned into solid sculpture of ice. She lasted all of a few seconds before she eventually shattered into millions of piece.

"That's…magic." Phantom realized. "That means that someone else was around here, but who?"

* * *

><p>Youngblood was at a small graveyard. He was sitting in front of a simple stone. Spirit couldn't see it very well from her spot in the shadows. It was pretty worn and the writing was small. Obviously the person who it was for was not considered all that important.<p>

…Or at least that was what she would say if it wasn't from the fortress of flowers that surrounded it.

"What is that?" Spirit quietly questioned the parrot on her shoulder.

"That, young lady, is a child mourning his mother." Polly whispered.

"What?" Spirit asked.

"This is why Youngblood wanted to spend the day alone, and why I had to fight you off." Polly explained. "Today is the anniversary of the day his mother died."

"Why…why didn't he just say that?" Spirit questioned.

"Hmm…" Wulf frowned. "Not want to discuss?"

"Yes. Please come with me, I don't want him to be disturbed." Polly silently flew off in the opposite direction.

As they traveled away from Youngblood, Polly began to speak again. "You see, Youngblood did not want to be pitied or to have his secrets known. At the same time, though, he needed to come and see his mother's grave."

"She good?" Wulf questioned.

"The best." Polly gained a sad look.

"Then why did he want to keep this a secret? I wouldn't have treated him differently." Spirit noted as she petted the puppy version of Cujo in his arms. "In fact, I would have respected him more."

"It's…" Polly sighed. "It's complicated. You see, Youngblood's past is complicated and it all revolves around his mother."

"Que?" Wulf questioned.

"It is a long story…" Polly sighed. "You see, Youngblood…Charles was born to a loving mother and a loving father. Also, his parents were young when he was conceived. They were mere children themselves in fact. They were impulsive and took risks. His father wanted to be there for him, but..."

"What…" Spirit clutched Cujo close to her chest.

"He died in a car accident, so the mother was forced to raise Charles herself." Polly sighed. "But she was never resentful. She took good care of Charles and worked hard to support him. Despite everything, though, Charles still felt and saw his mother's suffering. He worked as hard as he could to ease her pain, and he gave up most of his childhood in an attempt to help her. But it was all for naught. His mother soon overexerted herself and grew ill. And…You can imagine what happened…"

* * *

><p><em>Memory sequence begin<em>

"_Charlie…" The woman who laid sickly in the hospital bed muttered. "Come here…"_

"_Mommy?" The young boy questioned as he approached the bed._

"_I…I am so sorry." The woman muttered. Her green eyes showed unshed tears. "I wanted to give you a good childhood, but I couldn't. I wasn't good enough."_

"_No! You were the best!" Charles argued. "If only I helped you enough…"_

"_No, Charlie." The woman shook her head sadly. Her red hair was like a veil around her. "It is not the job of the child to take care of the mother. You shouldn't have had to worry about me at all. And now look at you, you spend all day by my bedside."_

"_That's because I love you." Charles answered simply._

"_Oh, my beautiful child…" The woman cried. "So pure…Don't you understand? All I ever wanted was for you be able to act like a child…Charlie, I want to promise me something."_

"_Anything!"_

"_Enjoy your youth. Be a child. Have fun and play games." The mother pleaded. "Please, Charlie, I don't want you to worry about me anymore. Please…"_

"_But Mommy…"_

"_Promise me!"_

"_Okay. I promise. I'll enjoy being a kid for as long as I can…"_

_Memory sequence begin_

* * *

><p>"She passed away shortly after that." Polly continued to explain. "Charles would have been sent to an orphanage, but he ran away. Unfortunately…He did not make it on his own, and he became what you see today."<p>

"That's so sad…" Spirit muttered.

"That explains obsession." Wulf grunted.

"Yes. This is why Youngblood is obsessed with staying young and having fun." Polly explained. "It is because it's what his mother asked him to do. So, he has held onto his youth by any means necessary."

"That's why…" Spirit mumbled.

"Yes." Polly stated. "But that's not all. He has given up a lot to stay young."

"What mean?" Wulf questioned.

"…Only the strongest ghosts can remember every detail of the life immediately. Most ghosts never know anything about their past lives except the events surrounding their deaths." Polly noted. "They could research what their lives were like before, but it usually doesn't end well. Look at Technus and Spectra for example. They looked into their past lives and it did not end well. Looking at your past life from the outside looking in…It's the first step to madness for many souls."

"But…Youngblood told you about his past life, and he's not nearly powerful enough…" Spirit muttered.

"Isn't he? Think on this, Youngblood has been the same age for over a decade. He can order around an entire pirate crew. He needs me to remind him constantly of things he already knows…" Polly noted. "Like I said, he's sacrificed a lot. Power, maturity, knowledge…all for the sake of staying young."

"…That means…"

"Yes, he's an S-ranked ghost."

* * *

><p>Joel looked into the mirror. His long shaggy hair was now gone. The cut hair laid on the floor. His hair was now short and trimmed. Only half an inch of hair remained.<p>

"I…like this look better." Joel noted as he traced his scar from his right eyebrow into his hairline.

"The militaristic look suits you more." The Fright Knight nodded.

"Yes…" Joel nodded. "It does."

"Good, then how a spar now?" The Fright Knight questioned as he brandished his sword.

"Yeah…" Joel smirked. White rings traveled across his body and transformed him into Dusk. A simple katana formed into his hands. "Let's spar."

* * *

><p>"What?!" Spirit snapped. "That…That can't be. Why didn't he tell me?"<p>

"Because he didn't want to tell anyone." Polly explained. "If people found out, they would constantly hassle him about it. They would want him to release the seals holding in his powers and join the Council. That's why he didn't fight in the GIW War. He refused to lose the childhood he promised to his mother."

"But…" Spirit frowned. "That's so selfish."

"Exactly."

* * *

><p>"Damn…" Phantom hissed. Things had not gone well with the mission report. It turned out that Artemis intentionally tried to misdirect them and complete the mission on her own. She apparently wanted to prove herself when Red Arrow arrived as another archer on the Team.<p>

It was a stupid thing to do, and Phantom agreed with Wally when he reprimanded Artemis for her actions. At the same time, though, he understood where Artemis was coming from. It had to feel terrible to feel replaced.

"Bro, let her go." Wally placed a hand on his shoulder. "She's wrong on this one."

"I know, but still…"

"Being insecure doesn't give anyone the right to do something stupid. Trust me, I learned that lesson hundreds of times already." Wally noted.

"Yeah…" Phantom sighed as Artemis left through the Zeta Tube in the Cave. "You're right."

"She needs time to stew this over. After that, we can start moving past this." Wally smiled.

"Wow…When did you get so smart?"

"Bro! I've always been a genius!" Wally glared. "I just don't show it that often."

"Amen to that." Kaldur smirked.

"Dude!" Wally frowned.

"Okay. I'll talk to her later." Phantom frowned. "But I still want to know more about what she saw in the warehouse. Klarion, the Brain, and Ivo…Why were they all there?"

"Please!" Red Arrow snapped. "That story is ridiculous. Ivo's been in prison the whole time, and why would Klarion work with the Brain?"

"I don't know…" Phantom mumbled. "But I'm going to find out."

* * *

><p>"Youngblood is being selfish. He keeps his powers locked in his skeleton crew and his knowledge in me. That way, he can be a child as long as he wants." Polly explained. "But that's the decision he's made, and I'm going to respect it, because I'm a part of him."<p>

"I see…" Wulf nodded.

"But…" Spirit remembered Raven's words on Youngblood. How she thought that deep down he was a selfish brat.

"I'm sorry if you're hurt by this information, but it's the truth. Youngblood hid everything to keep his lifestyle in tact. That's who he is." Polly noted.

"I can't believe it." Spirit frowned. "But…I guess I can understand. I don't like it, though."

"You don't have too." Polly mentioned. "All I ask is that you respect his decision."

"I will…But how did it get to that?" Spirit questioned. "How did it get to the point where you decide to sacrifice so much to stay young?"

"That…is an excellent question." Youngblood's voice sounded behind them.

"Youngblood?" Polly questioned.

"It's midnight. I can leave." Youngblood approached the group.

"Chuck…" Spirit mumbled to her friend. "I…I'm sorry for your loss."

"It's fine. Let's go home." Youngblood began to leave.

"It's strange." Polly mentioned from his spot on Wulf's shoulder. "We always think that it's the big decisions that define us, but it's actually the small ones."

"What mean?" Wulf questioned.

"Think about it. Youngblood's decision to remain young forever only happened because of a bunch of other decisions. The decision to conceive him, the decision of his father taking a risk that cost him his life, the decision of his mother to give him that last request, the decision for him to run away…They all lead up to Youngblood forsaking the ability to grow physically, mentally, and spiritually."

"Yeah…I guess it did."

"And the sad part is…most of those decisions were not Youngblood's." Polly noted. "Youngblood did not have a say in a lot that happened to him. Even when he did have the choice, though, it was the past decisions of others. That's why we are shaped by the small decisions and the ones that we can't control, and why when we finally have the chance to choose we should be careful in who we chose to be."

* * *

><p>"Is this where he's been?" Nyx questioned as she peaked into the training room.<p>

"Apparently." Raven noted monotonously.

"Man...That's intense." Victor noted

"Secret." Greta nodded.

Dusk and the Fright Knight were exchanging blows with their swords. Sparks were flying. Ringing sounds spread throughout the room. Both the sparers were moving quickly to keep up with the other.

"Gack!" Dusk grunted as he was sent sprawling to the ground. His katana was broken into two pieces.

"Nice movements. You have a lot of talent, but I have skill." The Fright Knight extended his hand and helped Dusk up to his feet.

"Then I guess I'm just going to have to catch up to you." Dusk smirked as he formed another sword.

"I like your attitude." The Fright Knight laughed, and with that they continued.

"Psh!" Nyx looked away. "He didn't even need our help to find his place."

"Yeah…" Raven nodded slowly. "I'll think he'll be fine."

"Secret." Greta smiled. It appeared the boy was on his way to becoming a knight.

* * *

><p>"Yeah…I guess you're right." Spirit nodded. "And…I shouldn't have pried so much. That's not the kind of person I want to be."<p>

"Rack! It's fine." Polly began to fly off. "It shows you care. Now come, you can catch a ride on our ship."

"Sound good." Wulf smirked. He was sick of flying.

"Yeah…" Spirit nodded. "It does."

Without another word, the group of ghosts left. The group of three that followed Youngblood did not look back. They already snooped enough today. They did not need to know any more about Youngblood. If they did look at the grave, though, they would have seen through all the thorn covered roses that surrounded that surrounded the grave was a few simple words.

_Rhosyn Forrest: __A loving mother_

* * *

><p>"Phantom?" Superman blinked. They were currently flying high above Metropolis. "Why are you here?"<p>

"I've come up with my answer." Phantom noted.

"Oh? And why not just tell Batman?" Superman questioned. "It would have been easier."

"You offered it, so you get the answer." Phantom stated.

"And?" Superman asked.

Throughout the mission, Phantom saw just how much the Team had grown. They no longer needed him, and had grown into their own. Hell, just look at Kid Flash. He was at a completely different level than back during Independence Day. And even if Artemis was a bit insecure right now, she was still on her way. She didn't need him to help her anymore.

Plus, a spot on the League could give Phantom the power he would need to make real change. As a Leaguer, he could bring peace between both groups and protect the world from the real threats. That was what mattered.

But…He was a flawed individual. Phantom had wants and needs of his own. He had sacrificed and lost so much already. Right now, he needed the stability that Team and his time in Amity Park gave him. He could not give that up now, though. So…

"I decline."

He made his decision.

* * *

><p><strong>Bonus Scenes<strong>

1. Dani's Birthday

(Sunday-November 14, 2010)

"…Happy Birthday to you!" The birthday guests finished singing.

"Alright!" Dani grinned. "Wish time!"

She blew out the candles and everyone clapped.

"What did you wish for?" Nyx questioned.

"Secret." Greta stepped forward.

"Thank you!" Dani smiled at her friend. "If I tell people my wish, then it won't come true."

"That's true." Rachel nodded.

"Ah, man…Can't you give us a hint?" Youngblood questioned.

"Okay." Dani smiled.

"Wait, I don't think-" Victor was cut off when Dani smashed a piece of the cake into Nyx's face.

"Food Fight!"

Needless to say, Dani's birthday wish came true.

2: Garfield Logan

(Tuesday-November 23, 2010)

"Oh. My. Gosh." The red haired freckled boy stared at the teen in front of him. "You're Danny Phantom!"

"Yeah…" Phantom rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "I am."

"I am like your biggest fan!" Garfield Logan shouted. "It is so amazing to see you! Best! Day! EVER!"

"Gar, you got shot at and almost killed." Marie Logan sighed.

"Yeah, but come on! I got to meet Danny Phantom! That's so cool!" Garfield grinned.

"What am I, chopped liver?" Spirit mumbled.

"Wow!" The eight year old boy's jaw dropped. "Y-you're super pretty…"

"And there we go. I feel better now." Spirit puffed up in pride.

"Can I have your autographs?" Garfield questioned. "I have this shirt with your logo on it."

"Sure Garfield." Phantom smiled. "We would love to."

Later, when Robin's group returned from their successful mission of saving Qurac, they found an overjoyed Garfield gushing over his signed T-shirt and how cool it was to meet real heroes.

You can imagine their bruised egos after this occurred.

3. Dusk's Hobbies

(Sunday-December 5, 2014)

(Secret attempt 1: Pandora)

"I like to garden." Pandora smiled to the child. "Do you wish to try?"

"Sure." Dusk shrugged and picked up a pair of sheers. He turned to a bush that was trimmed to look like a minotaur.

Click! Snap!

"…Uh oh…"

"Did you just say uh oh while holding a giant pair of scissors?" Pandora turned. The head of the minotaur was cut off.

"…Sorry…"

"It's fine." Pandora sighed. "Nyx does this every other day…"

(Secret attempt 2: Colossus)

"I like to fight!" Colossus roared in laugher.

"Oh? Why?"

"Because it's fun, and full of honor!"

"Ah…I see."

"And what do you think of honorable combat?"

"I'm a pacifist."

"Oh…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Wanna play checkers?" Colossus questioned.

"Sure."

(Secret attempt 3: Frostbite)

"Here you go!" Frostbite handed the boy a snow cone.

"…This is yellow…"

"Don't worry, it's lemon." Frostbite laughed.

"Ah…" Dusk took a bite.

"So, what do you think of my hobby?" Frostbite took a bite out of his snow cone.

"This one, I like, but next time, can I get a flavor that doesn't look like pee?"

"Okay, fair enough."

* * *

><p><strong>IMPORTANT NOTE: I looked back at the chapter "Sin" and decided that lacking a Fright Knight vs. Harm scene hurt the chapter. Thus, I went back and added one. The chapter's a bit too long now in my opinion, but I'll get over it. If you want to read what happened, go look.<strong>

**Next chapter will deviate from the Young Justice story line. Also t**hose last bonus scenes in this chapter are canon to my story, but did not fit in well with the flow of the chapter that they would have occurred.****

****Okay...so I don't normally bring up my love of pro wrestling, but...STING! The Icon! In WWE! Officially! And not just in a video game and t-shirts! Now that's 'What's best for business.'****

****One more thing before this AN becomes too long...I started a story named "To Touch The Sky." It's a Naruto/Fairy Tail crossover. If you're interested, please take a look.****

**Thank you all for reading and please remember too…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	25. Assassins

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"May death provide you the peace you seek. Requiescat en Pace." Ezio Auditore da Firenze (Assassin's Creed)

* * *

><p>Chapter 25: "Assassins"<p>

(Saturday-December 18, 2010)

"Are you ready?" Vlad questioned as the limo they were in pulled to a stop.

"Not really, but I'll manage." Danny pulled at the tie on his neck nervously.

"You don't have to do this, you know." Vlad noted as he looked out the tinted window. A wave of reporters were waiting for them. "If you explained the situation to Mr. Wayne and Mr. Fox, I'm sure they would understand. This announcement can wait."

"It's not about the announcement." Danny glared out the window. "I'm tired of having to hide my human side in Amity Park. Each time I leave, I get attacked. First at Metropolis, then Star City, and now New York. I have to make this stop. I need to send a message that you don't get to screw with me."

"Couldn't we do this in a different city, though?" Vlad questioned. "We could use the League to our advantage."

"No, I need neutral turf." Danny sighed. "The League and I don't want the political crap that will come with them protecting me so blatantly. That's why Young Justice is here."

"I know, but…your safety is more important, Daniel." Vlad noted. "You won't be able to use your powers. There will be no ghosts to help you. Even I won't be able to help invisibly. I'm sure these reporters and assassins have something to detect ghosts, and if I got caught, then it would be all for nothing. It would say that Fenton is on the ghosts' side."

"I know. That's why you need to get to safety as soon as it goes down." Danny crossed his arms.

"You do know that I won't be able to do that…" Vlad frowned. "If you get into trouble, I'm going to help no matter what, consequences be damned."

"…I know. Just be careful not to get caught." Danny grunted.

"And you be careful not to be shot." Vlad nodded.

"Okay…Let's go…" Danny reached for the door and opened it.

* * *

><p>"<em>It looks like Mr. Fenton has arrived."<em> Cat Grant, the blonde reporter for GBS News, stated to the camera. _"He's being escorted by his guardian, Mr. Masters, and it seems that his publicist Harriet Chin is meeting up with him as he goes. As most of you know, Mr. Fenton has not left Amity Park since the war between the ghosts and the Guys in White last summer. It has been questioned if he was afraid to leave his home after having so many attacks on his person, but he appears completely confident and comfortable."_

"Of course he does…" The Fright Knight huffed at the television. "The King must always look composed in public. Did they expect anything else?"

"They do not know who he is." Joel noted as he looked up from his station. "Mentor has to make sure to keep his human image different from his ghost image."

"Yes. This is especially true with his mortal friends." Vision stat as she spread the floating holograms around the lab in Fenton Works. Each hologram showed a picture of what was happening in New York. All of the images were from different angels, though.

"Yeah…" Dani mumbled as she adjusted her headset. "But I have to ask…why can't I have a more fun job?"

"We all have our places, Dani." Vision noted. "Yours is to inform Danny on what he needs to know. I need to stay focused."

"By why does Joel get the fun job?!"

"Because I am better than you." Joel's face did not show judgment, only facts.

"Say that again!" Dani growled.

"Hey, hey!" Victor got between his two friends. "Can't we all just chill?"

"I don't even know why we are here…" Raven muttered.

"Because this is going to be a fun show!" Nyx smirked as she sat in a recliner. "And this is the best damn seat in the world for it."

"Arg!" Youngblood nodded. "The show shall be the best looty in the world."

"Rack! It's booty, not looty."

"Ha! You said booty…"

"Secret." Greta was looking on the nearby computer. "Secret. Secret."

"Who gave Greta the job to search the data banks?" Raven muttered.

"That's your job." Nyx tossed a piece of popcorn in her mouth. "You're just too lazy to do it. Go help her."

"Says the girl in the recliner…" Raven muttered as she moved to the computer.

"Er…Miss Vision. I'm glad you let me come down her, but…" Victor mumbled. "Why? I can't really contribute like the others."

"You underestimate yourself, Victor." Vision did not look away from the images. "We all have our place here."

"What about me?" Youngblood questioned.

"…Except for you and Nyx." Vision answered. "I just let you be here because you asked. If you cause trouble, though, I will throw you out."

"Fair enough." Nyx shrugged.

* * *

><p>"Okay." Harriet was fixing Danny's hair and suit to look presentable. "You're going to be in front of cameras that are sending feed all over the world. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions will see what you do. So, please, don't do anything stupid."<p>

"When have I ever done anything stupid?" Danny questioned.

"Every day of your life." Harriet chuckled. "Did you practice your speech?"

"Yeah…but I don't think it will matter…" Danny muttered that last part.

"What?" Harriet blinked.

"I said, that I'm sure I'll mess it up somehow." Danny shrugged.

"Have more faith in yourself. You lead superheroes and ghosts for Pete's sake." Harriet stood up and examined her work. "There. You look perfect."

"I look like a douche." Danny stated.

"Exactly."

"So I'm supposed to look like the perfect douche?" Danny questioned.

"Don't be a smartass." Harriet turned to Vlad. "He's ready."

"Okay." Vlad motioned to an African American man with greying hair. "Mr. Fox, it's a pleasure to see you."

"And you, Mr. Masters." Lucius Fox shook Vlad's hand. "I'm glad to see that you could make it."

"And I'm glad Mr. Wayne could be here." Vlad smirked at the tall broad man with a sharp chin and trimmed appearance. "I thought that you might come down with an illness with the Joker's sudden escape from Arkham…"

"I assure you, I'm fine." Bruce Wayne gripped Vlad's hand tightly. Despite the strength in the shake, Vlad did not seem to even feel it. In fact, he was amused.

"Of course."

"Mr. Wayne. Mr. Fox." Daniel shook the hands of the older men. "Thank you for this opportunity."

"Oh, the pleasure is all ours, young man." Luscious Fox chuckled. "It's an honor to work with the 'Pheonix'."

"Gah…I hate that name." Danny grumbled.

"We all get stuck with bad nicknames." Bruce actually cracked a small smile. "Wasn't a friend of yours called Inviso-Bill?"

"He never approved that name…" Danny scowled deeply.

"Hahahahahaha!" Vlad laughed. "How amusing."

* * *

><p>'Mental link established.' M'gann's thoughts rang through the minds of Young Justice. Miss Martian had transformed into a female reporter to blend in with the crowd.<p>

'You know what, I think I'm starting to get used to this.' Zatanna noted as she and Robin hid in the shadows of the press conference.

'Do no worry.' Kaldur, who was dressed as security at the edge of the stage. 'Eventually, the mind link becomes second nature.'

'Just don't go thinking anything you don't want heard.' Artemis remember her first time with the mind link as she sat on her perch in the upper levels. She had a good view of the stage in the conference hall of the Wayne Tech building.

'Amen to that.' Wally sighed. He was dressed as a simple camera man.

'I'm just glad we learned that lesson eventually.' Superboy, also dressed as security, grunted.

'Hey, we need to stay focused.' Robin noted from his spot hidden in the shadows. 'I think we should link up Fenton too. We'll need to be able to direct him if something happens.'

'Understood.' Miss Martian's eyes began to glow.

'Ah!' Fenton grabbed his head in fake pain as he sat next to Vlad on the stage. He was used to the mental link by now, but had to act to keep his secret preserved.

The teen did not want to lie to his Team, but there was no helping it. They all thought that Phantom wasn't on this mission because of political reason. This was a half-truth. Phantom could cause some controversy by being here, but there was another reason.

Danny could not maintain duplicates anymore. His powers refused to do that even with an ecto-boost, not that it would be helpful right now. The ecto-boost would hurt Danny while in human form. He couldn't afford to get violently ill at this point. Thus, he was at this obvious assassination attempt with fluctuating powers. Not that he could use them, of course, but he might have gotten away with cheating with them. That was off the table now.

Thus, Young Justice was sent of the mission to protect Fenton while thinking that Phantom was in Amity Park. This was even supported by Amorpho impersonating him at this moment. Right about now, the morphing ghost would It was the perfect alibi to get them to cooperate.

The halfa was glad that he asked Batman for help. He needed as much assistance with this as possible. If the people that showed up were who he thought they were, then this would be a challenge even if he had League members here.

'Can you here us, Mr. Fenton?' M'gann questioned.

'Yeah…I guess…' Danny mumbled mentally. 'You know I appreciate the help, but I would rather not be distracted right now…'

'We will stay silent, but we need to keep this connection established.' Aqualad stated.

'Fine, but please…I'm nervous enough as it is without other people's thoughts in my head.' Danny sighed.

'It's understandable.' Red Arrow mentioned as he hid in the upper level on the opposite side of Artemis. The archer actually had a liking for Daniel Fenton. He was the one that gave the archer ectoplasmic empowered arrows without asking for anything in return. 'You do have assassins after your head. Don't worry, though. We have your back.'

'You keep reminding me of that.' Danny sighed. 'At this rate, I'm going to wish that you weren't here at all.'

'Wow…you sound so grateful…' Artemis noted dryly.

'Give him a break, Artemis.' Wally spoke up. 'He's an assassination target right now. Anyone would be on edge.'

'Um, guys…I don't think this is helping.' Superboy noted.

'No. It isn't.' Danny mumbled.

'Just stay whelmed. We're here to help you.' Robin encouraged.

'Whelmed?' Danny had to fake his curiosity.

'It's a loooooooooooooong story…' Zatanna giggled.

'Okay…' Danny sighed. 'Whatever…'

* * *

><p>"Be ready to pull him out." Vision instructed to one of the images.<p>

"Si, we ready." Wulf nodded to Vision from his position in the Ghost Zone.

"Woof!" Cujo agreed beside the larger canine. They were the last resort plan. If all else failed, pull Fenton out as quickly as possible, consequence be damned.

"Right. Thank you." Vision turned to the people in the room. "Is everyone ready?"

"The controls are set." Joel mentioned.

"I am ready for my performance." The Fright Knight agreed.

"We have the data banks ready." Raven nodded.

"I'm almost ready." Dani agreed. "I won't be able to get a visual until everything starts happening, but I'm about to contact Danny…"

* * *

><p>"<em>Danny, this Dani."<em> Dani's voice rang in his ears. "_Nod your head slowly if you can hear me."_

Danny followed the instructions.

"_Good. We have everything ready. Make sure that you're prepared. It can start at any time."_ Dani finished.

The halfa knew that this was true. For all he knew, almost everyone in this room right now was an assassin. Hopefully, that wasn't true, but he had to be ready for any scenario. Fortunately, he was ready. He had been prepping for weeks in order to be ready for what happens next.

"Thank you, Mr. Masters." Wayne spoke into the microphone.

Damn. He did not pay as much attention to what was happening in front of him as he should have. Vlad had already spoke. That meant that it was almost his turn to speak. Not good. Most likely, the assassins would attack when he was up front and center.

"-and now, Mr. Fenton would like to speak." Mr. Wayne gestured to the teen sitting on stage.

It was show time.

Taking a deep breath, Danny rose to his feet and walked to the center of the stage. His eyes were assaulted with dozens of flashes as the masses tried to get a picture of him. He could hear the reporters throw hundreds of questions. One person in particular caught his attention.

G. Gordon Godfrey was in the front of the masses. He was a blond haird Caucasian man with sharp blue eyes and a few wrinkles. This reporter was well known for his strong opinions. In fact, he used to be completely against ghosts before the GIW War. After all the blame was pinned on the Guys in White, though, he quickly changed his tune.

And people wondered why Danny didn't like most reporters.

For a split second, Danny thought there was something wrong with the man. He seemed to be looking at Danny with something akin to pity. That look quickly passed, though, and his smug demeaner returned. Maybe Danny just imagined it with all of his nerves. He just needed to stay focused.

Taking a deep breath, Danny spoke, "Hello, today I want to announce-"

Boom!

…And the chaos began…

* * *

><p>"Holy hell!" Artemis' eyes widened as she saw the gun shot she thought that she diverted ricochet off the wall and hit Superboy. 'Superboy, are you okay!?'<p>

'Yeah…' The clone grunted. He had blocked the bullet with his arm, and he really didn't feel anything. Of course he wouldn't. The Shields made him so much stronger.

"How…" Danny muttered. His hand was on the back of his neck ready to turn on the energy shield he prepared. He only stopped because Superboy jumped in the way. No, that was not really correct. The Kryptonian just appeared out of nowhere. He didn't even crouch to jump. How did he get beside him so fast, and how did he block the bullet with his arm? Could he really do that?

"Damn." The shooter hissed. He wore a mask that hid everything but his beard. Oddly enough, the mask had a red scope over the man's right eye. The man also wore a black and red combat suit that seemed to have guns at every angle. The two most prominent guns were the ones on his wrists. "I would have gotten a perfect head shot too. But I still hit someone, so I don't count it as a miss."

'I'm gonna need help up here!' Artemis hissed mentally. When she first saw the shooter, she didn't know who it was. She just reacted. Now, though, she had a perfect view of him. She only heard stories of this guy from her dad, and even he was cautious of him. In fact, Sportsmaster said that he would rather fight anyone else at a distance compared to this man.

'Robin, Red Arrow, assist Artemis!' Kaldur order. 'Everyone else, surround Fenton! There are probably more enemies! We get Fenton out of here!'

Danny ignored Conner's shouts to get moving. In fact, he even ignored the panicking people and the security rushing the other men that were part of the conference off the stage. Instead he focused on the man in the balcony.

* * *

><p>"Floyd Lawson, A.K.A. Deadshot." Raven read from the enemy data banks that they created combining League and Council intelligence. "The world's greatest marksman with guns by a huge margin. Some even call him the World's Greatest Assassin. This guy can make shots from any angle and is a master of all known firearms. If he knows where you are, then he can shoot you."<p>

Dani repeated this to Danny through the microphone.

"I have heard of this man." Vision examined the images. "Apparently, his assassin lifestyle has made him self-loathing. Yet the only thing that gives him fulfillment is the kill. Quite the paradox."

"He already has the greatest marksman in the world after his head?" Victor gulped.

"And to think…" The Fright Knight growled. "He's only the first to show up…"

* * *

><p>"Get moving!" Superboy roared.<p>

"And go where? They'll find me anywhere I go." Danny looked at the emptying hall. "As long as I'm here, though. No one else besides me can get hurt."

"That is a noble thought process, but I must insist." Aqualad looked over his shoulder to Robin and Artemis fighting off Deadshot. "The sooner we get you to safety, the sooner we can help our teammates."

"I'm not defenseless."

"Oh I beg to differ, mate."

Crack!

"Ahr!" Kaldur grunted as he was smacked away and sent crashing into a wall.

"Kaldur!" Superman glared at the blonde haired man with the brown suit. He had a rather thin frame, yet he sent Kaldur flying with only a simple backhand. Ignoring caution, Superboy lunged at the man and sent a punch at his midsection.

…Only to have his full-powered Kryptonian punch stopped with one hand…

"What!?" Superboy blinked.

"Kryptonian, eh? I had ya pegged when I first saw ya, mate." Using his other hand, the man grabbed Superboy by the throat and lifted him into the air. Oddly enough, he seemed to be hurting the clone.

"Get away from him!" M'gann dropped her disguise and used her telekinieses to hit the man with several different chairs. Each one broke when they hit the man's body. He didn't even seem to feel it, though.

"Sorry, love." The man used his free hand to reach up to the left side of his face and peal away the skin to reveal a metal skeleton underneath. "But that's not going to work."

* * *

><p>"John Corben, A.K.A. Metallo. When he was terribly injured in a car crash, he was completely modified to be a cyborg…more of an android really. He's definitely more machine than man now." Raven noted.<p>

"Secret…" Greta muttered as she stared at the data.

"Okay, that explains the power and endurance, but still…" Youngblood frowned. "He's taking on a Kryptonian like it's nothing."

"That's the kicker." Raven actually seemed worried. "His power source is Kryptonite."

"That ain't good." Nyx frowned.

"So…That makes two of Mentor's super powered teammates defenseless." Joel mentioned. "The Kryptonian can't do anything, and the Martian's telepathy is pretty useless on someone outfitted with a synthetic brain."

"Yes." Vision frowned. "That takes out two of their most diverse power users. Can the others make up for it?"

* * *

><p>"GWAH!" Superboy screamed in pain as Metallo's chest opened to reveal the Kryptonite in the core.<p>

"Yeah. You Kryptonians tend to say that around me." Metallo chuckled.

"Tih mih htiw a raeps!" Zatanna yelled out as she ran to try and help Superboy. A spear formed out of the metal chairs that shattered against Metallo earlier. The spear flew at the arm holding Superboy in the air. In order to avoid having his arm torn off by the magic empowered spear, Metallo dropped Superboy and pulled his arm back.

Just after the spear passed by the android, Kid Flash ran into Metallo. The speedster's momentum caused the android to go stumbling back. The teen in yellow and red grabbed the should he hit Metallo with. "Ah! Damn! That hurt! Not my smartest move…"

"Conner…" M'gann mumbled as she floated Superboy over to her and cradled his injured form.

"I'm fine…" Superboy muttered as he forced himself up.

"Evom notneF yawa morf ollateM!" Zatanna yelled as she faced Metallo. Danny was sent flying back to M'gann. The Martian girl used her telekinesis to gently lower him onto his feet behind her.

"Not on my watch!" With a roar, Metallo launched himself past Kid Flash and Zatanna towards Fenton.

BOOM! A bullet from Deadshot bounced across the room and headed to the back of Danny's head.

Both attacks were stopped though. Walls of water protected Danny from both sides.

"I shall not let you hurt him." Aqualad stated defiantly.

"Says the boy I flung into a wall." Metallo growled as the fake skin on his hands peeled off to reveal sharp claws.

"Ekam senolc fo rudlaK!" Zatann cried. In a puff of smokes, illusions of Aqualad appeared around the Atlantian. This caused Metallo to pause in confusion and allowed Kaldur to use a sledgehammer of water and hit him back on stage to Kid Flash and Zatanna.

"Get Fenton away from here." Aqualad ordered a he followed Matallo to the stage.

"Wait!" Fenton yelled as Miss Martian used her telekinesis to lift the teen into the air.

"Can you walk, Superboy?" Miss Martian asked.

"Yeah…" Superboy nodded.

"Oh, would you look at this? A floating target."

"What?" M'gann turned to see what appeared to be a woman and cheetah hybrid.

"RARW!" The woman lept at Danny. She grabbed Fenton out of mid-air. She then twirled, somehow landed on her feet, and shoved Danny against the wall. The teen could feel sharp claws push against his neck. Small trickles of blood began to drip down from where her claws were grabbing him.

"Sorry, kid. I need the money."

* * *

><p>"Kitty!" Nyx cried out in joy. "I love kittys!"<p>

"Barbara Ann Minerva, A.K.A. The Cheetah." Raven blinked at the picture of the red-haired woman with the fur, claws, and tail of a cheetah. "She's a British scientist that infused herself with cheetah DNA when her funding was cut. All of her crimes have been done to fund a way to turn her back to normal."

"Wow…" Joel looked over to the gloomy girl. "That makes me actually pity her."

"Kitty!"

"Don't sympathize with her too much. She had a mean streak before the experiment and is known to be brutal with civilians. She's also a long standing enemy of Wonder Woman. Her speed, strength, agility, and reaction time are enough to give even Wonder Woman a hard time…" Raven noted.

"Things are looking worse with each passing second…" Victor frowned.

"Secret…" Greta nodded in agreement.

"Kitty kitty!"

"Will Young Justice be able to handle it all?" Nyx questioned.

"Do not worry." Vision spoke up. "They aren't as alone as they think. After all, we ghosts may not be able to be there, but that doesn't mean a human ally can't be."

"Kitty!"

"Shut up, Nyx!" Dani glared.

* * *

><p>"Don't get cocky." Danny gasped out. "I planned ahead."<p>

"What?"

Bang!

"Ack!" Cheetah yelled out in pain as she was sent flying away from Danny. A blast of ectoplasm hit her on her side and blasted her away.

"Sorry, kitty cat." Red Huntress lowered her ecto pistol and helped Danny up. "But I need him to make weapons for me."

"Psh!" Cheetah glared as she landed on her feet. "Stupid little girl."

"Never knew you cared that much…" Danny grunted.

"Oh, shut it, Fenton." Red Huntress glared at him. "I wouldn't have had to save you if you hadn't been holding back this whole time."

"Sorry." Danny frowned. "I wanted to see what they were capable of, and I dropped my guard. Not used to be in situations…like this."

To others, it might seem that he wasn't used to action. Valerie knew better, though. He wasn't used to having the speed and endurance of a simple human while in situations like this. Danny was far more used to being Phantom than Fenton at this point.

"No excuse, you should have activated your suit." Valerie glared.

"Fine, I'll do that now…"

Beep.

And the metal began to move.

* * *

><p><em>Memory sequence begin<em>

"_I think this is going to work out fine." Danny said as him helmet retracted to show his face. Before him was a wide variety of targets that were destroyed and broken. There were even a few vehicles that were broken into tiny pieces._

"_And that was with you holding back." Vlad commented as he looked at the carnage in Axion Lab's test area._

"_Everything seems to be functioning effectively…" Silas Stone examined the armor that coated Danny's body._

_It was almost purely white with green flames dancing around it and a green flaming F that was on the chest. The armor was jointed and thick, but still allowed for mobility. The jetpack on the back was supposed to allow the fastest speed, though. The left arm was completely covered in a gatling gun that had retracted a bit to allow Danny to use his hand. On his right arm was a type of canon with double barrels on the top of Danny's forearm._

_His shoulders were outfitted with retractable rocket launchers. On the teen's back but on the side of the jet was a rifle, while on his hip was a folded up piece of metal that when activated would turn into a Fenton Shotgun. The shotgun was attached to a belt that was filled with grenades. The feet of the armor had jets on the bottom to allow him to move if the back jet was damaged._

"_Yeah…but this is a lot heavier than expected." Danny noted._

"_The armor is thicker than the previous battle suit, and it does not give you the benefit of increased hand to hand combat skills." Vlad noted as he referred to the Red X suit. "But it will protect you from a lot of damage and has a lot more raw power than anything you made from scratch before this."_

"_That it does…" Silas sighed. "I reinforced those targets myself. Your weapons tore right threw them."_

"_Yeah…I'm thinking I'm going to have to tone it down even more if I don't want to kill anyone." Danny noted._

"_Yes. But that is your priority, not mine." Vlad mentioned. "All I need this suit to do is keep you safe._

"_Oh, yeah, I think it will do that." Danny smirked as the helmet came over his head and covered his face. Unlike the Red X suit, this battle armor was not a visor with a skull on it. This one was a metal gas mask. "__**In fact, I think this is going to be perfect.**__"_

_Yes, it was perfect, because it was…_

_Memory sequence complete_

* * *

><p>The Fenton Exorcist Armor.<p>

"**And here we go…**" Danny raised his left arm as the gatling gun completely covered his arm. Everyone looked over when they heard the humming of the machine.

"Crap!" Cheetah yelled as she hid behind a pillar.

A wave of bullets flew to where Cheetah was hidden. It completely stopped her from moving. "**Go help Robin, Red Arrow, and Artemis with Deadshot. I'll be okay, and they need your help more.**"

"Fine, but be careful." Red Huntress huffed and used her hover board to go over.

"**Yes, ma'am.**" Danny grinned behind his mask.

"_Cheetah has enhanced senses and reflexes."_ Dani gave advice over Fenton's radio. _"As long as she is focused completely on you, you won't be able to land a hit on her. At least not if you can't move as fast as her. If you distract her, though, you can take her down."_

"**Right.**" He stopped his gun and turned to Superboy and Miss Martian. Luckily, Cheetah wouldn't move immediately because she thought he was merely bating her. "**I need your help.**"

"He's weakened right now." Miss Martian argued. Deep down, she was troubled by something else. She was focused on Cheetah. Her appearance was vastly different from what human would consider good looking. Did that make her a bad person?

M'gann was deeply troubled by this. If appearing like a monster made you a monster, then what would her friends think about her true white Martian form? They would be disgusted by a form that was so twisted and monstrous. That was why she had to keep her secret. That was why she made Psimon comatose during the mission in Bialya and why she had to submit to Queen Bee's blackmail of her…

"I'll be fine." Superboy grunted. "Just tell me what to do."

"**Martian, use your telepathy to fling her to the wall. Kryptonian, keep charging at her. Keep her busy.**"

"Right." Miss Martian used her telepathy to fling Cheetah out of her hiding spot. The woman with feline DNA was sent flying to the wall with dizzying speed. Her cat instincts kicked in, however, and managed to land with her feet to the wall. With the force gone, Cheetah slipped to the floor.

As instructed, Superboy ran to Cheetah with a roar. "RAW!"

"Please, little boy!" Cheetah grinned. "You're just giving me a shield from Fenton."

It was true. Superboy was now in between Fenton and Cheetah. Thus, Fenton couldn't hit Cheetah without going through the Kryptonian clone. Using this to her advantage, Cheetah decided to beat Superboy down and use him as a shield to approach her target.

Superboy sent a fist at Cheetah's head. The woman ducked down to avoid the hid and slashed at Superboy's midsection. Because of Metallo weakening him earlier, Superboy was weak enough to get hurt. Five slash marks appeared down his midsection. None of them were deep enough to bleed, though.

"Gah…" Superboy grunted, but continued his assault. He sent a barrage of punches and kicks at the woman. Unfortunately, his opponent had the speed and reaction ability above that of one of the world's deadliest cats. She danced around the attacks like they were nothing. The woman even smiled as she moved.

This continued for a few more moments. Superboy gained a few more scratches, but he continued on. Cheetah decided enough was enough after a few more dodges and tried to knock the weakened Kryptonian out.

"**Too late**." Fenton spoke from right behind Superboy. While they were fighting, he used his jets to get in close to the duo. He managed to cross the space of several meters in the blink of an eye. The teen then took his right arm, reached around Superboy, and placed the barrel of the hand canon on wrist to Cheetah's stomach.

Boom!

"Ah!" Cheetah was sent flying into the far wall. She hit it spine first and slid to the ground unconscious and with a smoking and burnt stomach.

"…Nice job…" Superboy stated as Fenton drew his arm back.

"**Thanks for the assist, and sorry about the scratches.**"

"I'll be fine." Superboy shrugged. They did hurt. In fact, they hurt a lot more than Superboy cared to admit, but he put on a touch face.

"**Still, go to the Martian and rest for a second. I'm going to help with Metallo.**"

"Yeah…" Superboy nodded at that. "I really don't want to be around that guy."

* * *

><p>"He shot Kitty!" Nyx cried out.<p>

"Calm down, Nyx." Raven rolled her eyes.

"But he shot Kitty!" Nyx complained.

"Cheetah was the bad guy…er, girl." Youngblood noted. "She was going to kill Danny."

"That doesn't mean he could be so mean to Kitty…" Nyx huffed.

"Ha! I didn't know you were so weak against pussy cats." Dani chuckled. "I'm so going to use that later…"

"Secret…" Greta sighed at her distracted friends.

* * *

><p>Zap! Boom!<p>

"Gah!" Kaldur tried to use his water bearers to block the explosion, but it proved to be too much for the water and the Atlantian was sent stumbling back.

"Damn!" Kid Flashed hissed. He was surprised when Metallo sent out blasts of green energy out of his chest. It appeared he could use the Kryptonite energy as a beam.

"Nrut ollateM otni dnas!" Zatanna cried. She tried several times to affect Metallo's metal body directly, but nothing work.

"Eh? Sorry, little girl. That won't work." Metallo laughed. "I fought some magic users before. Had this body updated so it can't affect me directly."

"Fine." Kid Flash ran behind Metallo at rapid speeds. He then kicked behind Metallo's knee and sent him falling to the ground on his hands and knees. "How about physical attacks?"

"Part ollateM!" Zatanna cried. The stage below Metallo dissolved a bit and turned to a liquid. It swarmed around his limbs and held him in place. "My magic may not affect you, but it affects everything around you."

"Sorry, love. But this won't hold me long." Metallo mentioned as he began to pull his arms free.

"It doesn't have too."

"Raw!" Aqualad charged towards Metallo and used his water bearers to hit Metallo. The force of Kaldur's blow loosened the hold the floor had on the android and sent his opponent sprawling back.

"Ah…" Metallo forced himself up. "Nice hit there, mates. Now, though, it's my turn."

"Get ready!" Kaldur ordered as he used his water bearers to form a shield in front of him, Kid Flash, and Zatanna.

Metallo's chest opened to reveal the Kryptonite core. The core began to glow as it charged for the next blast. A wave of green energy was sent to the water shield. Zatanna was going to interfere and reinforce the water shield with her magic when someone stepped in between them and the wave of energy.

Boom! Swish!

Everyone's eyes widened as the explosion of minor radioactive energy seemed to be sucked into a single location. The green energy swirled to Danny Fenton's hand and into the orb that he was holding. "**Like it? I call it a Negative Grenade. It absorbs the force and energy of an explosion**."

"How? How could that possibly work?" Kid Flash questioned as Kaldur lowered the water shield.

"**Scientific stuff that will take too long and is too complicated to explain right now**." Fenton shrugged. "**But it absorbs explosions, so I think it's pretty badass**."

"Yes. Yes it is. Can I get a few of those?" Zatanna questioned.

"Let us discuss this later." Kaldur pointed to the android enemy. "Right now, we need to stay focused on the enemy in front of us."

Unbeknown to everyone else, Dani was still giving advice to Fenton. _"Metallo is made up of reinforced steel. Trying to just shoot him down will take forever. But he has a fatal weakness. He needs the Kryptonite in his chest in order to move. Take that out of the equation, and he's done for."_

"**Right**." Fenton reached to his side and grabbed the shotgun at his hip. He whipped it out and the metal unfolded into the full gun. "**Let's take him**."

"Looks like my target has come to me." Metallo grinned as he charged forward. "Way to make this easy kid!"

"**Yeah…**" Fenton raised his shotgun. "**Like shooting a fish in a barrel…**"

BOOM!

The shotgun fired. The blast hit Metallo in the shoulder. The force caused the metal to crack and began to peel away just a little bit. "Ah! What the bloody hell!? That's deadly force! If I were flesh and bone…"

"**You'd be dead**." Fenton nodded. "**But you're not, so I get away with excessive force**."

"Sthgil llaf!" Zatanna shouted. The stage light above the android broke off and fell down. It hit Metallo in the shoulder and caused the cracks to spread a little more.

At the same time, Aqualad used his water bearers to form whips and used them to strike Metallo's weakened shoulder. The android grunted but felt no pain. After a few hits, Metallo grabbed one of the whips, but was stopped from further action when Fenton shot him in head.

Roaring in anger, Metallo opened his chest and tried to shoot a beam of energy at them. Of course, Fenton had a Negative Grenade ready to absorb the impact. That was unnecessary, however, because Kid Flash ran into action. In the blink of an eye, the speedster crashed into the android and caused the man turned machine to stop the blast. Before Metallo could retaliate, KF ran off and avoided the swipe of his claws.

His chest now closed, Metallo turned to Fenton and growled. "That all you got, brat? Cause I can do this all day."

"**Oh, I doubt that. You see, my Negative Grenades don't just absorb explosions. They also expel the ones that they've absorbed**." Fenton grinned.

"Eh?" Metallo paused when he heard a beeping noise from his chest. It seems that when Kid Flash ran into him last time, he placed the grenade in his chest…right where his power source was… "Shi-"

Boom!

A small explosion occurred in the android's chest. Smoke rose out of Metallo's mouth and chest. The android froze and stuttered incoherent word. Then, the man turned machine fell back and landed with a loud thud and clang noise.

"That was easier than expected." Aqualad noted. "I am impressed by your quick strategies."

"**It's not just me. I have a command center set up that's feeding me info.**" Fenton noted.

"That's smart." Kid Flash stated as he approached them. "We should have one of those."

"That means someone has to stay at the Cave while everyone else goes on the mission, though." Zatanna chuckled. "I don't think anyone will volunteer for that."

"Meh…true enough…" Kid Flash frowned at the thought of getting left out of the mission.

* * *

><p>"Damn!" Artemis hissed as she continued to move around randomly. She couldn't keep moving in one pattern, or Deadshot would get her. It was the same way with Robin.<p>

She, Red Arrow, and Robin managed to get close enough to land a few blows, but they couldn't stop moving. If they stopped, Deadshot would get them. In fact, there were a few times that they were almost shot. For a moment, Artemis noticed that her bow and arrow had less of an impact compared to a gun.

That was the point, though. Deadshot went for the kill. Artemis didn't. That was her choice. It was her choice to not be like her family. No matter what Sportsmaster said, she was nothing like him, and she was going to prove it.

Pulling out an arrow, Artemis shot the stun gun arrow at Deadshot's chest. The assassin dodged the arrow and sent a bullet at the archer. Luckily, the blonde hid behind a pillar. She still felt the concrete spread as the bullet destroyed part of it.

Robin quickly jumped into action. He pulled out three shuriken and threw them at Deadshot. Imagine the Boy Wonder's surprise when Deadshot only needed one bullet to take out all three. The bullet bounced off the walls and managed to stop Robin's attack dead in its tracks.

Not all was lost by the attack, though. Robin was now close enough to fight hand to hand with Deadshot. That proved to be difficult because of the guns attached to Deadshot's wrists made it so that if the assassin ever had his wrists straight, then Robin would be dead. That prevented Robin from dedicating to an attack. One mistake would be the end of him.

Hearing a swishing sound in the air, Deadshot raised his left wrist gun and shot the arrows that Artemis and Red Arrow sent at him out of the air. He then shot at Robin with the right wrist gun and forced the boy to retreat behind a pillar.

"I have to admit, I'm impressed kiddies." Deadshot mentioned. His voice was deep and gruff. "I didn't think that I would have so much trouble with you. I've already wasted half of my bullets. You're making this interesting."

"How about I make it even more interesting?" Red Huntress questioned as she pointed her own wrist gun at his head.

"Ah…The Red Huntress." Deadshot chuckled. "I've heard that you're a pretty good shot yourself?"

"I'm not one to boast about my skills. I let them speak for themselves." Red Huntress mentioned.

"As it should be."

Bang!

Moving his wrist a fraction of an inch, Deadshot managed to ricochet a bullet across the room to destroy Red Huntress's wrist gun. Ducking to the side, Deadshot managed to avoid a net arrow that was shot at him. The dark skinned vigilante used an ectoplasmic shield to stop the net from hitting her.

"Nice shot almost capturing an ally." Red Arrow mentioned as he shot off three arrows towards Deadshot.

"Shut it. I'm not used to fighting with her…." Artemis smirked as Red Huntress was forced to dodge a few of Red Arrow's attacks. "And I'm not the only one."

"Fine, fair enough." Red Arrow grunted.

"Oh…crap!" Deadshot yelled at that instant. "I was having so much fun, I forgot my target! Damn! Now I need to-Guh!"

Robin took this moment to run at Deadshot and do a viscous side-kick to the assassin's midsection. He then followed up with a pop 360 kick that knocked him off balance. The archers of the group quickly moved and fired off sticky foam arrows to Deadshot. All the arrows hit their mark and trapped the assassin against the wall.

"Gah….No…" Deadshot struggled to get free, but was stopped when Red Huntress slammed his head against the wall.

"Too bad, so sad." Red Huntress smirked at the now unconscious assassin.

"Woo…" Robin sighed out. "Thanks for the assist."

"I think you would have gotten him eventually," Red Huntress mentioned. "I just sped up the process."

"Nevertheless, it was a big help." Artemis approached her. "Never fought such a trigger happy enemy."

"Deadshot's a special case." Red Arrow frowned at the assassin. "He's a distance fighter like us, but he has a lot deadlier equipment. If it were just one of us, we probably would have gotten shot."

"That's what teammates are for right?" Red Huntress questioned. "To have your back?"

"Yeah…" Artemis grinned at her fellow female vigilante. "It is…"

* * *

><p>"Well…" Fenton mentioned as all the teens all met up. His helmet retreated to reveal his face. "That was fun."<p>

"Yeah, man." Kid Flash lightly hit the human Danny on the shoulder. "You're a natural at this. You should think about joining our Team."

"You too." M'gann smiled brightly at Red Huntress. "You'd be a big help."

"I'll think about it." Red Huntress looked over at Danny. If she was on Young Justice, then she could look after Danny all the time…

"No thanks." Danny sighed. "I'm not cut out to do this every day."

"Yeah, well everyone's life can't be revolved around making appliances and weapons for other people." Superboy grunted.

"SB!" Robin hissed. He was surprised. Conner could be blunt about his comments, but he seemed to be even more rude and angry lately.

"What? I'm not wrong." Superboy shrugged.

"You don't like Fenton Works machines?" Fenton questioned.

"Oh, I don't really care, but some of your stuff is stupid." Superboy mentioned. "Laptops? Really? Why spend your time on crap like that when you can make weapons of mass destruction."

"Not everything has to have a deadly purpose." Red Arrow mentioned. "Besides, don't you know that Fenton makes weapons for the League and hero vigilantes? He doesn't even ask for compensation."

"So that's why the League is so focused on keeping you safe." Zatanna hummed.

"It's not that big of deal." Fenton shrugged. "Besides, Super…boy?...is right. I kind of intent on two different extremes of the spectrum, don't I?"

Robin chuckled. "Yeah, I suppose so."

"Well…" Superboy smirked. He felt a bad for that comment deep down. Fenton wasn't a bad guy. It was just those stupid shields he got from Luther. They gave him the full power of a Kryptonian, but they made him even angrier than usual. But…he couldn't give them up. "At least you have a good attitude about it."

"I hate to break up this discussion, but there may still be assassins around." Aqualad mentioned. "Perhaps it would be best to move Fenton to a safe location."

"Yeah…" Fenton nodded. "I think the other big shots have already been moved to a bunker. But I should be fine as long as I'm in this suit. You'd be surprised by what this thing can handle."

"I bet…" Kid Flash examined. "This sure is a piece of work. How did you build something so complicated?"

"I had help. In fact…" Danny paused. "What? I can't move…"

"Is the armor too heavy?" Red Huntress questioned.

"No. It's not that, I…" Danny's eyes widened. His arms swung on it's own. It smacked M'gann away and blasted Superboy in the stomach. "My armor is moving on it's own!"

"Move back!" Aqualad ordered.

Young Justice spread out. They were forced to dodge about as Fenton's gatling gun opened fire. Bullets flew everywhere as Fenton's jetpack activated and began to send him crashing out of the room. "Help!"

"Danny!" Red Huntress activated a shield as she chased after him. Kid Flash was right behind her. Just as they were at the door, though, an energy shield appeared. They ran into the shield and bounced off it.

"Ack…" Kid Flash groaned as he forced himself to his feet. "I get really tired of running into crap."

"Yeah…" Red Huntress agreed.

"Robin." Aqualad turned to the younger teen.

"Already scanning…" Robin muttered as he looked at his holographic computer. "It appears to be a shield made up of different forms of energy…"

"Can I use my magic to dispatch it?" Zatanna questioned.

"No. If you do that, it might become unstable and explode…" Robin frowned.

"What do we do then?" Red Arrow questioned.

"Give me a minute." Robin focused on his computer.

"Um…guys…" M'gann's eyes widened. "I don't think we have a minute."

"Ahaaahaaahaaahaaahaaa!"

"Snot brain!"

"Crud flinger!"

"What the hell are those things?! Metal spiders?" Artemis drew her bow. She was right. The room was completely filled with mechanical spiders the size of a large dog. The metal was painted green and black, there wide white teethed grins on the head, and the eyes were white swirls.

"They kind of look like Ivo's…" Superboy muttered.

"No…The Ivo uses MONQIs, not spider things." Kid Flash mentioned.

"Great, something knew." Red Arrow gritted his teeth.

"That's not all!" Zatanna's eyes widened in fear.

"RAWR!" Cheetah roared as she jumped to her feet. "I'LL KILL THAT KID!"

"_Backup power source activated."_ Metallo's body called out as the android regained consciousness and pushed himself up off the stage. "Arg…Nice nap. Now, where were we?"

Cha-Click! Deadshot brought out his sniper rifle as he peered down at the teens from the upper level. "Round two. Who wants to be shot first?"

"Damn…This is gonna take a while." Red Huntress muttered. 'Looks like I won't be able to help you, Danny. Please…stay safe.'

* * *

><p>"Danny?! Danny?!" Dani yelled into the microphone. She received no answer. "I can't get Danny to answer, and all his armor's signals have went off line."<p>

"Woah…" Victor looked at the readings on the monitor in front of Dani. "Those are some heavy encryptions. Whoever did this worked hard on these, and it took a while too. The hacker must have been working on this since Danny first arrived at the Wayne Tech building."

"Can you do anything about it?" Youngblood questioned. "Like find a hole in the water wall?"

"Rack! It's firewall." Polly corrected.

"Oh…That actually makes more sense." Youngblood nodded. "It sounds a lot more threatening…"

"Maybe, but it will take a lot of time." Victor frowned.

"I don't think Danny has that kind of time." Raven looked over to Vision's images which were still working. "I have no data on the guy that's doing this from the spider things, but it looks like Danny's getting close to the guy."

"Then will you have Wulf and Cujo pull him out?" Nyx questioned.

"No. Not yet." Vision shook her head. "This mission can still be salvaged. Joel. Fright Kight. It's time."

"Finally…" Fright Knight chuckled. "Time for my performance."

"I won't let Mentor down." Joel nodded to himself.

* * *

><p>Crash! Crack!<p>

"Damn…" Fenton Muttered as he landed on the concrete. He had flown a relatively long way away from the Wayne Tech building. He saw the shield from around the conference hall. That meant that Young Justice wouldn't be able to help him. Not yet at least… "What the hell happened?"

"I happened, fart brain."

Pushing himself up, Fenton turned to see… "A bald midget with green goggles?"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A GUY SO TINY YOU COULDN'T SEE HIM WITH A MAGNIFYING GLASS!?" The small dude with high tech goggles, a metal backpack, and what appeared to be a high tech jumpsuit yelled.

"I didn't say that…" Fenton mumbled. "Um…who are you?"

"Me? Name's Gizmo, burger breath." Gizmo grinned. "And I'm here to prove that I'm better than you!"

"…What? Don't you mean kill me?" Fenton questioned.

"What? No!" Gizmo's eyes widened. "Why would I want to kill you?"

"The bounty? That's why the others attacked me…"

"Fool! Snot brain! Burger breath!" Gizmo snapped. "Money is meaningless! It's just what I use to make my stuff! I can always just hack bank accounts or sell my old stuff or something. I don't need to kill anybody for it."

"Then…why are you here?" Fenton questioned.

"Because of you!" Gizmo pointed a finger at the older teen. "Everyone calls you the best young inventor in the world! The Pheonix! I hate that! I'm so much better than you! I completely hacked your system after all! Now you can't use your suit all the way. No helmet, not gatling gun, not arm canon."

"Damn…" Fenton muttered. "And you did all this to prove you're better than me?"

"Of course!"

"You do realize that you've weakened me against other assassins…" Danny sighed.

"Please, snot brain! I can easily handle any assassin that comes this way!" Gizmo boasted.

"Is that so? Let's test that theory."

It all happened faster than Fenton could see. One moment, he was facing against Gizmo, the next he was rolling away in a heap. Someone had hit him back. Acting with instincts that were built from countless battles and sparing sessions, Fenton raised his left arm. The gatling gun may not be able to shoot right now, but it was still thick metal. It easily stopped the sword that was aimed at his head.

"Impressive, kid." A man with black and gold armor. Not only that, his mask was completely black on one side, even covering one eye, and his right side was gold. Another odd thing that Fenton noticed was the long white pony tail that held the man's hair. "Didn't think you could move like that."

* * *

><p>"That's Slade Wilson, A.K.A. Deathstroke the Terminator." Raven read from the data banks. "Apparantly, he's an assassin that's had minor genetic modifications. Not only that…you should read this guy's resume. This guy's an expert and a pro. He's even fought the best of the best to standstill. Batman and Lady Shiva are just too examples. They didn't get out of the fight cleanly either."<p>

"Wow…" Nyx muttered.

"This guy is another contendor for the World's Greatest Assassin." Raven looked even paler than usual. "Unlike Deadshot, he's better up close and personal, though. It's kind of one of those things that a distance fighter would have a better chance against Deathstroke, while you can only beat Deadshot with close combat."

"But…Danny's suit's not working, so he can't move away that fast and his armor won't protect him as well." Youngblood mentioned.

"Yeah, I can't even get in contact with Danny." Dani added.

"I'm working on it…" Victor mumbled.

"It's a good thing we came up with more than one backup plan." Vision stated.

* * *

><p>"Gizmo! Could you reactivate my armor, please?!" Fenton yelled.<p>

"Sorry, a little busy right now!" Gizmo shouted back.

Glancing over, Fenton saw what was causing the problem. Gizmo seemed to be in a similar situation to Fenton. He, however, was being attacked by a miniature version of Deathstroke…that was also a girl.

What?

"Ack!" Fenton desperately blocked Deathstroke's sword attacks. He was so busy blocking, he couldn't counterattack. "Idiot! Your equipment is working, right?"

"Yeah…but she's a girl, and she might be pretty! I'll never get a date if I shoot her!"

"What are you, five?!" Fenton screamed.

"No, I'm eleven!"

"Gah…" Fenton turned back to Deathstroke. "Any way I can change your mind about killing me?"

"Sorry, kid. I already accepted the contract. Besides, what kind of message would I be sending to my daughter if I just shurked on a contract." Deathstroke explained.

"Wha-Daugher?" Fenton was so caught up in his confusion that he let his guard down. Deathstroke quickly took advantage. He knocked Fenton off guard and brought his sword down on Fenton's unprotected head.

Clang!

…Only to be stopped…

"You…" Deathstroke mumbled.

"Me." Red X stated as he used the extended blades on the back of his glove to block Deathstroke's attack.

"Gah…" Deathstroke broke his attack and flipped back. He stared at Red X as he stood protectively in front of Fenton. "Red X…Why are you here?"

"Employee loyalty." Red X chuckled as he brought out his twin pistols. "Unlike you, I can't be bought by simple money. I believe in sticking by those who earned my trust already."

"I figured you were hired by Fenton before, but…" Deathstroke frowned under his mask. "Are you his bodyguard?"

"I am now." Red X aimed his guns at Deathstroke. "And I will cut down everyone that tries to hurt my employer. Now tell me, are you going to force me to kill you?"

"No, but I don't plan to fight you to the death. I brought Ravager for a reason. After she finishes the bald brat, she'll…"

"GAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Gizmo yelled as the girl called Ravager held onto her and he began to rocket off to a nearby roof.

Deathstroke blinked as they disappeared. "Well, damn. Death match it is."

* * *

><p>"I still don't see why I can't control Red X…" Dani mumbled as she stared at Joel using the controller to move Red X.<p>

"Um…Cause he's better at video games than you?" Nyx suggested.

"That is so mean!" Dani cried.

"Well, you have to admit that his gaming skills are off the charts for a guy that doesn't even like to game…" Youngblood frowned in jealousy.

"Rack! Now I'm the one that doesn't understand what you mean…" Polly grunted.

"Why not have him speak as well?" Raven questioned as she looked at Fright Knight speaking into the microphone.

"I can't act that well under preassure…" Joel mentioned. "And I don't think I can pretend to be a cutthroat mercenary. Plus, I can't do the voice thing, so..."

"Yes, Fright Knight is far better at drama than all of us. Acting-wise at least." Vision noted.

"We're just lucky that we're using a separate system for the Red X suit." Victor mentioned. "If we weren't, then we'd be in some deep trouble."

* * *

><p>"Move back!" Red X ordered Fenton as he began to open fire on the assassin.<p>

"Like that will help!" Deathstoke blocked the blasts with his swords. Whiel doing this, he continued to march forward.

It was clear that this tactic wouldn't work against Deathstroke. Putting the ectoplasmic pistols back in their holsters, Red X activated the x's on the back of his gloves again and charged forward to trade blows with Deathstorke. "Go find some place safe! I'll take care of the has-been."

"You can try, brat." Deathstroke chuckled as they traded blows with their blades. "Too bad you had to stand against me. You would have made a good partner. Unfortunately, I have to kill you."

"You wish!"

Retreating, Fenton tried to get his weapons working again. Even his shotgun and rifle weren't working. That Gizmo might be annoying and a brat, but he was good. It would take a few minutes to get everything right. He would need to find some place safe just in case…

"Danny!" Harriet Chin's voice sounded from a nearby ally.

"Harri?" Danny questioned.

"Come on! I know some place safe." Harriet ushered him into the ally.

Danny quickly followed after her. "What are you doing? Why didn't you go with Vlad to safety?"

"Do you really think I would abandon you?" Harriet smiled back at him as she led him into the ally. "I got Mr. Masters to safety and went out looking for you. I saw you soaring through the air and wanted to do something, but…"

"It's fine." Danny smiled. "This is enough Harri."

"No problem." Harriet continued forward, but stopped when Fenton stopped moving. "What is it?"

"…Harri Chin…" Danny said.

"Yeah, that's my name-Woah!" Harriet flipped back as Fenton swung his gatling arm at her. "What are you doing?!"

"Harriet hates when I call her that. Just like when my dad did." Danny frowned.

"Ah, you are move perceptive zan I zought." Harriet's voice changed to a thich French accent. Her face morfed to a white woman with short, straight black hair and red ruby lips. Her body also changed from lithe frame to one that was curvier. The suit she wore morphed in a red and black body suit.

* * *

><p>"…I have no idea who that is…" Raven mentioned. "She doesn't appear in the data banks."<p>

"She can morph her appearance." Vision's eyes narrowed. "That means…she's a master of disguise. She might have blamed hundreds of different people for her crimes…"

"And she's never once been caught." Dani finished.

* * *

><p>"Who are you?" Danny questioned.<p>

"I like to call myself Madame Rouge." The woman smiled appreciatinlgy at him. "And I was hoping to get to you earlier. Zat's why I disguised myself as G. Gordon ealier…"

"You…" Fenton's eyes widened.

"But Deadshot ruined zat plan. But everzing worked out. Now, zere will be no witnesses." Madame Rogue smiled.

"And how do you…ack…" Danny's eyes widened when Madame Rogue moved in a blur. She punched at him. Fenton went to block, but was surprised when the punch streatched around her and she stretched as well. In an instant, the woman had stretched herself around her like rubber.

"You're like Plasticman-Gack!" Fenton gurgled as her arm wrapped around his neck like a boa constrictor.

"Somewhat." The woman chuckled. "Except, I'm better at zis."

"Ah…Erk…." Danny's face began to turn blue.

"I am zorry about zis." Madame Rogue apologized. "I hate zee zought of killing a man with zuch potential. Especially one zo handsome. But work is work."

Fenton's vision began to fade.

"Goodbye, Mr. Fenton-Ah!"

"GAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Fenton took a deep breath as Madame Rogue was thrown off of him.

"Ah…" Madame Roque looked back at her attacker. "…What are you?"

That was a good question. The man that saved Danny was only wearing black tights. This allowed them to see his pure white head and his unusual body. His right arm and right side of his torso were orange. The left arm and torso were purple. His right and left legs were brown and white respectively.

"I am Metamorpho! A hero of justice!" Metamorpho shouted.

Danny blinked at his outrageous declaration. That was very specific. Maybe…wait. The waist of this man…thing's tights almost looked like a Fenton Disguise Belt…

'Vlad?' Fenton thought as he stared up at the thing.

Out of sight of Madame Rogue, Metamorpho turned to Danny and winked.

'I don't know if this a good thing or a bad thing…'

* * *

><p>"Gahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Nyx burst out laughing.<p>

"Dad…" Dani placed her face in her hands.

"What is he supposed to be?" Youngblood questioned.

"An idiot?" Raven questioned.

"Secret." Greta spoke up. It appeared she agreed, though.

"Hey, that's my fiancé you're talking about. And I'll have you know…" Vision sighed. "I can't defend this. I feel the shame that will come from knowing that he chose that appearance and that persona…"

* * *

><p>"Villain! I shall stop your attack on this innocent boy!" Metamorpho cried.<p>

"…What are zou, an idiot?" Madame Roque questioned.

"No! I am a hero of justice!"

"You sure?"

"Of course!" Metamopho posed like Superman. "I am a defender of the weak! I am the defeater of eviiiiiiiiiiiiil! I am…"

"Hideous? Moronic? Stupid? A weirdo? Delusional?"

"No, I am…" Metamorpho raised a hand to the sky and gave a thumbs up. "METAMORPHO!"

"Whatever. I will defeat you and kill…" Madame Rogue blinked. "Um…Where did zee boy go?"

"What? He's right here…" Metamorpho turned. "He's gone…"

"…"

"…"

"…Do you zinth zat he left because he was embarrassed for you?"

"NO! That's not it." Metamorpho panicked. "Where'd he go?"

* * *

><p>"Where did he go?!" Dani asked in panic.<p>

"I was distructed by the stupidity!" Nyx yelled.

"I'm having my birds look for him now…" Vison frowned deeply.

"This is bad." Raven muttered. "There aren't any more backups besides Wulf and Cujo, and if we don't give them a location they might be too late and..."

"Secret…" Greta held her throat in worry.

* * *

><p>"Ack…" Fenton grunted as landed on his back after being thrown to the roof of a building. "Okay, I'm officially sick of getting thrown around."<p>

"Don't worry." A foot stepped on the teen's chest. "You won't be thrown around ever again."

Fenton looked up. "Who are you?"

"It doesn't matter." The man with greying hair took a breath of his cigarate and pointed a gun at Fenton's head. "I'm not one to talk like the other assassins. Let's just get this over with."

"Wait!"

"I don't like killing kids cause I got one of my own, but this is a lot of money." The man puffed out smoke.

"No!"

Boom!

With that, blood splattered across the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>To be continued in…"Knowledge"<strong>

**Cliffhanger! But I have good news, because I'm in the Christmas spirit and want to get my Christmas chapter (the one where they mourn Danny's death. ;P Lol. JK. Lol. JK...or am I?) out before Christmas, I decided to to update three weeks in a row. So, Chapter 26 will be out on December 15 and Chapter 27 will be out on December 22. Merry Christmas.**

**All new characters that appeared are DC. No new OC's have been introduced. Can you guess the identity of the last assassin? He hasn't been introduced yet, but he is involved in a very minor plot point.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW **


	26. Knowledge

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Knowledge is power." Sir Francis Bacon

* * *

><p>Chapter 26: "Knowledge"<p>

(Saturday-December 18, 2010)

"…What are you doing here, Shiva?" The man's words came out perfectly even though he was biting down on the lit cigarette in his mouth.

"A mission of course. I've been sent to protect your target, David." Shiva stated.

"Well you're doing a piss pore job of it." David Cain chuckled. The man in the in the black jumpsuit with a rifle on his back looked down on the boy. Shiva pushed his hand to side so that there wasn't a direct his, but it still grazed the side of Fenton's head. Blood was now pouring out the side of the wound.

"Gah…" Fenton put pressure on the wound. "Was that revenge, Shiva?"

"Yes. While it was because of Phantom that I was defeated, it was you that knocked me out before…" Shiva glared down at him as she remembered when he was kidnapped.

"Well, it's great to see that working with the hypocritical Shadows hasn't changed your sense of honor and morality." Cain looked at Shiva longingly. "How is Cassandra?"

"Why would you care?" Shiva glared. "You abandoned her."

"Only because you wouldn't take her from the Shadows!" Cain snapped. "You know I will never work for that bastard Ra's Al Ghul. Instead, you agreed to let her be trained to be Talia's personal bodyguard."

"And you wanted her to be your perfect assassination partner." Shiva snapped.

"I guarantee that she would be happier with me." Cain gritted.

"You might have not even taught her how to speak." Shiva growled.

"Instead, you teach her that killing people is for the greater good. There is no 'good' in killing. It's just killing." Cain argued. "With me, she would understand reality and know how the world really works instead of believing the Shadow's fantasies."

"Are these the problems of assassin parents?" Danny questioned.

"Shut up, brat." Both assassin's glared down at him.

Danny decided to listen to them.

"So…you're going to fight me, eh?" Cain sighed. "Just like old times."

"Exactly. I'm going to kick your ass." Shiva smiled.

"You can try!" David Cain snapped as he whipped his hand out of Shiva's grasp and tried to shoot her. Shiva, however, ducked and did a spinning hooking heel kick to knock the gun out of his hand. She then continued to spin to follow up with a roundhouse kick.

David Cain quickly reacted, though. He did a scoop block to catch the kick. Holding her leg, he then tried to sweep her other leg and take her to the ground. Showing incredible flexibility, Shiva jumped and twisted her body to backhand Cain. This forced the male assassin to let go of the woman and shove her back.

"Get Fenton out of here!" Shiva ordered as she charged at the man again.

"Huh?" Fenton blinked as he was suddenly pulled away. He looked at the person saving him and was surprised. "Walker?"

"Do not say a word, punk." The pale skinned sheriff growled out through clenched teeth. "I'm still gonna kill you, but right now, I need you alive."

"Why?"

"Two reasons. One, if I kill you, then I die. Two, we need to find out who put the hit out on you." Walker grunted as he pulled the teen to another roof.

"Exactly." Jinx's voiced sounded from nearby. She was sitting on the edge of the roof and appeared to be waiting for them to appear.

Fenton turned and saw his pink-haired. "You…"

"There you go, punk. It's a rule to say thank you to people that save you." Walker glared. He pushed Fenton to the side none too gently.

"Right…Thanks…" Fenton turned to Jinx. "So…you're just saving me to find out who put a hit out on me."

"No, that's not the only reason." Jinx stood. "The Shadows have always been interested in you."

"Yeah, I remember the kidnapping…" Fenton muttered as he held his bleeding head.

"And I remember that to…" Fenton felt a katana being pressed against his neck. "I remember that you shot me in the back."

"Really, Cheshire? A grudge against me?" Fenton looked over his shoulder at her. "We did discuss that we were only friends while it was convenient."

"That and the fact that I'm a professional in the middle of a job is the only reason you are alive." Cheshire removed the sword from his neck. "Plus, it looks like Shiva already got her revenge. That's enough for now."

"Okay…fair enough." Danny peered at the assassins that surrounded him. "So, you're going to protect me, just like that?"

"Yes. It is our orders. It is a rule." Walker didn't seem happy, though.

"Then do you know who else is after my head? I've already had six assassins and two kids attack me. Who else is left?" Danny questioned.

"We don't know, but it's better safe than sorry." Jinx stated. "Now come on, we need to get you someplace safe."

* * *

><p>"Stand still!" Cheetah ordered. She slashed and cut at Kid Flash with her sharp claws. The speedster dodged each blow, though. Even if Cheetah was fast, Kid Flash was faster. He could dodge the woman villainess's attacks all day.<p>

"Uh…naw?" Kid Smirked. He quickly jabbed the cat woman in her burnt stomach. This caused Cheetah to gasp and clutch her wound. The burn wound had proven to be more critical than she originally though. While hurt, she couldn't move as quickly. Thus, she there would no way for her to get away from the speedster's partner in this fight.

"Raw!" Aqualad charged at the wounded assassin and used his water bearers to knock her to the ground unconscious.

"Good night, kitty." Kid Flash grinned as he knelt down and patted her head.

"You are not going to do anything perverted to her, right?" Aqualad questioned.

"Dude! That's sick!"

"Well, you do not have the best track record…"

"You should leave the humor to others, dude."

"Well, I find my jokes humorous..."

* * *

><p>"Ah!" Metallo struggled as he was held still by M'gann's telekinesis. "Let go of me, brat!"<p>

"As if!" Artemis smirked as she drew her bow back.

Normally, the Krypontite energy source would make it so using telekinesis on Metallo useless. Metallo's raw strength and Kryptonite blasts would have made M'gann's influence ineffective. Luckily for the young heroes, the Kryponite core was destroyed. Even then, Metallo's armor was strong. The metal held even though one arm was cracked and breaking.

…Until Artemis shot it, that is…

Boom!

"ARG!" Metallo cried out. The force of Miss Martian's mental strength and Artemis's explosive arrow caused the android's fractured arm to tear off. This wasn't all, though. The archer followed up with a sticky foam arrow which trapped Metallo in red goop. "Idiot! This won't hold me long."

"It doesn't need to…" M'gann floated right in front of him and focused. "Your mind is part synthetic, but there's still some organic parts…If I can just reach that…"

"You…uh…" Metallo closed his eyes as M'gann forced him into sleep.

"Nice one, M'gann!" Artemis shouted.

"Thanks!" M'gann beamed. "Thanks for holding him."

"No problem." Artemis laughed. "The hard part was disarming him."

"You totally stole that from Phantom when we fought Mr. Twister." M'gann noted.

"What? I wasn't even on the Team back then." Artemis argued.

"But we told you the story." M'gann joked.

"Oh, shut up…"

* * *

><p>Deadshot hated bullet proof enemies. He really did, because there was literally nothing he could do against them. This was especially true for Kryptonians. Even their damn eyeballs were durable to bullets. So, unless Deadshot had a Kryptonite bullet, he was screwed. "Knew I should have brought that damn bullet, but noooooooooo I had to try and save it for Superman…"<p>

"Shut up!" Superboy yelled. He was weakened earlier by Metallo and Cheetah. That was why he put on another shield. It gave him the boost he needed to fight the assassin. Nothing could hurt him right now.

At the same time, though, he could feel his mind cloud with anger. It was made even worse by the mention of Superman. Superboy had the clench his teeth not to yell out curses and profanities at the assassin.

"Damn!" Deadshot rolled away and pulled out his rifle. "Maybe a groin shot will work…"

"Nrut sih snug otni srewolf!" Zatanna cried.

"What the hell?!" The assassin with a broken scope on his eye yelled. His guns just melted into flowers! How the hell was that even possible? Even his backup guns were foliage now…

Crack!

Deadshot was so distracted by the change that he could not stop Superboy in his last charge. The clone quickly did a massive uppercut to the assassin's chin. The marksman was unconscious before he even hit the floor. Luckily, Superboy managed to control his anger at the last moment, or Deadshot might no longer have a head.

"Flowers, eh?" Superboy raised an eyebrow at the magic user.

"Meh." Zatanna shrugged. "I thought it was ironic since he made so many people push up daisies."

"That's some pretty dark humor." Superboy mentioned.

"Then why are you smiling?"

* * *

><p>The two Reds looked around at the numerous destroyed robots. Both Arrow and Huntress took responsibility of dismantling the machines that invaded after the shield was raised. The spiders were annoying and durable, but Red Arrow and Red Huntress both had experience destroying such machines. Plus, there was another reason.<p>

"It's strange." Red Arrow noted as he knelt down by a destroyed spider. "I don't think these things are weaponized."

"It might explain why we took them out so easily, but why would an assassin send unweaponized robots?" Red Huntress questioned.

"Who knows?" Red Arrow shrugged. "The assassin was probably just trying to distract us."

"Well, that was accomplished." Red Huntress looked over to the only member of their group that did not fight at all. Robin was in charge of taking down the shield. So far, though, there seemed to be no progress. "Robin, anything on the shield?"

"Give me a few more minutes." Robin grunted as he stared down at his holographic computer. "This is complicated stuff. Whoever did this, knew what he or she was doing."

"Great." Red Arrow sighed. He looked around and saw that everyone had finished their fights. "Now we just stand around twiddling out thumbs?"

"Pretty much." Robin shrugged.

* * *

><p>Danny and his new bodyguard assassins did not get far. That much was certain. They managed to get far enough away from Shiva and David Cain to no longer hear them, but that was about it.<p>

In retrospect, the teen should have seen it coming. He was beginning to think about how this day could not possibly get worse, after all. The halfa knew better than that. Things could always get worse, and as Murphey's Law stated, 'Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.'

"Hello, Daniel." Nocturne grinned down to the teen as he floated above the group of four. "It's been a long time."

"I'm starting to hate my life." Danny groaned.

"I'm starting to hate your life too." Jinx sighed.

"What do you want, sleep ghost?" Walker frowned.

"The boy's head, of course." Nocturne chuckled. "Something you can related too of course. In fact, I'm surprised that you're protecting him."

"His time will come. Right now, my like is dependent of his life. So, I can't just let him die. Not yet at least. Soon, he'll die on my terms, though." Walker stated.

"Love you too, Walker." Danny added.

"Shut up, Fenton." Cheshire pulled out her sai. "We need to stay focused, and you antagonizing one of my men isn't helping."

"Who said you're in charge, kitty cat?" Jinx questioned. "The Great One said I could take the lead."

"I will not be led by someone five years younger than me." Cheshire snapped.

"Uh hem!" Nocturne coughed into his ringed hand. "Are you quite done yet? I would like to kill the boy now."

"...Why attack now?" Danny questioned. "You've had better opportunities than this..."

It was true. Phantom had been weakened for months now. The thought of the Black Power Ring users attacking him was always on the back of his mind, especially on missions with Young Justice. They never did attack though. Granted, Danny couldn't use his powers at all right now, but he was still wearing a suit of armor that would most likely be reactivated soon.

"...You aren't the main target." Nocturne growl. "We are to avoid you...Because if we don't, we will focus all our energy on killing you. Like right now. We had a mission close to here, and I couldn't resist the temptation to come rip your spine out of your body...I'm sure that I'm going to face judgement for this, especially because I ditched the others in a middle of the fight. Aragon won't be too mad because I went after you, but..."

"Wait...I don't understand." Danny frowned. "Why try to avoid killing me if you want to kill me?"

"...Because you shall bring about more death than anything else on this planet." Nocturne was at his snapping point. "But I can't resist this opportunity! Now shut up and die!"

* * *

><p>"OOF!" Gizmo groaned as he pushed himself up. "Well…That sucked…"<p>

"You little…" Ravanger growled as she jumped back to her feet. The twelve year old girl only meant to throw the bald kid into a wall. Apparently, though, she accidentally hit a button the boy's tech. In an instant, she was sent flying into the air. The girl had to hold on, too, or she would have plummeted to her death.

Thus, she was now stuck on a roof while at a bit of a distance from her father. That's just great. Now he was going to lecture her and punish her for not being aware of what her enemy was wearing…

"Woah! This was your fault, not mine." Gizmo defended himself. "You're the one messing with my equipment."

"Fool." Ravager glared. She reached behind her and unsheathed her tanto.

"W-wait! Why are you bringing the pointy stuff out?" Gizmo began to sweat.

"The only way to find penance is to kill you." Ravager began to walk to the boy.

"N-no!" Gizmo paled. Six metal legs extended from his mechanical backpack. He was raised up into the air and well out of close range combat. "I don't want to fight you. Just go back to your dad…assassin…guy…"

"He wouldn't want me to come back without my opponent's head." Ravager noted as she prepared to jump up at the tech wiz.

"…Fine, snot breath!" Gizmo glared as he pulled a laser gun out of his metal backpack. "Who would want to date you anyway with that stupid mask and white hair!? For all I know, you're an old hag!"

"Little bug." Ravager snorted. "Your words are like buzzing in my ear."

"How interesting… I rarely see how real children my age act. The most I have is my observations of the ghosts in Amity Park and other young assassins. Tell me, is this how all children act?"

"Huh?" Both Ravager and Gizmo turned to see another child on the roof. She was standing at the edge and looking at them. "Who are you?"

"Cassandra. It is a pleasure to meet you." Cassandra Cain give them a small bow.

"W-woah!" Gizmo's jaw dropped at the pretty girl.

"Another child." Ravager realized. "It seems that the age of child soldiers is returning. Let's see…Cassandra…Cain. Daughter of Lady Shiva and David Cain. Trained to be the next bodyguard of Talia Al Ghul. Skills are unknown at this time."

"How do you know all that?" Cassandra frowned.

"I have to learn about all possible enemies and allies." Ravager noted. "Even future ones."

"Huh…You've heard of me, but I haven't heard of you." Cassandra looked in the direction they came from. "But I know your father. The Shadows have been trying to recruit him for years. Why did he bring you?"

"Experience. He thought this would be an easy kill. He was wrong." Ravager noted. "And you?"

"…I came to witness a reunion and a triumph. In that order." Cassandra noted. "My parents haven't been together since I was born. I was curious."

"Uh…" Gizmo looked back and forth between the girls. "I'm totally lost. Can I go fight Fenton now?"

"No!" Cassandra snapped. "You shall stay here."

"And why is that?" Gizmo grinned. "With my equipment, I can fly. How will you-" Swish! Snap! "CRUD!"

Cassandra lowered her arm that she used to throw shuriken at the boy's metal spider legs. He fell to the ground in a heap. "Because I won't let you."

"Feisty…" Gizmo grinned despite his position. "I like it."

"Interesting." Ravager chuckled beneath her mask. "That was fast."

"Both of you wish to fight or kill Fenton. My mother is contracted to protect him. Thus, I must protect him as well." Cassandra noted.

"Fine. Fine. I like being here a lot better anyway. I'll just get the burger brain later." Gizmo shrugged.

"Sorry, but only my father gets to tell me what to do." Ravager stated.

"I see…" Cassandra looked up to the sky for a single moment. "It seems the hands of fate are moving especially fast today. So many meetings…so many different fights…Is this a foreshadow of the future, or merely a cruel game to amuse the gods?"

"Fate? There is not fate. There are only choices. You either chose to kill or be killed." Ravager chuckled as she brandished her weapon. "That is the reality we live in."

"Gee…" Gizmo frowned. "This is some heavy stuff. I just came here to show people that I am the best."

"And that was your choice." Ravager nodded.

"No, it was fate." Cassandra argued.

"Er…" Gizmo looked back and forth between the two glaring girl. "Okay?"

* * *

><p>Both Red X and Deathstoke were running down the street. The cops had quickly found their location because of the gunshots, and they were forced to move away from the spot in order avoid unnecessary conflict and complications. As they ran, both combatants used their guns to try and shoot the other down. This did not work, though. They were far to agile to get a good shot.<p>

Deathstroke jumped off the hood of a car and swung off a lamp post. He flew towards Red X with his sword ready. Once again, Red X used the blades that extended from the back of his gloves to block the attack. Sparks once again flew off the meeting blades.

Swinging his sword, Deathstroke attacked the mercenary from various different angles. Up. Down. Side to side. Spin to try and decapitate his foes. Each and every blow was blocked.

"You are quite skilled, boy." Deathstroke mentioned as he tried and used his strength to push Red X back. "I can see why you caused such a stir while only appearing twice before."

"I never wanted to cause a stir." Red X mentioned. "I was only after getting paid."

"As all good mercenaries are." Deathstroke chuckled. "But you'll find our efficiency tends to attract far more attention than we want. It gets even worse when you kill such a high profile target. After today, I will have to lay low. Killing Red X and Daniel Fenton is sure to bring a lot of heat from a lot of people."

"You make it sound as if you have already won." Red X stated.

"It's only a matter of time now. After I finish you, I'll track Fenton down and finish this job." Deathstroke explained.

"Doubtful." Sparks appeared around Red X's blades as the electric gauntlets activated. This forced Deathstroke to jump back to avoid the electricity spreading through their metal weapons. Now having some distance, Red X turned his left palm up and pointed it at the black and gold assassin. A gooey red X jumped out of his palm and launched to Deathstroke.

In order to avoid being trapped, Deathstroke rolled to the sided and pulled out his own guns. He fired at the mercenary, but a red shield formed around Red X and stopped the bullets. Realizing that guns were useless right now, the assassin rushed forward and one again grabbed his sword.

"Haven't you realized it yet?!" Red X taunted as his electric blades activated. "That tactic won't work!"

"That's why I'm changing it up." Deathstroke answered. He then dropped some smoke pellets. Smoke spread across the street.

Unable to see, Red X desperately tried to stop Deathstroke's attaks. There was only one problem…

* * *

><p>"I can't use any of my real senses to fight Deathstroke and there's no heat signature sight on the suit…" Joel stated to the other people in the lab.<p>

"Well, crap…" Fright Knight frowned. "That's going to be a problem… In fact…"

* * *

><p>"Well…" The Fright Knight spoke through Red X. His voice was filtered to sound like how Danny's altered voice did. "This is a small problem."<p>

"Oh? You call this a small problem? I just stabbed you." Deathstroke noted as he looked down at the blade sticking out of Red X's chest. "That must be some thick armor…I don't see any blood yet."

"Moron…A memory does not bleed." Red X's right hand grabbed the blade as his left hand grabbed one of his pistols and shot Deathstroke in the mask.

"Arg!" Deathstroke stumbled back as his mask shattered. His aging face and eye patch were revealed to the world. "How are you still able to move?! You should be in shock!"

Red X pulled the blade out of his chest. The weapon left a hole that revealed the metal and wired interior of the suit. "Sorry, but you missed the things that I need to move…"

"An android?" Deathstroke mumbled.

"No, a memory." Red X threw the blade at Deathstoke. The assassin did not catch the blade, though. Instead, the gold and black armored man rolled to the side and away from the descending blade. This was the smart choice, though, because as the blade fell, a large explosive red x could be seen on the side of it.

Boom!

"Now that you don't have a sword, how about round two?" Red X chuckled.

* * *

><p>"I found him." Vison noted as her bird began to watch as Fenton and the three assassins try to fight Nocturne off.<p>

"What?!" Dani stared at the images. "Why is he getting help from those guys? Especially Walker. He hates Danny."

"Isn't that Jinx, though?" Nyx tilted her head. "You said that he was friends with her."

"So…Is he surrounded?" Youngblood questioned.

"Secret." Greta could not resist the urge to answer the question.

"No…" Raven shook his head. "Look, they're protecting him."

It was true. All three of the assassins were going out of their way to defend Fenton. Because he was the strongest physically, Walker was dragging Fenton around because the teen couldn't move well with his suit offline. Both Jinx and Cheshire were trying to fight Nocturne off. Jinx's attacks proved to be the most effective, while Cheshire's normal attacks did minimul damaged.

"Danny needs to use his suit." Dani noted. "Like, right now."

"And he can!" Victor grinned. "I got the system working again! He's online!"

"Yes." Vision grinned beneath her veil. "Now, it's time to show just what the Exorcist Armor can do."

* * *

><p>Beep. Beep. BEEP!<p>

Fenton's eyes widened as his suit activated again. He could feel the metal hum and roar back online. His gauntlet gun shifted and his arm cannon warmed up.

"_Danny! Victor did it! You're back online!"_ Dani's voice sounded in his ears. "_You can fight again."_

"Oh, hell yes." Danny grinned and turned to Walker. "Let me go. It's time for me to get in the fight."

"If you say so, punk. Don't die yet. I want to be the one that kills you." Walker gritted out and released the teen.

"Whatever…" Danny ignored the ghost as his helmet formed over his head. His jets activated and allowed the halfa to fly once again. "**Because as of right now, you wouldn't be able to touch me at all**."

"Oh? The boy has a knew suit?" Nocturne laughed as he forced Jinx and Cheshire to roll to the side. "Too bad it won't do anything to fight against my power ring."

"**Wrong…**" Danny smirked under his mask. "**Power at 100%. Activating anti-Death energy wave.**"

"What?!" Nocturne laughed at teen's words. "Anti-death energy wave? What does that-"

BOOM!

Fenton's arm cannon fired of a pure red blast of energy. It was massive compared to the blast he used against Cheetah. The giant blast of energy hit Nocturne and blew up.

"AH!" Nocturne cried in anguish as he body was burned and bruised. Smoke rose off his injured body. "HOW!? My ring's energy should protect me!"

"**Moron. Anti-Death doesn't mean that it brings people to life or something stupid like that. It means that I can bypass a black power ring's defense.**" Fenton grinned.

"H-how?!"

"**Did you really think you could pop around like you have without me examining the leftover energy? Nope. I've analyzed the ring's energy and found the exact frequency of energy that it would be weak to.**" Fenton explained. "**And now, allow me to show you just how well it works. A quick warning, though. You might end up getting hurt really, REALLY badly.**"

* * *

><p>Madame Rogue's fist landed into Metamorpho's face and caused and explosion of plasma to spread out. This was only temporary as the unusual being's head quickly reformed as if nothing had happened. Grinning brightly, Metamorpho decided to attack as well. His punched proved to be ineffective as well, as Madame Rogue's rubber body made physical attacks mostly ineffective. At least if they don't have the force of dynamite behind them at least.<p>

It was then that Metamorpho wished that he could use some of his other powers. Physical force was not working and most likely would result in a standstill. This was fine for the purpose of disguising himself and hiding his ectoplasmic signature, but his competitive side and pride demanded nothing less than absolute victory. Thus, you could imagine his frustration at being forced to fight to a standstill.

"Zis is pointless." The woman noted. "We can't hurt each other."

"Not like this at least…" Metamorpho raised his arms and posed like a bodybuilder. "But as a hero of justice, I cannot allow such evil to walk away unpunished."

"You play the fool well, but I see the intelligence and cunning behind it all." Madame Rogue smirked. "Tell me, Mr. hero of justice, what is your real reason for defending the boy?"

"…I owe him everything." Metamorpho stated seriously. "I would have fallen into my own madness and darkness without his assistance. That is why I help him, and why I will not let you go to him."

"How sweet." Madame Rogue sighed. "Unfortunately, I must complete zis contract and keep my identity hides. Zus, I must kill you and Fenton."

"You can try, but I don't think that will work." Metamorpho smiled. "In fact, I think it's time to bring out a new trick I learned from a young friend…"

* * *

><p>It turned out that Deathstroke knew how to fight androids. Thus, as soon as he realized that his foe was mechanical, the assassin changed his strategy. Now, they were almost completely fighting in smoke and in the shadows where Red X couldn't see. Electricity was used to hinder the machine's movements and Deathstroke's guns had made deep holes in the android's metal body.<p>

That was not to say that Red X did not get any hits in. His ectoplasmic pistols managed to get a few hits on the assassin's limbs. The x blades nicked Deathstroke once on his cheek and cut into the man's side. Still, Deathstroke was winning this fight.

"You proved to be a very good foe, Red X." Deathroke noted as he pulled out his gun one more time. "Unfortunately, this ends here."

"This fight isn't over yet, assassin." Red X's body sparked and shook from the damage it received. Nevertheless, the android did not fall.

"Fenton surely is a genius to build a machine like you." Deathstroke noted. "Very few have pushed me this far. For that, you have my respect, but I need to finish this."

"You can try, but-" Red X was stopped when Deathstroke's other hand pulled out was grapple gun. It shot a ball at the machine's feet. Red X tried to jump away, but was too slow. The ball hit his foot. After this, a wire extended out and wrapped around the bodyguard's legs. He fell to the ground with a thud.

Deathstroke quickly stepped on Red X's hands to stop them from moving. Even if the electric gauntlets were activated, they would not have any effect on the assassin's rubber lined boots.

Pointing his gun at Red X's head. "Sorry, but your maker won't be able to fix you after today. Goodbye, Red X."

Bang!

* * *

><p>"Damn…" Joel muttered as he tried to move Red X. "The controls aren't responding. The body's dead."<p>

"Is there nothing you can do?" Fright Knight turned to his partner in controlling Red X.

"No, I don't have a visual, and my orders are being ignored." Joel explained. "We lose."

"Um…" Victor approached the duo. The others were busy monitoring Fenton's fight with Nocturne, but Victor noticed the fall in Red X's readings. "Maybe I can help?"

"You can?" Joel blinked.

"Yes…" Victor looked at the computers that monitored Red X's body. All the screnes were read. "Fenton's hardware is incredible, and I managed to get a good look at his programming while fixing his Exorcist suit. Maybe I can work with what's left of the suit."

"There's nothing left." Fright Knight sighed. "The body and torso are broken beyond repair."

"But the limps aren't. The nerve system in them is still working, Fenton designed them to work individually. If I could bypass the central controls system, I might be able allow you to control each limb without the main body."

"But we still wouldn't be able to see." Joel argued. "I won't know where Deathstroke even is."

"I also managed to find a way to see through some of the cameras in the city, just in case Vision's birds had trouble." Victor suggested. "Maybe you can use those. It won't be as accurate, but…"

"It will be enough." The Fright Knight smiled under his helm and placed a hand on the young man's shoulder. "Thank you. You have just given us the key to victory."

* * *

><p>"Now, to find the boy." Deathstroke muttered. "Perhaps I should find Rose first. It would do her well to finish him off herself."<p>

The assassin stopped when his torso and arms were surrounded by a red, gummy, foamy x. Everything but his head and legs held in place. Turning, Deathstroke saw that the broken Red X suit was pointing its left hand out at him. It was strange, though. The head was still shattered, and the body was in shambles.

"How the…" Deathstroke paused. The suit disappeared. "Where did it go?!"

Bang!

"Arg!" Deathstoke groaned a low powered ectoplasmic blast hit him in the back of the neck.

Crash! The Red X landed onto the ground. It had used its teleport function to move it behind Deathstroke. Because of the assassin's lack of mobility, the suit managed to get a single shot in. That was it, though. That last jump used all the energy, and the fall broke the last bit of control Joel had on the suit. It would not rise again.

Luckily, it wouldn't have to.

"Damn…" Deathstroke mumbled as he fell to his knees. "Impressive suit…The kid's better than I though. Hahaha….Even if this is technically a draw, I consider it a loss. Good job…"

And with that, Deathstroke fell to the ground unconscious.

* * *

><p>Cassandra charged in to Ravager. She threw a quick left hook at the white haired girl's head. This blow was dodged, though, as was the spinning hell kick that followed. Ravager then used her tanto to cut at Cassandra. The dark haired girl used her hidden knives to block the attack.<p>

Before either girl could follow up, Gizmo intervened. He used his laser gun to try and shoot them both. This caused the girls to flip back to avoid the attack. Unlike the girls, Gizmo lacked close range combat skills. Thus, he tried to keep them at a distance and use his weapons to attack. This had worked for the most part, but it was only because the girls were distracted by each other along with Gizmo's attacks.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"What?!" Ravager pulled out her communication device. "Father is unconscious. That means…he lost…"

"Oh…" Gizmo lowed his gun slightly. "I'm…sorry?"

"Red X defeated him." Cassandra stated. Pride filled her chest for some odd reason. She shouldn't act like this was her accomplishment after all. Even if it was Phantom behind that mask...

"Damn, you're right." Ravanger growled as she put her communication device and weapon away. "I must retrieve him and put this fight on hold. Someday, we will fight again, though."

"I do not doubt it." Cassandra noted.

"Please, no…" Gizmo groaned. "No more pointy swords…"

"Goodbye for now…" Ravager stated as she ran to the side of the roof and flipped off of it.

With her gone, Cassandra turned to Gizmo. "So…are you still going to go after Fenton?"

"Of course! I'm gonna take burger brain down!" Gizmo exclaimed.

"Tell me, if I kiss you on the cheek, will you leave Fenton alone?" Cassandra questioned.

"Yeah!"

Cassandra sighed. Her mother was right. Men were too easy to manipulate. Very few men could fight off their natural desire for the female form. Of course, Shiva also said that the few men that could fight their instincts were the most annoying and interesting. That was what attracted Cassandra's parents together in the first place.

The dark haired girl really wanted to meet her father, but she knew that this was not the time. She would have to wait until later to see him, though. Her mother deserved some alone time with the man she loved…

* * *

><p>"I really wish you came with me all those years ago…" David Cain mentioned as he lit another cigarette.<p>

"I know…" Shiva nodded as she sat across her fellow assassin on the roof. They both stopped fighting as soon as the others were out of sight. Neither truly had the desire to fight the other anymore. "But…put that damn thing out, they'll kill you."

"Please, you always thought they were sexy." Cain chuckled out smoke.

"Shut up." Nevertheless, Shiva diverted her eyes. It was always this way. No other man could get under her skin like he could.

"Tell me…how is she?" David Cain questioned.

"She is well, but she is…cold." Shiva frowned sadly. "I never got the chance to give her the love she deserved. I haven't seen her give me a smile in years…"

"Oh?" Cain seemed saddened by this.

"But this is the best life she could ever have. No one would accept her if they knew her parentage. Her mere existence is a sin to them." Shiva sighed. "She doesn't have a lot of option, and the Shadows helped provide for her…"

"We could have provided for her." David Cain noted. "I never claimed to be a good man, and I probably would be a piss pore father…without you there. If we were together, though, then we could have given hers something better than what she had."

"Fool. I already sworn myself to the Shadows. If I abandoned them, even if it was for my daughter, they would hunt me down and kill me. The only two options were to keep her or give her to you." Shiva stated.

"…Still…" Cain closed his eyes painfully. "We could have worked something out."

"No, we could not." Shiva shook her head.

"But…I have missed you." Cain noted. "And I am your husband…"

"And I am your wife, and I love you dearly, but it came down to my honor and my daughter. Two things that I could never do without." Shiva explained.

"I know. That's why I love you." David gave out a small laugh.

"Tell me…did you really want to kill Fenton, or did you do it just to get a chance to speak with me?" Shiva questioned. "I know you had earlier chances, but you waited until I was the only one left to interfere."

"You already know the answer to that." David gave her a sad smile. "I've missed you…"

"And I you." Shiva stood and helped her husband up as well. "How about this…My team is going to protect Fenton. Truthfully, I don't cares what happens to him, and I could use you as an excuse for my absence. Why don't we return to where you are staying and enjoy our time together properly?"

David Cain let out a roaring laugh. "Isn't it the man that's supposed to be after sex?"

"So you're saying no?" Shiva teased.

"Of course not. Look at you. Even more beautiful than when I first met you." David Cain complimented.

"Charmer." Shiva noted as she embraced him.

"Isn't that why you fell for me in the first place?" David joked.

"Of course."

* * *

><p>"Arg!" Nocturne growled as he flew out of the smoke of the latest explosion. He was quickly followed by Fenton in the Exorcist suit. The teen was not lying. His armor and weapons seemed impervious to the black power ring's power, and because all of his powers were being amplified by the ring, nothing he did work. "Damn you!"<p>

"**Says the loser!**" Fenton taunted.

Retreating, Nocturne pointed his ring down at the teen's allies. "My ring may not affect you, but it will hurt them! And I know that you won't let others die for you! Stop, or I'll kill them!"

"**Idiot. You act like they're defenseless.**" Fenton chuckled.

"Wha-" Boom! "AH!"

"Got him." Cheshire noted as she lowered the rifle that Fenton had lent her.

"Good." Jinx grinned. "Now all he needs to do is get the ghost down here."

"My arm!" Nocturne gripped his contorted arm and yelled in agony.

"**And that's the weakness of power rings. You need to focus to use it**." Fenton noted. "**With that arm broken, you can't use the ring.**"

"No! I can still fight!" Nocturne argued. He swung his uninjured arm at the teen in hopes of hitting her enemy. His energy attacks may not work, but perhaps physical attacks would work.

"I don't think so…" Walker stated while floating behind the sleep ghost. Normally, physical blows wouldn't work against a black power ring user, but with Nocturne's arm broken, the aura surrounding and shielding the sleep ghost fell. Thus, Walker's kick to the back of Nocturne's head was extremely effective.

Groaning in pain, Nocturne hunched over in pain. He fought to keep himself in the air. The ghost was no longer used to such pain. In fact, he was so stunned that he never noticed as a blast of pink energy was sent flying at him. It crashed into him and cause him to spin up.

"**Hello.**" Fenton greeted as he floated above the sleep ghost. With his right arm, he shoved his ectoplasmic shotgun into Nocturne's stomach. "**And goodbye.**"

Then, in a blaze of red, Nocturne was sent flying down. This was only amplified as Fenton's arm cannon also shot Nocturne in the chest at the same time. The force blasted Nocturne down and into the street below.

"Son of a…" Nocturne groaned as his back hit the concrete and caused it to crack below him.

"**Language.**" Nocturne heard as a foot rammed into his chest.

"AAAHHH!"

"**Now…**" Fenton shoved the barrel of the shotgun to Nocturne's head. "**Where are your friends? I know you didn't come alone.**"

"They…went after the real threat. I thought you would be weakened enough for me to kill easily. I was wrong…" Nocturne grunted out.

"**Real threat? What real threat?**" Fenton questioned. He noted that his assassin bodyguards were now behind him. This scene reminded him of his last fight with Nocturne back in February. This time, though, he had control over his anger and wasn't going to try and kill the sleep ghost.

"You…know him. He's the one that put the hit out on you…" Nocturne stated.

"**Who?!**" Fenton questioned. He could end this now if he could find the client to all these assassins.

"It's…"

* * *

><p>"New trick?" Madame Rogue questioned. "And what is zis new trick?"<p>

"You already know, that I can shift into plasma, but that's not all…" Metamorpho grinned. "I can also change into smoke."

"Smoke?" Madame Rogue scoffed. "And how will that help."

"You'll see…" Metamorpho's limbs began to bleed away into magenta colored smoke.

Trying to stop whatever the strange man was attempting, Madame Rogue's arm stretched and smashed into the creature's face. Like before, though, the blow did not work. This time, the man's head turned into smoke instead of plasma. "How is zis any different?"

"Easy…" Metamorpho's voice sounded through the smoke as it spread throughout the ally. "I can still from some of my limbs. Even if I can't control them all that well, I can still attack."

"But physical blows do nothing on me." Madame Rogue noted.

"I know…but unlike plasma, my smoke form is not completely invulnerable." Metamorpho's right arm formed beyond the edge of where the magenta colored smoke was. "Not only does it take longer to reform, but it's also flammable."

"What…" Madame Rogue's eyes widened as pink fire formed in the palm of the floating arm. "You wouldn't! You'll hurt yourself too!"

"Perhaps…" Metamorpho's voice seemed to be amused. "But I heal quickly, and you don't."

"No!" Madame Rogue tried to lung out of the smoke, but she was too late. Metamorho's hand already threw the fire into the flammable gas.

BOOM!

…

…

…

"Gah…" Metamorpho groaned as he formed again in the smoke. His body was covered in burns and scratches. Not only that, his Disguise Belt was damaged. This form and the belt's ability to hide his ectoplasmic signature. So, he decided to transform back into a human.

"This was not my smartest plan…" Vlad muttered after changing back to normal. Luckily, his human form lacked most of the damage he received in his ghost form. Of course, he couldn't use his ghost powers for a while, but that was the price of victory.

Truth be told, he probably just could have distracted Madame Rogue until Daniel was safe, but he couldn't just do that. If he did that, than Madame Rogue would escape with no proof of her existence. That would mean she would have the chance to attack Daniel again without anyone knowing who she was. This way, Madame Rogue would be stopped and captured.

Looking at the defeated woman and the destroyed alley, Vlad sighed. He would have to leave quickly. The police would be here soon.

Beginning to walk away, Vlad said one last thing to Madame Rogue. "My apologies, but I couldn't let you escape. Anyone that comes after the people I care about must be punished. Even if it causes me a little pain, my pride could not allow you to leave unscathed."

As he went, Vlad decided to return to the Wayne Tech building. Without his powers, he couldn't do much to help Danny. All he could do was hope that the teen would be safe.

* * *

><p>He couldn't move. He couldn't see. He couldn't even see.<p>

'Help!' Danny screamed in his head. 'I need some help! Please! Something's wrong!'

It was strange. One moment, he was standing over Nocturne. The next moment, he's trapped in a sea of darkness. It was completely instantaneous. How could this have happened?

C-crack!

"Gah! Ack! Gasp!" Danny took deep breaths after his helmet was cracked open. "Wha…"

"Hello, Phantom." Freakshow smiled at the trapped teen.

Danny's eyes scanned the area rapidly. Along with Nocturne, Hotep Ra and Aragon were both on the ground unconscious. Not only that, Walker was currently being punched into the ground by Lydia. Cheshire was currently being assaulted by a barrage of Lydia's tattoo creatures. And Jinx…was being choked by a bat tattoo while different snake tattoos held her limbs in place.

"Freakshow…you're behind all of this…" Danny realized.

"Of course!" Freakshow chuckled. "Who else would be behind this?"

"I had absolutely no idea…" Danny admitted.

"Danny!" Jinx cried as she used her energy to blast away the tattoos. She ran towards Danny to try to help him.

"Please…" The pale ringmaster waved the Reality Gauntlet at Jinx. In an instant, she was hit with a massive wave of green energy.

"Jen!" Danny's eyes widened.

"Oh? You care about her? I'll remember that…" Freakshow looked down his long nose at the teen.

Trying to move, Danny realized what had happened. Freakshow had used the Reality Gauntlet to turn his armor into concrete. "Damn, my armor! Do you know how long it took to make this?"

"I know how easy it was to break it." Freakshow shrugged. "Oh, Lydia? Are you done with the riffraff?"

Lydia nodded as she stood in front of Walker's unconscious body. The tattoos that attacked Cheshire returned to her body.

"How…" Danny looked at all the unconscious bodies. "How did you do all this? You beat two black power ring users and two assassins?"

"I have learned a lot about the Reality Gauntlet, one of which is while Nekron the Reaper is immune to the power of the gauntlet, the ring users are not. And with this weapon, I can make their stupid rings useless." Freashow gloated as he began to pace around the trapped boy. "Through the gauntlet, I have achieved great things. My mind is sharper than a supercomputer. Lydia is stronger than an S-rank ghost. And now, I have the key to unlocking the absolute powers of the Reality Gauntlet."

"What?" Danny questioned.

"First…" Freakshow raised his gauntlet covered arm over his head. A dome of blazing energy appeared around them. "A last line of defense in case Lydia runs into too much trouble…which I doubt, but still, better safe than sorry."

"You-Mhm mhmhh!" Danny's words were stopped when Freakshow covered his mouth with gooey ectoplasm.

"Shh!" Freakshow placed a finger of his own lips. "It's time for me to gloat, so be quiet for a little while."

Danny was silent.

"I've had a long time to think and plan while constantly moving and looking for the access code for the Reality Gauntlet." Freakshow explained. "Especially when you resurrected Dr. Fate to chase after me. Thanks for that by the way, she's been on my tail for months. Been really fun…"

"Mhm…" Danny rolled his eyes.

"That was why I had to keep moving. Why I couldn't do anything to find out what the access code was." Freakshow sighed dramatically. "But then, I realized something. The only person who would know with certainty is its creator, and there was no way I could get to Vandal Savage. However! I realized something else. There was a person that knew more about ghosts, how they work, and how ectoplasmic technology works more than I do…You."

Danny stared at Freakshow as he struggled against the concrete holding him. He tried to go ghost but failed. It seems that Freakshow also disabled his powers temporarily.

"But how could I possibly get to you in order to find out how to get the access code? You were either hidden away in Amity Park, or running around hidden with your little team." Freakshow waved his arms around dramatically. "But then, I heard about your little conference. Judging from your past actions, I figured that you would have a few backup plans to protect you, so I came up with a plan of my own. I ordered a hit on you offering one hundred million dollars in cash.

"Of course, the Shadows would never take the contract from me, but the freelancers did." Freakshow laughed. "And that was all I needed."

"Mh Mhve ma mhuesmh!" Danny tried to speak.

"Ah…what?" Freakshow removed the goo from Danny's mouth.

"Why assassins? What if they killed me?" Fenton questioned.

"Please! I've reviewed all your known fights and conflicts. You came back from the dead multiple times for God's sake! I knew that only deadly force would cause you to use all your resources. Anything else would be a mere annoyance." Freakshow stated.

"You…" Danny growled.

"Danny!"

"Fenton!"

"Friend!"

"Oops…" Freakshow sighed as he saw the various people outside his barrier. It appears Young Justice managed to escape and track them down. Not only that, they had visitors in the form of Wulf, Cujo, and Dr. Fate. "Looks like I took too much time gloating. Let's get this done."

"Wait-" Danny's words fell on deaf ears.

Freakshow placed the Reality Gauntlet on Fenton's head and everything blared before the halfa's eyes.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Memories blurred through his eyes. He watched his entire life fly by his eyes. Everything was there from his birth to the struggles he was having today.

"Interesting…The Endless? When I'm Master of all Reality, I'll visit them…" Freakshow mumbled. "Oh! Clockwork! That could work, but I doubt I could catch him as well. Hmm…Already know most of that…Wait…That still exists?! Every record says it was destroyed a long time ago!"

"Ah…" Danny gasped out as Freakshow finally let go. "What…what did you see…What memory did you take?"

"You'll find out soon enough…" Freakshow snapped his fingers with his gauntlet covered hand.

BOOM!

The barrier around them exploded out and swirled around the street. This blasted all the people that came to help Danny away. In an instant, the street was just a bunch of rubble and unconscious bodies.

"Come Lydia." Freakshow stated to his partner. As usual, the woman obeyed silently.

"W-wait…" Danny groaned out as the concrete around him crumbled and he was freed. "Y-you don't have to do this. It's not too late…"

"Ha hahaha ha!" Freakshow laughed and sneered at the downed halfa. "You're trying to reason with me?!"

"Yes…" Danny groaned and forced himself to stand. "I know what it's like to have your family choose ghosts over you. I also know what it's like to lose people you love. It's hard, but you can't give up. And if you stop this madness, then you can have a second chance."

"Second chance?"

"Yes, everyone deserves a second chance."

"…Moron. I don't want a second chance. I want what I deserve." Freakshow scoffed. "That's why I'm letting you live today. I want you to see as I become Master of all Reality and destroy everything you care about. Oh! And thank you for the bit of knowledge you gave me. Without it, I would never be able to accomplish my goals."

"No, wait!" Danny stumbled and fell forward. "I have to ask…Can you use the Reality Gauntlet to bring people back to life?"

"Wouldn't you like to know? Gahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" And with that, they were gone.

"Arg…" Danny fell on his face in exhaustion.

"Danny!" The halfa heard Dr. Fate's voice before everything faded to black.

* * *

><p>"…we won't be able to catch him." Vision's voice brought Danny back to the land of consciousness.<p>

"I know." Batman's voice called out as well. "Even Dr. Fate has a hard time tracking him down. We will have to wait for him to act again."

"That's what I'm afraid of…"

"Gah…" Danny groaned and forced his eyes opened. "Vison…Batman…What happened?"

"Danny, you're awake." Vision instantly rushed to his side. Her voice was filled with worry and concern.

"You were out for a few hours." Batman noted. "We managed to capture Cheetah, Metallo, Deadshot, and this new villainess Madame Rogue. Everyone else escaped."

"Even the black power ring users?" Danny questioned.

"Yes, they dissappered." Vision sighed. "And we think that Shiva retrieved the other Shadows assassins."

"Deathstroke?"

"Gone as well. Along with his young accomplish." Batman answered.

"Oh…Wait, am I still in New York? Why are you two here?" Danny questioned. "I thought both the Council and League were going to stay out of this because of political reasons."

"That went out the window when the reporters saw ghosts and League members at the spot where Freakshow attacked you." Vision sighed. "Both groups are in a shit storm of bad publicity. All our efforts proved to be for nothing, but at least you're alive. I just wish we went all out. If we did that, then we would captured everyone and kept you completely safe."

"If you did that, the assassins would have just retreated and Freakshow would have tried something else." Danny groaned. "I had to deal with this eventually. We did the best we could. At least now, people will know not to mess with me again."

"If that was your goal, then it was accomplished." Batman frowned. "But we have bigger problems to deal with now. What memory did Freakshow take from you?"

"I don't know." Danny sighed. "But it was important. I think it can help him unlock the full power of the Reality Gauntlet."

"That's not good." Vision stated. "But…we will have to deal with that later. Right now, I have to go speak with a man that was stupid enough to blow himself up to win a fight…"

"Er…okay…" Danny watched as she exited the room.

With her gone, Batman turned to Danny. "It seems that Young Justice failed in their mission."

"I'm alive. That's enough." Danny shrugged.

"Not to them." Batman noted.

"Gah…Idiots…" Danny sighed.

"They will get over it, though." Batman stated. "What I'm worried about is the Shadows interest in protecting you."

"They've always been interested in Fenton. Remember the kidnapping?" Danny mentioned. "I suppose they just want to make sure I can keep inventing."

"But they want you to do it for them…" Batman frowned.

"I won't." Danny shrugged.

"Can you promise that? What about Jinx? Will she convince you to help them?" Batman questioned.

"I doubt it." Danny rolled his eyes. "I know what you think of teenagers, but I do have a girlfriend."

"For now…but life changes quickly." Batman walked to the door. "Oh, and one more thing before I leave...Red X."

"...Yeah..." Danny decided to tell a modified version of the truth. "I still had the suit, but he wasn't always an android. That's a new development. I just wanted extra protection. The other guy is-"

"You." Batman glared.

"...How did you know?" Danny questioned.

"I have a lot of ways to find these things out. You think I don't monitor the conversations at the Cave, or watch the fight patterns of the Red X suit." Batman noted. "I'm not stupid, Daniel. But I know why you used the suit, so I stayed silent. I don't like being lie to, but Red X saved lives, so I can forgive it. But if you're going to create an A.I. for Red X, be careful. It could end badly."

"I know." Danny nodded.

"Good. Get some rest then." Batman stated. "I think that you're going to need it."

* * *

><p>"…" Danny opened his eyes again after a few hours of trying and failing to sleep. Batman had long since left, and he was alone…well, not really. Someone was there, but he couldn't see them. "You can come out. I know you're there. You're not hiding very well."<p>

"I know. I just wanted to see if you would notice." Ra's Al Ghul smiled as he stepped out of the shadows. "And you did. Once again, you impress, Mr. Fenton."

"Henri Ducard." Danny frowned at the man.

"You remember that name?" Ra's chuckled. "I thought you would have forgotten it by now."

"Yeah, well, I was kidnapped. People tend to remember that crap." Danny snorted.

"Fair enough." Ra's nodded.

"So, why are you here? Are you going to kidnap me again?" Danny questioned.

"No, no…" Ra's shook his head. "I just came to talk."

"Oh?"

"Yes, you see, I did send my assassins to protect you."

"Oh, don't act like I owe you anything." Danny rolled his eyes.

"I won't. I just wanted to point out why." Ra's noted. "You are a very intelligent and influential individual. Everyone knows that you have connections to both the League and the ghost Council. All that happened today was just a dance to avoid pointing it out."

"I know." Danny shrugged. "What's your point?"

"I am offering to extend your connections." Ra's stated. "I have very powerful friends that all have an interest in you."

"Do you?' Danny already knew this.

"Yes, and we would like to offer you a chance to explore different options." Ra's noted. "There will be no strings attached, of course. All we want is…an acquaintanceship."

"An acquaintanceship, huh…" Danny paused. Vision did say that leading Savage's group on would be for the best…Plus, there was one thing he wanted from them. "Tell me, does your group want to stop Freakshow?"

"It is currently our second main objective." Ra's noted.

"I see…" Danny grinned. "Then maybe we can help each other a bit."

* * *

><p><strong>All the pieces have been placed. It's time for them to all come together. The final trek of the story has begun. Good thing you won't have to wait too long for the next chapter. Next Monday, the next chapter will be out, and there will be a special appearance I think everyone wants to see. The return of Clockwork.<strong>

**If anyone noticed the changes in the relationship between Lady Shiva and David Cain, it was intentional. I wanted to do something different.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	27. Advice

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning." Albert Einstein

* * *

><p>Chapter 27: "Advice"<p>

(Thursday-December 23, 2010)

Tick-tock!

Tick-tock!

Tick-tock!

The sound of the clocks didn't bother the ghost as he sat in a cushioned chair that was seated in front of a table. The blue skinned man wearing a purple cloak took a sip of the tea on the table. His red eyes turned to the huge space of mirrors and clocks before him. Idly, the man scratched his chest, right above the space that appeared to be the inside workings of a clock.

The man's form suddenly shifted from that a man in his prime to an elderly man with a long white beard. He turned to face the entrance to his home. "Hello, Daniel."

"Clockwork." Phantom spoke as he faced the man that saved him from becoming a monster. Without Clockwork, Phantom would have become Dark Dan, a future evil version of himself that destroyed the world once already. "It's good to see you. How have you been?"

"I've been fine." Clockwork shifted from an old man to a young boy with buck teeth. "And you?"

"Not all that great." Phantom sighed. "It's been a very trying couple of months."

"I know." Clockwork gave him a look of sympathy. "I am sorry that I couldn't help, but…"

"Being the Master of Time means that you can't interfere whenever you want." Phantom nodded. "I know. I don't blame you. That's why I haven't come to you. Even for advice. Because I knew you wouldn't be able to tell me too much. Now, though…I need to at least try. There's too much at stake for me not too."

"Yes…there is, isn't there?" Clockwork once again aged into an adult man. "Savage's group and Freakshow…Those are some mighty big threats."

"Yes, and my powers are getting worse…" Phantom held up a glowing green hand. Now, though, the ectoplasm was dull and fading away. It was barely visible. "I can't fix it, and my ectoplasm boosts aren't helping as much anymore."

"I suppose they wouldn't, would they?" Clockwork sighed. "They aren't fixing the root of the problem. You just keep dancing around it all…"

"That's because I don't know what to do." Phantom looked desperate.

"I know." Clockwork nodded knowingly.

"Please…I need help." Phantom stated. "I need some assurance and some guidance"

"Come…" Clockwork gestured to the seat across from him. "I have already prepared a cup a tea for you."

"Of course you would…" Phantom chuckled lightly as he walked to the table.

"Exactly." Clockwork smiled. "That's because I know everything."

* * *

><p>"This is going to be a problem…" Vision frowned at the giant dry erase board in front of her. On it, was all the details of the two biggest threats the ghosts and Amity Park has as of right now. "I have absolutely no idea how to deal with these two threats at the same time."<p>

"That is a huge problem." Plasmius sighed. "They will both be moving at the same time and will act soon. I know it."

"It doesn't help that we don't know what they will do for certain." Fright Knight sighed and leaned back away from the table.

"But we have to stop them!" Spirit argued. "If either of them wins, it will be a disaster."

"What do you suggest then?" Dusk turned to the female halfa.

Vision's meeting hall was their current location. The large space gave them a lot of room to work, but nowhere to go with what they knew. A meeting of the Council of the Elite would be held soon, but they would first need a strategy to work with. It might be strange that two children were there for this, but they had an invested interest in this.

"I don't know!" Spirit glared. "But we have to something."

"Let's just go over everything again…" Plasmius rose from his spot at the table to approach the board with all the information. "Our most recent issue…Freakshow has learned how to fully utilize the Reality Gauntlet, but has yet to do so."

"Why, though?" Dusk questioned. "Did Mentor's information fail him?"

"No." Fright Knight stated with upmost certainty. "Lord Phantom's knowledge would not fail Freakshow. Especially with the way Freakshow reacted to it. He just hasn't had the chance to use it."

"That leads to the question of what the information was." Vision frowned beneath her veil. "What did Danny know that could unlock the full power of the Reality Gauntlet?"

"Is it possible to look in his mind and see what's missing?" Spirit suggested. "I mean, the Martian uses a mind link all the time."

"That's only in the top layer. Messing with memories can be dangerous. If Freakshow wanted to, he could have shattered Daniel's mind. Luckily, he decided against it." Plasmius was grateful for that at least. "He wants Daniel to see his potential victory…"

"That won't happen." Fright Knight shook his head. "We will stop him. Maybe we can jump My Liege's memory?"

"The memory was stolen. It's no longer there." Vision sighed. "That means, that we have no idea what the information was. It could even be the Mirror of Memories."

"The what?" Dusk questioned.

"Oh, that…It's a mirror created a long time ago that can bring the memory of a deceased person to life." Spirit remembered her adventures surrounding the mirror. "We faked its destruction, and Vision hid it."

"That means he would have to get more information out of Vision…" Dusk rationalized.

"If that was an option, he would have done it already." Vision stated. "He knows that I'm always prepared. Besides…even if he found out where it was, he would never, and I mean neeeeeeeeeeeever be able to get it. It's an impossibility where I hid it."

"Then that's out of the equation." Plasmius stroked his chin. "Without that, though, we have no leads."

"We have one…but that's the second problem." Dusk noted. "Ra's Al Ghul and his allies."

"Freakshow is definitely an enemy of everyone." Fright Knight nodded. "They'll be feeding us information through Danny Fenton, but at the same time, they're blackmailing Danny Phantom."

"They threatened to attack if any information is revealed to the League, right?" Spirit questioned.

"Yes, but I get the feeling that if we don't intervene, there won't be a Justice League after this." Vision sighed. "And despite our difference, they are good people."

"That leads to the second threat…" Plasmius pointed to all the information they had on Vandal Savage's group. "Considering everything we know, they are completely ready to attack Amity Part in an all-out assault."

"Very true…" The Fright Knight looked unhappily at the board. "Assassins, super villains, dark wizards, failed ghouls, advanced technology, whatever it is that Ivo, Klarion, and the Brain made…plus, Dusk's Matter Make ability."

"I'm sorry." Dusk bowed his head in shame.

"No one's blaming you." Spirit shrugged. "But it's a fact we have to deal with."

"But my ability is far from perfect." Dusk rationalized. "They can't make living thing and they can't make weapons that would need a long time to use. My weapons decompose quickly when not in direct contact with me."

"Nekromancers won't need a long time to do a massive amount of damage. During the war, we outnumbered them by more than 10 to 1 and we still lost a lot a lot of people." Vision noted. "And this time, we won't have the number or raw power factors to take care of them. There is no way to convince all the ghosts to risk their lives for one city, and that includes the Spectre. And we need Colossus and the Ghost Writer in the Ghost Zone to scare away any other threats. If what Freakshow wants is in the Ghost Zone, then we need to be prepared."

"So, we lack an army and we lack our top aces." Plasmius sighed. "Who do we have?"

"Pandora, Torch, and Frostbite will definitely fight." Spirit stated. "As long as we leave their followers out of it. Wulf and Cujo will fight no matter what. Then there's the five of us plus Danny…"

"That's eleven." Fright Knight noted.

"And your friends?" Dusk questioned. "Then the Red Huntress and Solomon Grundy…"

"Can we completely rely on them, though?" Plasmius questioned. "Your friends are young, Miss Gray has quit before, and Solomon Grundy has never fought with us before."

"That is a tough question to answer…Dani, what do you think?" Vision turned to her adopted daughter.

"I…don't know what they'd do." Spirit frowned. "But I can find out."

* * *

><p>"I think that you're going about your power problem all wrong." Clockwork mentioned as his form shifted into an old man.<p>

"I know, but how should I handle it? What can I do to make it better?" Phantom questioned after taking a sip of tea.

"Now that's the question, isn't it?" Clockwork chuckled. "Unfortunately, it is a question that I cannot answer directly."

"What can you tell me?" Phantom asked.

"I can remind you of what you know." Clockwork stated.

"Joy…"

"What originally had your powers on the fritz. Way back during our conversation in June?" Clockwork inquired.

"My powers were reacting the choices that I made. My inner conscious thought that I had abandoned my obsession when I sacrificed so much to end the war." The halfa answered. "And it only got worse when I decided to join Young Justice. I was distancing myself from everything that matters to me, but when then Young Justice grew to matter to me, and everything got better until…"

"Until?" Clockwork shifted into a young child again.

"The training simulation…I lost everything." Phantom sighed. "Or…I thought I did, and my subconscious is reacting to it."

"And how have you tried to make it better?" Clockwork questioned.

"The ectoplasmic boosts have helped; but they're influence on my powers have stopped working, and the sides effects have become even more terrible." Phantom clenched his stomach. He could remembering throwing up terribly the last time he used the boosts. He felt like he was dying again.

"So you used physical means to try and fix a mental and emotional problem?" Clockwork raised an eyebrow.

"No, it was meant to buy time for me to find a way to fix everything, but…" Phantom closed his eyes. "Nothing has worked. I've tried everything I could think of. Hell, I even looked into different religions. But there's been no progress."

"Indeed…" Clockwork shifted into a fully grown man. "The road to mental recovery is a long and tiresome one. It often takes years to fix. Many people have spent their entire lives seeking the forgiveness and redemption you seek."

"Forgiveness…" Phantom rubbed the back of his head. "That's as good of word as any, I guess. I just want to forget that I've failed so much."

Clockwork shook his head. "That is not something you can just forget. You must reach deep within and find the true problem."

"And how do people do that?"

"Years of meditation, counseling, and prayer." Clockwork sipped his tea.

"I don't have that kind of time for all that…" Phantom noted. "I'm in life and death situation every week. If I can't use my powers, I'm going to die…or worse, get someone else killed."

"I know…" Clockwork nodded. "But…there is another way people can reach their inner soul and search for themselves. In fact, it is a way that you are very familiar with."

"And that is?"

"Deep and powerful emotional suffering that would shake your very core."

* * *

><p>"Er…What the hell is this?" Nyx questioned from her spot in Vision's garden. "Why are we all here?"<p>

"Secret." Greta spoke up.

"…I'm officially sick of that joke…" Nyx sighed.

"Quit complaining." Raven mentioned as she continued to read. "It's not like you had anything better to do."

"Yes, I did! I was planning to pain 'Nyx rulez' on the left side of my house." Nyx frowned.

"Wouldn't that tip off your mom about who would do it?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yeah, well…Shut up. What was your plans for today?" Nyx glared at the ghost with a parrot on his shoulder.

"I was going to learn the ancient art of Bushido." Youngblood stated. "That means way of the samurai."

"…I have corrected you on the stupidest things people could ever think of, yet when you start speaking Japanese, you get it perfectly." Polly sighed. "Why?"

"Cause it's a funny word!" Youngblood grinned. "Bu-sheeeeeeeee-dooooooooowwwwwwwww! It's fun to say."

"Sometimes I hate being your parrot…"

"Gah…" Solomon Grundy grunted. "Grundy finds this funny, but Grundy doesn't know why they are all at Grundy's spot."

"I agree." Red Huntress turned to Spirit. "Dani, why are we all here?"

"…Mom asked me to talk to you." Spirit stated.

"Oh?" Red Huntress frowned. This was strange. Vision was the kind of woman that liked to handle things herself. Why would she send her adoptive daughter to talk on her behalf? The teenage girl doubted that it would be good news. "And why is that?"

"I…I wanted to talk about what's going to happen." Spirit noted.

"About what's going to happen?" Raven slowly lowered her book.

Spirit explained what was happened. She went over every little detail. How Freakshow could attack any day. How Vandal Savage's group was responsible for so much of their strife and were threatening to kill them all. How all this was likely to happen at the same time and there was a good chance that things wouldn't go well.

"…Holy hell…" Nyx muttered.

"That…is a lot to take in." Raven mumbled.

"I know. But that's the truth and you need to hear it." Spirit sighed.

"…So, we're like literally going to be in a fight we most likely won't win?" Youngblood questioned.

"Yeah…In some ways, this may even be worse than the war." Spirit acknowledged. "The threat is really only threatening Amity Park. The regular ghosts won't care enough to help. As of right now, we have about eleven people willing to fight in the upcoming battle."

"And you want to see if we'll help." Red Huntress reasoned.

"Yep, that about covers it." Spirit gave them a sad smile.

"Secret…" Greta looked down at the ground. She trembled in fear at the thought of the threats ahead. This wasn't like with her brother. These people wouldn't be frozen in fear by her mere presence.

"So…Sister wants Grundy to help her fight?" Grundy questioned.

"Yes…"

"That a stupid question!" Grundy jumped to his feet. "Of course Grundy will help Sister and her family!"

"Grundy…"

"Sister and Phantom were the ones that saved Grundy!" Grundy acknowledged. "Without them, Grundy would still be trapped and suffering! That means Grundy owes Sister and Phantom everything! If they ask Grundy to fight, then Grundy will fight!"

"But…It could cause you to be captured and taken into custody by the League. They would take you to Belle Reve, and we think that Savage's group is in control of that prison. If you're captured…then you could be taken and brainwashed." Spirit rationalized.

"It would be worth it!" Grundy shouted. "Grundy will protect something for once! Grundy is tired of crushing everything! Grundy wants to be a hero too!"

Spirit gave him a smile. "Thank you, Grundy…"

"Secret." Greta walked over to Spirit's side and gently took her hands. "Seeeeeeeecret. Secret."

"…" Despite only saying one word, Greta's words rang clear. 'I may be scared, but I'm with you until the end. Let's fight.' "Thank you, Greta."

The halfa girl then looked at the others. "Well?"

"…You're asking a lot here, Dani." Raven stated. "I mean…We've faces our fair share of danger, but this is almost certain death. Most of us need to talk to our parents first."

"That's why I asked Wulf to bring them here. Wulf?" Spirit looked to the side.

Wulf walked into their field of vision. Behind him were three figures…

"Valerie Gray!" Damon Gray, a tall African American man with broad shoulder and glasses, shouted as he walked up to his daughter. "You are not going to let you join this suicide mission! I let you do this Red Huntress thing because I saw how guilty you were, but I can't let you throw your life away!"

"But, Dad…"

Raven was also having similar problems. "Mom…"

"Rachel…" Angela Roth sighed and looked down at her daughter. "Please…I know you're a headstrong girl, but please…don't do this. I thought Amity Park was safe, but it isn't. We need to leave. Let's return to Azarath."

"Azarath…" Raven's eyes widened. She missed her home dimension, and truthfully was terrified over the thought of fighting Savage's group. After what happened when the adults disappeared, they probably knew about her heritage and would try to kill her to avoid the end of the world.

Seeing what was happening to her friends, Nyx looked up at her own mother. "So…are you going to forbid me from fighting?"

"Nyx…Klarion will most likely be there. He will try to kidnap you and take you away from me." Pandora rationalized and knelt down so she didn't tower over her daughter. "I can't let that happen. I may have to fight, but I can't risk you. You are my greatest treasure."

"Well…Fighting in death match doesn't sound very fun anyway…" Nyx frowned.

Turning to his friend, Youngblood confusedly asked, "Why did you bring their parents? Isn't that counterproductive? Now, they won't be allowed to fight."

"I needed to do this. I need to know who is with me completely, and who isn't." Spirit eyed her friend. "So…are you, Chuck? Are you willing to risk your secrets?"

"…" Youngblood looked away in shame.

"Rack…You're asking him to give up his obsession." Polly stated. "That's more than you can ask from any ghost."

"I know…" Spirit smiled. "That's why I'm giving him a chance to back out."

"…I'm sorry…" Youngblood began to step back. "But I have a promise to keep to Mommy…"

"I see…" Spirit nodded sadly.

"…We got two…" Wulf mentioned.

"Secret." Greta smiled.

"Yes…" Grundy sat next to the halfa girl and tried to comfort her. "Grundy will help. That is all sister needs."

"I know, and…thank you." Spirit gave him a small smile. "I…I was just hoping that my friendships were more than just trivial things. This was the final test, but it seems that they all failed…I guess Raven was right after all…people don't really change."

* * *

><p>"Ah…Savage's group…" Clockwork stroked his long white beard. "I remember that caveman…"<p>

"That's right…you've been around a long time…" Phantom blinked. "Oh…sorry, I didn't mean to insult you…"

"Hahahaha! It's fine! I was formed a long time ago." Clockwork smiled at the memory. "I was the second ghost formed after all…right after the Reaper…"

"Huh…" Phantom didn't know that. "So…you know a lot about Savage, then?"

"I do. I can give you his entire history if you want." Clockwork shrugged. "There aren't a whole lot of points in history that he wasn't a part of in some way. Telling you about all that wouldn't be interfering really, so I can tell you a story or two if you want. I don't think they will help all the much in this situation, though."

"It's fine." Phantom rubbed the back of his head. "Truth be told, if I learn too much about this guy, I'll probably sympathize with him…like with Agent Z. I can't let that happen while I'm fighting him. I need to fight him with everything I've got…which is not much, really…"

"I see…" Clockwork shifted into a child once more. "But you do know that understanding your enemy is important to defeating them?"

"I do, but…pitying them will only get me killed." Phantom noted.

"Perhaps…" Clockwork hummed. "But that has not stopped you from learning more about the enemies that are in Torch's prison."

"…That's different." Phantom frowned. "They aren't an immediate threat, and they aren't threatening to kill everyone I love."

"Not now, but they once did." Clockwork rationalized.

"Fine! I probably made a mistake." Phantom growled. "I decided to sympathize with my enemies. It was just hard to get over Agent Z's death. I mean…I could have easily turned out like him…"

"I know, Daniel." Clockwork sighed. "But what you did wasn't a mistake. There are multiple sides to a story. Trying to learn them is admirable."

"Thank you…" Phantom nodded slowly. "…Tell me…If those ghosts had different circumstances in their stories, would they have turned out differently?"

"Of course." Clockwork answered. "It is a lot like you."

"So…we're all just products of circumstance?" Phantom gained a sad look.

"No, no, not at all." Clockwork shook his head. "Many times, it's how we react to circumstances that mattered, but if those ghosts had different circumstances, they definitely would be different right now."

"I see…" Phantom looked at the cup of tea in his hands. "So…Maybe understanding Savage and his group more would help?"

"Maybe…" Clockwork shifted into an old man once again. "Or maybe it is someone else you need to understand better. Look more into their pasts and who they are."

"I don't understand? Who do I need to understand more?" Phantom blinked.

"Everyone."

* * *

><p>Dusk had to admit…he was a strange opponent to combat against. This was not a thought of pride. No, it was a thought of fact.<p>

"Gah…" Dusk grunted what appeared to be his twin attack him. The clone looked like him completely. This included his new cloths.

Dusk's upper body was now covered in a white zip-up hoody with black lining and stitches and a black shirt underneath. On the left side of the hoody was the famous flaming DP the Phantom Family was known for. The boy's pants were the opposite of the hoody. It was black with white lining that went down to his black and white shoes.

The force of his twin's last blow knocked down the boy's hood to reveal his short white hair with green highlights. "Damn…"

"Are you done, Dusk?" Jason Blood questioned. He stood outside of the magical circle he drew around the halfa. The purpose of the magic circle was to create a copy for the original to fight.

"No…" Dusk shook his head. "Not yet…"

The clone lunged forward. Burst Gauntlets were blazing as he moved. The original Dusk managed to dodge the blow. He then placed his hands on the side of the Burst Gauntlet that was sent at him. He then focused his energy and tried to deconstruct the Matter Make weapon.

He failed.

"Gah!" Dusk grunted as he was punched back by the other Burst Gauntlet. "Crap…"

"Are you alright, Dusk?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Yes." Dusk answered.

"Hmm…"

After the meeting at Vision's domain, Dusk asked to speak with Jason Blood. Despite not knowing much about magic, the halfa knew that Jason Blood was quite knowledgeable in the subject. Thus, he requested that Blood use his magic to help him train.

When asked what the training was for, the ghoul answered simply. He needed to practice against his own power. If he could learn how to decompose Matter Make weapons that weren't his directly, then he could fight off the Necromancers made through his abilities.

Jason Blood was quick to agree.

"You know…we could use your help, Sir Blood." Fright Knight noted as they watched the boy continue to fight off the copy.

"I know…" Jason Blood sighed. "But I don't think that I can help."

"Why?" Fright Knight questioned.

"…You have seen only a small fraction of the demons I have contained." Blood mentioned. "If Savage's group, or any other villain, managed to get a hold on all of them, they'd be near unstoppable. It would take an army to defeat them all."

"But won't Amity Park's destruction hinder your mission to keep them captured?" Fright Knight questioned. "You could no longer hide under the ectoplasmic signal this city sends out."

"I would just return to Gotham. I have seen many cities fall. This is nothing new." Blood mentioned.

"You are a cold man, Blood." Fright Knight stated. "Do you care nothing for your students?"

"Of course I do, but…I have learned not to get too attached to mortal things and people anymore." Blood mentioned. "I am cursed to walk this world forever, but others are not. I cannot afford to grow attached."

"I see…" Fright Knight turned back toward the boy that was training.

"…Please don't judge me too harshly." Blood sighed. "It brings me no joy to watch things rot away and die…"

"Then that's all the more reason to fight for them." Fright Knight mentioned. "Even if things look hopeless, my new family will fight, and we will win because we look out for each other and never give up. That is what it means to be a member of the Phantom Family."

"That's an odd name for it…" Blood snorted. "You named your family after a child?"

"He was the one that brought us all together, and he is the one that shall get us through this trial." Fright Knight responded.

"You have a lot of faith in one boy." Blood noted.

"I do." Fright Knight eyed Blood. "As I'm sure you once had in King Arthur."

"…You really know how to pluck at the heartstrings, my friend." Blood sighed. "But my answer is still the same. I'm sorry."

"So am I…"

* * *

><p>"And what about Freakshow?" Phantom questioned.<p>

"What about him?" Clockwork changed into a child.

"What can I do about him?" Phantom asked.

"Absolutely nothing." Clockwork stated before sipping his tea.

"Nothing?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"Nope." Clockwork nodded. "You can do nothing to prevent him from acting."

"Yes I can. I just need to learn what knowledge he took." Phantom answered. "Please…I need a hint."

"I cannot give you a hint…Or I should say that it would not matter if I gave you a hint. If that way was taken away, he would just find another way." Clockworck shrugged.

"So…This is meant to happen?" Phantom questioned.

"…It is hard to explain, Daniel." Clockwork sighed. "You see, there are consequences for meddling with reality, time, and universe. Remember, Nekron and the ghosts are a consequence of the Reality Gauntlet's use. Tell me, did you think that my intervention with your future was consequence free?"

"But…the war…"

"That was going to happen no matter what. That was not the consequence of my actions." Clockwork changed into an adult. His features actually showed worry. "My actions saved the world from utter destruction. That is not something that can be forgotten so easily. There must be compensation…"

"What do you mean?" Phantom frowned. "What's going to happen?"

"That's the wrong question, Daniel." Clockwork aged into an old man. "The right question is…What's not going to happen?"

* * *

><p>"Come on, Valerie…" Damon Gray mumbled as he dragged Valerie to Wulf.<p>

"Go home?" Wulf questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, take us home, please." Damon nodded.

"We're coming too…" Angela Roth spoke up. "I will need to prepare for our journey home."

"And I believe it is time for us to go home…" Pandora sighed. "Let us return home, Nyx."

Spirit looked away as they left. She didn't want to watch this. The halfa girl already had her answer to who would stand by her, so she would leave. It was time to tell Vision-

"No!" Red Huntress escaped her father's grasp. "I won't leave."

"Valerie!" Damon frowned. "This is not up for debate. I am your father, and-"

"No, Daddy! This is my decision, not yours!" Valerie's visor fell to reveal her face. "Every day, I regret not helping in the war. I abandoned the only people who had my back no matter what. I can't make up for that, but I can make sure that I never do that again."

"Valerie…"

"It may not seem like it, but I'm not a little kid anymore!" Valerie argued. "I can make my own decisions. This may be dangerous, but it's something I have to do. If I don't, Amity Park, my friends, and…Danny will be killed. I can't let happen to him. I love him, and I will do whatever I can to protect him."

"…You really love him?" Damon questioned.

"I do." Valerie said with certainty.

"Well…Damn…" Damon sighed. "You don't know how much you sound like your mother…And I could never say no to her either…"

"Daddy…"

Seeing this, Raven turned to her mother. "Mom…I don't want to go back to Azarath."

"W-what? But it will be safe." Angela argued.

"Maybe, but I'll be miserable." Raven's hood hid her eyes, but for once her monotonous voice trembled. "I see how people look at me. They think I'm a monster. I miss the peacefulness of Azarath, but…At least here, I have friends that accept me for who I am. They may be super annoying, but they don't judge me for things I can't control. I can't give that up and let them die without trying to help."

"Rachel…" Angela teared up.

"So please…" Raven looked up to reveal tear of her own. This strong emotional response…the first real one she had allowed herself to feel in a long time besides annoyance and anger… caused a bit of magic to burst out and kill a few of the plants. The girl quickly wiped her tears and gained control of her emotions. "Please let me help them."

Pandora frowned at the scene and turned to Nyx. "No. I won't allow it."

"…I don't think I'm that good of a person." Nyx crossed her arms. "I'm annoying, chaotic, sarcastic, patronizing, and can be pretty stupid. I think that's where Klarion's influence comes in. But…I do know that I don't want anyone to die. Especially my friends…"

"But you could die!"

"I could." Nyx shrugged. "But there's nothing you can do to stop me from going. I will escape and go to Amity Park to help my friends. I've never been the type of person that can be contained."

"…I see…It is good to see that you do have at least a little bit of me in you…" Pandora smiled lightly.

"Wait…So…" Spirit blinked at the three of them. "You'll help."

"Of course." Red Huntress smiled.

"Yes." Raven nodded.

"You couldn't stop me if you tried." Nyx smirked.

Spirit smiled at her friend. She was grateful for their loyalty.

"That's three more." Wulf noted.

"Rack! Nope, it's four." Polly's voice rang out as Youngblood stepped forward.

"Chuck?" Spirit questioned.

"I…I'm pretty selfish, huh?" Youngblood rubbed his arm and looked down in shame. "I just…I promised my Mommy…But I don't think that the promise is worth it if I lose what I care about…So I'll fight, and hopefully…I won't have to go all out…"

"I see…" Spirit smiled. "And…Is this your final answer, right? Because I don't think Vision will let you bail out later."

"…I think the kids have made their choice." Pandora noted. "I shall support it."

"Yes…I will let my daughter fight…" Angela wiped away her tears. "I can't stand in her way…"

Damon stared at his daughter. "Are you sure?"

"I have never been so sure about something in my life." Red Huntress's visor slid up once more.

"…Okay…" Damon nodded. "But promise me you'll be safe."

"I promise."

* * *

><p>"You have me worried, Clockwork." Phantom sighed and sat back in his chair. "I was looking for more hopeful answers."<p>

"I apologize, but what I speak if truth." Clockwork turned into a child. "The thing is…the truth hurts."

"I know." Phantom closed his eyes in thought.

"But…the truth also sets you free." Clockwork mentioned. "Keeping secrets from you allies will never help you."

"…And what secrets should I reveal." Phantom opened his eyes and frowned. "After all, there is a mole connected to Young Justice. How do I know that Savage's group won't get a hold of that information as well?"

"You don't. Just ask yourself…who do you trust most? Who do you think deserves to know the secrets you have worked so hard to keep hidden?" Clockwork noted.

"…I trust all of my teammates." Phantom stated.

"Then why don't you tell them?" Clockwork asked.

"Because it's personal, and it hurts me to think too much about it." Phantom admitted. "Besides, it's not like all of them go through their own personal tragedies with me either."

"Very true…" Clockwork turned into an adult. "But perhaps it's because you haven't been paying enough attention lately."

"Huh?"

"Your mission to Bialya…Thanksgiving…Your mission to trail Sportsmaster…Did you really listen to the needs of your teammates. Did you hear the pain and struggles in their hearts?" Clockwork asked.

"I…"

"And what of the mission your team is on right now? Did you pay attention to that?" Clockwork questioned.

"I was kind of busy with the threats against Amity Park." Phantom argued. "Besides, they can handle themselves."

"Very true." Clockwork nodded. "In fact, they've handled the Parasite right now."

"What?" Phantom blinked.

The Master of Time pointed to the screens, clocks, and mirrors. On these reflective surfaces appeared different angles of what appeared to his team…defeating a pink skinned man with dark eyes. The enemy appeared to be very strong, but he was quickly taken down by the use of fire.

"The Parasite…He can absorb powers through skin contact…" Phantom realized. "Was that the guy behind the circus and thefts mission?"

"Correct. Luckily, Young Justice handled him very well." Clockwork smiled.

"…I see…" Phantom smiled as well.

"And, it seems that Red Arrow is convinced that none of the people on the mission was the mole." Clockwork added.

"Oh?"

"Yes…I wonder who his attention will turn to next..."

* * *

><p>Dusk was meditating above Fenton Works. He still hadn't managed to get complete control of Matter Make deconstruction. The ghoul knew he could do it, though. He would just need time to train and study his Matter Make ability more.<p>

When asked, the Fright Knight said that one of the best places to be alone and meditate was above Fenton Works. Dusk had to admit that the knight ghost was right. The view from on top of the Ops Center was stunning. That didn't matter too much right now, though. Dusk had to focus on the task at hand.

Apparently, the annual truce was going to happen from Christmas Eve until after Christmas. Thus, he wouldn't be able to train as much as he wanted. He needed to get as much done as possible. In fact, that was probably what everyone was doing. No one would put it past Savage to attack on Christmas. They just hoped that he didn't actually attack.

With his eyes closed, Dusk focused on the Pendulum Nunchucku in his hands. He needed to study the make up of his weaponry more in order to decompose the enemies weapons.

"Well, it's nice to see that that some things don't change. You still meditate just like you always did." A voice behind Dusk shook him out of his meditative state. He recognized that voice.

Jumping to his feet, Dusk glared. "Talia Al Ghul."

"It's good to see you, Joel." This woman appeared to have Arabian heritage. She had high cheekbones, green eyes, and long dark hair. Her leather outfit was revealing, but not overly so to the point that it would hinder her movement. "And Happy Birthday, you just turned eleven, correct?"

"Why do you always remember such useless information?" Dusk questioned with a scowl.

"Still not a birthday fan, huh? Oh well, I don't suppose you told your new family about it, then?" Talia questioned.

"No, I didn't. And don't try to get me distracted…" Dusk held the Pendulum Nunchucku tightly in his hands. "Why are you here, and how did you sneak up on me?"

"Please, I've had decades to learn the art of ninjustu." Talia chuckled. "The only one with more practice is my father. And the reason why I'm here…It's simple really, I want you to come back to the Shadows."

Dusk had to fight back his laugher. "Come back? I was excommunicated and turned over to the Ghoul Project? Why would I want to come back?"

"You brought that upon yourself with your foolish ideals." Talia mentioned. "You refused to kill even animals. It's a disgrace as an assassin and as a man."

"I'm eleven." Dusk deadpanned. "I don't think I qualify for the second one yet, and I sure as hell don't want to be the first one. Your father tried to kill me with the Ghoul Project."

"Did he?" Talia questioned. "If he wanted to you dead, he would have just killed you. That's what the tradition of the Shadows demands for traitors that refuse to follow orders. Instead, he sent you to a place he knew you would survive."

Pause. Blink. Pause.

"What?" Dusk lowered his weapons.

"There are two people that can replace him. One is the Batman, but he chosen his side. The other is you, Joel."

"…My name is Dusk now, and I will never go back to the Shadows…" Dusk stated.

"Reconsider your decision. Your parents would want you to join the Shadows. They would want you to ascend to greatness." Talia encouraged.

"My parents were drunken fools that crashed a car, got themselves killed, and gave me a scar that has yet to fade." Dusk rolled his eyes. "I don't care for them."

"Are you sure that's the truth?" Talia questioned. "That's what the orphanage told you, but the story…it seems so generic."

"…What do you mean?" Dusk questioned carefully.

"I knew your parents. They were certainly not drunks…" Talia frowned. "And if I were not sworn to secrecy, I would tell you about them right now."

"You're obviously lying to peak my interest. I don't care even a little bit about who my parents are. Now, I have a real family…I have a new name…I have a new life, and all I want is to forget my past and look forward to the future." Dusk stated.

"You keep telling yourself that." Talia shrugged. "But the curiosity will get to you eventually. Besides, I'm sure your new 'family' has told you that this city is now a sinking ship. I doubt Phantom will be cooperative, so this city shall soon burn to the ground. I implore you to get on the safety raft that I'm providing."

"Shut up." Dusk glared. "Even if what you said was true…I would rather die than rejoin the Shadows."

"You'll change your mind…" Talia threw smoke pellets down. She instantly disappeared from the ghoul's sense. Her voice still echoed around the boy, though. "They always do…"

* * *

><p>"Well, like usual, visiting you has left me completely confused with more questions than answers." Phantom noted as Clockwork led him back to the entrance of his domain. "And you wonder why I don't come by much."<p>

"I make good tea at least." Clockwork shrugged.

"Hahaha…Yeah you do…" Phantom chuckled. "Good enough to postpone the headache at least. It will come later, though."

"Of course it will." Clockwork nodded. "But it won't be because of me."

"I hate that, you know. The stupid hints about what's to happen…Just enough to keep me guessing." Phantom sighed.

"I need to have some fun too," Clockwork smirked.

"At my expense…" Phantom rolled his eyes.

"Indeed…" Clockwork couldn't contain his laughter. "Your confused face is hilarious."

"I really hate talking to you sometimes."

"Yet you keep coming back." Clockwork gave him a smile.

"Yeah…I guess I like to be kept on my toes." Phantom sighed once again.

"Good. Then you should come back soon…After New Year, though, I think you'll be busy until then." Clockwork stated.

"I'll agree to come back, but only if you agree to come to some of the events I invite you to. I still remember that you never showed up for the Thanksgiving feast." Phantom mentioned.

"I lost track of time." Clockwork said almost gleefully.

"A pun?" Phantom had to laugh. "Guess I've had some influence on you after all."

"Indeed…Now you should get going." Clockwork gestured to the door. "You have a lot of work to do, and I believe Plasmius and Vision wish to speak with you."

"Yeah…" Phantom headed for the door. "I bet they do. See ya, Clockwork."

"Goodbye, Danny Phantom." Clockwork stated as he left. "…You can come out now."

Two beings that looked like floating eyeballs with green bodies covered in white robes. These were two of the Observants. "Clockwork, you need to be careful about what you say to the boy. If he knew what the future holds…"

"I was only encouraging him. That is no crime." Clockwork scowled.

"You know our laws…"

"Your laws? Just because you write down a few of the laws of the universe doesn't mean that the laws are yours." Clockwork frowned.

"Regardless." One of the Observants spoke up. "If you're not careful, you could cause more harm than good."

"I appreciate your concern, but I know what I'm doing…" Clockwork aged into an old man. "I see more than you do. Just because you think you know what's going to happen, doesn't mean that you're accurate. Things are more complicated than what you think."

"Do not think that you should speak that way. We were given the title of Observants for a reason." The second Observant mentioned.

"The Ghost King gave you that title in order to predict how the future will go. But you refused to tell him about the betrayal of the Ancient Six." Clockwork mentioned. "With Pariah Dark's fall, the titles he bestowed are meaningless. Instead of focusing so much on the past and future, you need to look at the present."

"The present is fine. You trust Phantom, so we will do the same. But the future…" The first Observant squirmed. "We can no longer see it. I think you know what that mean…"

"Ah…So that's what got you so worked up." Clockwork stroked his beard. "Do you fear death so much?"

"Everyone fears death. Even you." The second Observant mentioned.

"…That is the single most correct thing you have ever said. Even I fear death, but not for myself." Clockwork looked back to where Phantom had left. "I fear the death of the legacy I will leave behind."

* * *

><p>"It seems that we have plenty of allies to help us." Vision noted as they all sat down in the living room of Masters Mansion to discuss their plans. "Tell me, did speaking with Clockwork help you any with your plans, Danny?"<p>

"No and yes," Danny shrugged. "For some reason, I feel more ready for what's to come…but I'm more confused than ever."

"I didn't think he would give straight answers." Vlad rubbed his chin. "But that's fine. You had to try at least."

"With that out of the way, we can focus on the attack." Fright Knight mentioned. "Even if we had an army, there's still a problem of the civilians."

"A lot of shelters have been built after the GIW War was finished." Dani stated. "Is there a way to quickly get them there?"

"Perhaps…And we can reinforce the shelters too. Make sure they would survive almost anything." Vision seemed to like where this is going.

"We know that Savage's group won't attack until after they've spoken to me. I can use the annual truce as an excuse to postpone it until at least after Christmas." Phantom suggested.

"That's good, and when you do meet with them, we can move all the civilians to the shelters." Plasmius nodded. "With them safe, we can go all out."

"Half the city will probably be destroyed…but as long as no one is killed..." Fright Knight nodded.

"Wait…I know it's good to prepare, but I thought you were going to have Danny try and trick the enemy into thinking he would ally himself with them." Dani spoke up.

"I'll try, but they might want me to do something my honor won't allow." Danny sighed. "They'll probably want a test of loyality, one that I won't be able to pass."

"So we'll just act as if this fight is going to happen no matter what…" Joel spoke for the first time.

"Are you alright, Joel?" Danny questioned with a frown. "You seem distracted."

"I'm just having some problem with training. Sorry, I'll pay more attention." Joel apologized. He didn't want to reveal what happened on top of Fenton Works just yet. First, he didn't know what to think about it. Second…It didn't seem relevant. It was all lies anyway.

"Yes, Joel will try and interfere with the Necromancers." Vision stated. "That will free up some of them. Then there's the problems of the ghouls, assassins, and supervillains…"

"That last one is a big problem." Danny frowned. "According to Artemis, Ivo was with the Brain and Klarion making…something. I don't know what they made, but I do know that Ivo's presence means something is going on in Belle Reve. And considering that both Agent Z and Grundy were taken from the prison to the Ghoul Project…Savage's group might be in complete control of the place."

"An entire prison's worth of supervillains…" Vlad actually paled.

"We will need to learn everything there is about everyone in there." Vision noted. "We need a plan for every one of them…"

"The numbers are going to be against us no matter what, though…" Fright Knight mentioned.

"Having Red X fight could help number-wise, but…Joel will be needed on the field and we don't have an A.I. ready yet." Vlad mentioned.

"…There's still the League." Dani looked around at the other ghosts. "They could help if we asked…"

"We would have to swallow a lot of pride…" Fright Knight obviously didn't like this.

"But do we have a choice? It's between that and bringing more ghosts out of the Ghost Zone." Vlad sighed. "And I don't think it would be wise to bring in ghosts that aren't used to fighting like Vision's servants."

"I will keep the League idea in mind. Our pride means nothing if we're all dead, but…If all else fails, there's still our ace." Vision noted. "It would weaken the Ghost Zone's defenses for sure, but it might be necessary to bring in Colossus."

"Yeah…" Danny nodded. "That would definitely even the odds."

* * *

><p>(Friday-December 24, 2010)<p>

"Are they not back yet?" Phantom questioned as he and his friends waited in the Cave for the rest of Young Justice.

"Nope. Apparently, the 'Daring Dangers' wanted to do one more job." Wally shrugged and threw a handful of candy into his mouth.

"I wish I could have gone on that mission." Zatanna mentioned. "But I don't think my powers would have helped them blend in all that much."

"I believe that is the reason none of us were selected to go on the mission." Kaldur stated.

"Still, I think it would fun to be in the circus for a while." Zatanna chuckled. "Or at least in show business. Imagine me on stage pulling a rabbit out of my hat."

"Psh!" Wally rolled his eyes. "That would be the worst secret identity ever, though. I mean, a magical hero performing fake magic on stage for a crowd's amusement. The bad guys would figure it out in a second."

"Well…Some secret identities are more obvious than others." Kaldur stated.

"Like yours?" Phantom questioned.

"…I don't know what you mean…" Kaldur frowned.

"He's got a point, man. Your disguise in public is a turtle neck." Wally mentioned. "I mean, at least my mask covers my freckles. Your face is always on display."

"In fact…most of our faces are in the open." Zatanna noted. "I mean, it's not like my private life is high profile, but I always asked my dad why we don't need to wear masks. His answer was pretty good though."

"And why's that?" Phantom questioned.

Zatanna gained the biggest grin on her face. "Magic."

"Hahahahahahahahaha! And what's Kaldur's excuse? Gills?" Wally questioned.

"…I do not enjoy being the butt of the joke…" Kaldur frowned.

"Now you know how Wally feels." Phantom smirked.

"Dude!"

**Recognized: Robin B01, Superboy B05, Miss Martian B06, Red Arrow B07, Artemis B08**

"Sorry, we're lat, guys!" M'gann called out as she flew to her friends. "The show went over…"

"It's fine, although, I was wanting to see you guys in your Daring Dangers outfits." Zatanna spoke up. "I bet you were styling."

"Yeah, well, I prefer my regular clothes compared to tights." Superboy grunted.

"You don't like 'monkey suits'?" Wally smirked.

"…Huh, you know what, I don't." Conner cracked a grin at that.

"Did we miss anything while we were gone?" Artemis questioned.

"Nothing at all." Kaldur shrugged. "I believe we were all terribly bored."

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. "Bored…"

"Anyway, let's get started before I pass out." Robin stretched his limbs. "M'gann, what did you want to do again?"

"I want to do all the Earth traditions for Christmas!" M'gann beamed. "We need to drink eggnog, go caroling, open a present, watch specials, bake cookies, play games-"

"Okay, M'gann." Artemis laughed. "Okay, we get it. We better get started if we want to get through everything, though. I still want to spend some time with my Mom."

"Yeah, my parents will kill me if I don't get home in time for dinner." Wally chuckled.

"Then it's a good thing I got started on the cookies and Elf is on right now." Zatanna smiled.

"Great!" Robin nodded. "Let's get started."

Watching them go, Phantom smiled. It was nice to spend some time with his new friends. But before he could do that, he had to deal with one problem. Turning to the one member of Young Justice that stayed back and watched the exchange, Phantom questioned. "Are you too much of a big boy to spend time doing 'kiddie' stuff?"

"I don't sing, so no caroling, but besides that…" Red Arrow looked to see the others disappear. "I'm game."

"Oh?" Phantom pursed his lips. "What changed your mind?"

"I realized something on the mission." Red Arrow stated. "M'gann, Conner, and Artemis can't be the mole."

"That's good." Phantom noted.

"You would think so, but that's not all I realized." Red Arrow got up close to the halfa.

"Oh?"

"If they aren't the mole, and the original partners to the Leaguers aren't the mole. Then that leaves one person." Red Arrow glared.

"Santa Clause?"

"Stop being a smartass!" Red Arrow grabbed the halfa's collar. "This isn't a game!"

"Then quit treating it like one." Phantom retorted.

"I know that you're the mole…" Red Arrow growled.

"Am I now?" Phantom raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, yes you are." Red Arrow glared. "And I'm going to prove it."

"And how are you going to do that, Roy Harper?" Phantom questioned.

"You…How do you…"

"GA called you Roy more than once. Didn't take all that much after that to realize that the adopted son of the blond haired Oliver Queen and Speedy were one in the same." Phantom stated. "GA isn't as good with secrets as Batman, eh?"

"You…" Red Arrow snarled.

"But just so you know, I'm not a mole." Phantom mentioned.

"And I'm supposed to just believe that?!" Red Arrow scowled. "You used Young Justice, and now you're going to use your position as a Leaguer to feed info to the enemy."

"There's only one problem with that logic." Phantom gave him a bored look.

"And what's that?"

"I turned down the League's offer."

"W-what?" Red Arrow did not expect that.

"I don't want to be a Leaguer. I want to be with my friends for as long as possible." Phantom explained. "Unlike you, I'm not in a huge hurry to grow up."

"You…"

"I care about this Team. I was the one that was with them from the beginning. I was the one that was with them through their hardest times. I was the one who was willing to sacrifice everything for them." Phantom stated. "Believe what you want, but I'm not the mole, and I would do anything for this Team."

"…I…" Red Arrow released Phantom's collar. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I thought…"

"It's fine. You wanted to protect them. I can respect that." Phantom noted. "We're alike in that way."

"…So…there is no mole?" Red Arrow questioned.

No, there was a mole. Phantom knew that for certain. Savage knew too much for there not be. But he wasn't going to say that. "There's no mole."

"…Okay…" Red Arrow nodded. "Then…I guess I was wrong. I'm man enough to admit that. What do I need to do to make up for it?"

"Nothing." Phantom rolled his eyes. "You're a member of Young Justice too, genius. That means you're just as much my friend as the others. Friends forgive eachother."

"Friends, eh?" Red Arrow gave a small smile. He extended his hand as a sign of a truce. "I can live with that."

Phantom shook the hand. "I can to."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-December 25, 2010)<p>

"Joel, wake up!" Dani, dressed in red and green pajamas, shouted as she rushed into his room. "It's Christmas!"

"I know. What's your point?" Joel questioned without opening his eyes. He wasn't in his bed sleeping. No, he was sitting in the middle of his room meditating. The boy was an early riser. It was habit from practically being raised by the Shadows.

Unlike everyone else's room in the house, Joel's room was almost completely empty. The large room had a bed, fan, and even a small television, but the walls remained bare. The youngest halfa lived more like a Spartan than a young boy.

"Idiot! Aren't you excited?!" Dani was practically bouncing up and down.

"Not really. This is just a commercialized holiday that was originally a religious holiday that took the place of a pagan holiday." Joel mentioned.

"But…presents!" Dani argued.

"Really? Well, that changes everything." Joel opened his eyes.

"It does?" Dani blinked.

"Of course, because as you can see, I'm all about material items." Joel stated.

"You do know that I will kick you in the face, right?" Dani questioned.

"I know, but my Numbing ability will make that moot." Joel shrugged.

"…You know what, you need to smile more. It's Christmas!"

"What are you doiiiiiinnnnnnnnnga…" Joel's words were slurred as Dani pulled at his cheeks to form a smile.

"There! That's better!" Dani beamed.

"Wet wo of wy wace…" Joel slured out.

"Only if you come down stairs~" Dani sang out.

"Wine…"

"Awesome!" Letting go of Joel's face, Dani grabbed Joel and began to drag him downstairs.

"You know…" Joel massaged his sore cheeks. "We don't even have a tree. I don't see…Holy crap, that's a big tree…"

"I know right! I chopped it down last night! I couldn't sleep!" Dani was still bouncing. "Then I decorated and helped Mom and Dad put the presents under it."

"…How much chocolate did you have last night?" Joel asked.

"Ten…large bags of candy and ten cups of hot chocolate." Dani's eyes were sparkling. "And I'm still not tired!"

"I'm surprised you didn't throw up yet." Joel mentioned.

"I did…twice."

"Oh…"

"Dani! Joel!" Danny cried from the bottom of the stairs. "Or I'll take your presents!"

"NO!" Dani dragged Joel down the stairs so fast, it would have caused Kid Flash to do a double take.

* * *

><p>"…" Joel looked around the main hall of Masters Mansion. It was filled with members of the Phantom Family happily unwrapping presents. Although, it appeared that Wulf and Cujo were enjoying the wrapping paper a little bit more. "I don't understand…"<p>

"Understand what?" Dani asked as she was busy trying to figure out what was in her next present without opening it. She liked to drag it out as much as possible. It made the present so much sweeter.

"Secret."

"I wasn't asking you, Greta."

"I don't get…why we are doing this." Joel mentioned. "There is an invasion coming, and we're sitting around celebrating."

"Why not?" Dani questioned.

"Because we need to be preparing." Joel stated. "If we don't, we will lose."

"You're right, we do need to prepare…But we also need to live." Dani mentioned.

"Huh?" Joel blinked.

"Look around." Dani pointed. "For a brief moment, people are forgetting their troubles and are coming together in peace. Isn't it nice?"

"…" Joel looked around.

Wulf and Cujo were rolling around in wrapping paper while Grundy was throwing wads of paper at them.

Nyx and Raven were arguing as their mothers tried to calm them down.

Colossus and Frostbite were laughing and drinking with the Fright Knight.

Youngblood created a fortress of boxes and was trying to convince Greta to play castle.

Torch was at the top of stairs yelling out his greatness for all to hear.

Scribe and his apprentice Poindexter were talking to a blue skinned ghost with a clock staff…Wait, who was that guy?

And Vlad and Vision…

"I thought we were supposed to be relaxing…" Vlad sighed.

"We are. We're planning the wedding." Vision looked at the massive blueprints in front of her. "We won't get a chance for a while, so we need to get started. This is my wedding, so it's going to take years to plan it to be perfect."

"But it's Christmas…the truce…"

"Be silent, my fiancé." Vision hugged his arm. "I shall make it up to you later."

"…" Joel smiled at all the people around him. "I see…We need to live in order to make it all worth it. We need to enjoy it. You know, you're a lot smarter than I thought, Dani…Dani?"

"Zzz…" Dani had fallen asleep. Her sugar rush ran out.

"Never mind." Joel rolled his eyes.

* * *

><p>"I'm surprised to see you here, Clockwork." The Ghost Writer mentioned while sipping his cup of coffee.<p>

"I could say the same thing to you, old friend." Clockwork mentioned. "You were always one to hide from people behind your books."

"Things change." Scribe shrugged.

"Very true…" Clockwork turned to Poindexter. "You took an apprentice."

"Yes! Master Scribe has helped me a lot! Now, I can stand up to bullies!" The black and white ghost puffed out his chest proudly and adjusted his thick glasses.

"Remember what I told you, the techniques that I have shown you are not to be used over trivial matters. It is alright to teach a lesson, but never use such powers for punishment." Scribe glanced to the nerdy ghost. "Let the universe fix such things. Karma shall deal its punishment."

"But I can't let the injustice go!" Poindexter exclaimed. "I didn't receive justice until after my death!"

"That is how things work out sometimes." Scribe explained. "Sometimes, there is no justice in this life, but I guarantee that every crime will be punished at some point."

"But…" Poindexter was disappointed.

"Do not think like Pandora. We are not the dealers of justice and fairness." Scribe stated. "We are the ones that merely record what happens."

"But you've taught me how to alter dimension and space…" Poindexter pointed out. "What's the point of having power if you don't use it?"

"To make sure that others don't try and break the rules of reality." Scribe stated. "We only have such power to make sure that it is never used in the wrong way."

"…Okay…" Poindexter did not look happy, though.

"I'm sorry, child." Scribe sighed. "Why don't you go and speak with the others. I'm sure you'll enjoy that more than speaking with old farts."

"Yeah…" Poinxdexter nodded and walked over to the other ghosts.

"…He'll understand one day." Scribe noted after the nerdy ghost was gone. "There are always consequences for using powers like ours."

"Yes…" Clockwork nodded. "There are."

"But who am I to complain. I least I don't have to be careful about what I say…" The Ghost Writer gave Clockwork a small smile.

"And I wasn't the one that saved thousands of lives in a recent war." Clockwork added.

"Oh? And what about that whole fiasco with Phantom a year ago?" Scribe questioned.

"Touché, my friend." Clockwork chuckled. "Perhaps we've both doomed everyone for what is to come."

"Yes…I think about it daily." The Ghost Writer frowned. "I haven't slept well lately, especially with the Reality Gauntlet being lose…"

"It has given you more time to write, though." Clockwork mentioned.

"Yes…I have indeed." Scribe reached into his jacket and pulled out a book. He handed it to Clockwork.

"…Obsession…" Clockwork smiled.

"I was going to do a sequel, but the story isn't over yet." The Ghost Writer noted.

"And here I thought that Tome of yours recorded history on its own." Clockwork mentioned.

"That book is objective. This book gives perspective." Scribe mentioned. "I think that will be needed later on."

"Indeed." Clockwork handed the book back. "And do you plan to write the sequels?"

"I was trying to, but I decided to begin writing something else." Scribe smiled. "Perhaps I will let Poindexter work with me on the sequels. It will be good experience for him."

* * *

><p>"Your dad would kill me if he knew we were alone like this…" Danny noted as he and Valerie leaned against the railing of the balcony that overlooked the backyard. Despite the cold, they were both comfortable with watching the snow fall.<p>

"I doubt it." Valerie shook her head. "I think he's getting used to you."

"Oh?" Danny questioned.

"Yeah." Valerie nodded. "I think he trusts me with you."

"…Shouldn't it be the other way around?" Danny questioned.

"Not with me." Valerie chuckled as she took his hand and held it.

"Right…" Danny looked away.

"…You okay? I thought you were over your Grinch complex." Valerie stated.

"I am. It has nothing to do with the holidays. It has to do with what comes next." Danny held her hand tightly. "What if things go really bad? Everything could be destroyed because of my choices."

"Idiot…" She flicked his forehead. "It's not all about your choices. We all have will of our own, you know? Don't get such a big head."

"You know what I mean…" Danny sighed.

"I do, and I'm telling you to relax because everything's going to work out." Valerie leaned onto him.

"How do you know that?" Danny questioned.

"Because our family is strong. We can stand against anything." Valerie stated. "And I will always stand by you. This time, I'll protect you."

"Really?"

"Yep, and that's why I'm joining Young Justice." Valerie stated.

"…So you accepted their offer?"

"Of course, someone has to look after you." Valerie smiled. "And I think I can handle both the Team and Amity Park. You do it after all. How hard could it be?"

"Oh, thanks for the vote of confidence." Danny grumbled.

"But together, we'll protect both Young Justice and Amity Park." Valerie turned and kissed her boyfriend.

"Yeah…We will." He kissed her back before pulling away. "Merry Christmas, Val."

"Merry Christmas, Danny."

* * *

><p><strong>Bonus Scene: Shopping Day<strong>

"Oh! I love those shoes on you!" Megan clapped her hands together as she looked down at Artemis' feet.

"Are you sure? I think I have enough green stuff." Artemis peered down at her feet.

"No way, it's totally your color." Zatanna smiled.

"Yeah, you work green like no one else, girl." Valerie, who decided to go out with her new teammates to do some shopping, noted.

"I know, but still…Maybe I should get another color for variety sake?" Artemis questioned.

She was met with sounds of agreement.

"Kill me…" Conner groaned as he held up the bags of cloths that M'gann bought.

"Oh shut up…" Phantom, who was disguised in a hat and glasses, mumbled. "You're the strongest one out of all of us. Those bags aren't heavy to you."

"That's not why I want to die…" Conner gritted his teeth. "I'm so bored."

"Well, that's the price you pay for having a girlfriend." Phantom shrugged.

"Dude! Why the hell am I here then?! I don't have a girlfriend!" Wally argued.

He was met with blank expressions.

"What?!"

"And people say that I'm clueless…" Phantom mumbled.

"Well…What about Rob?" Wally questioned. "He and Zatanna are practically dating. Why isn't he here?"

"He used a ninja trick…lucky bastard." Conner grunted.

"Zatanna will make him pay later, though." Phantom shrugged. "Besides…He'll miss out…"

"Miss out on what?" Wally asked.

"The benefits…" Phantom mentioned.

"What benefits?"

"Danny!" Valerie called over to her boyfriend. "How do I look?"

She was wearing a red dress that hung to her curves very well. The sight was very pleasing to the halfa.

"Gorgeous as always." Phantom smirked.

"I don't know…Do you think that the skirt is too short?" Valerie questioned.

"No." There was no pause for his answer.

"Oh…Okay, I'll get this one too…" Valerie walked back to the girls.

"See?" Phantom elbowed his guy friends.

"Okay, I'm hating this less…" Superboy admitted as he thought of M'gann modeling for him.

"My attitude has completely changed." Wally grinned.

…On the other side of the store…

"And that, Zatanna, is how to make sure that the boy doesn't run off to play video games." Valerie noted as she approached her newer friends.

"Does that really work?" M'gann looked over to the now smiling guys.

"Apparently…Guys are stupid." Artemis noted.

"Yes, they are, but with them here, we get free compliments." Valerie smiled.

"Not me…" Zatanna frowned. "Robin disappeared as soon as I went shopping…"

"Please, girl, you act like it's the end of the world." Valerie shrugged. "You have three guys to compliment you over there. That way, you get both praise and a jealous Robin."

"Wow…You're good." Artemis noted.

"I know." Valerie smiled. "But don't worry, I can teach you all I know."

* * *

><p><strong>Ah...Character development. I love it so much.<strong>

**So ends the three week holiday special. This means that my regular update schedule will go back to every other week. This will help because I need a small break.**

**I wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	28. Confessions

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Confession of errors is like a broom which sweeps away the dirt and leaves the surface brighter and clearer. I feel stronger for confession."

Mahatma Gandhi

* * *

><p>Chapter 28: "Confessions"<p>

(Thursday-December 30, 2010)

"_The Justice League was founded for two reasons. First, that no single individual, no matter how powerful, can solve all the world's problems alone. And second, to uphold the values of truth, liberty, and justice." _Superman spoke into the camera._ "That, uh, last one's even in the name."_

He was met with rounds of laughter.

"Huh…that was actually funny…" Phantom noted as he looked at the screen in the Hall of Justice.

"Hush." Valerie elbowed him.

The camera then turned to Cat Grant. She was speaking softly and explaining how the League was inducting the five new members. These heroes were Plastic Man, Dr. Fate, the Atom, Icon, and Red Arrow. They were all good heroes in their own right and would do well in the League.

Phantom had to wonder how the League felt about his refusal to join them. Were they angry, or did they understand? He wasn't sure yet, but he hoped for the best. Last thing he needed right now was to deal with more drama.

"I'm glad they didn't kick Billy out." Wally smiled as the camera turned to Captain Marvel. The speedster then took a bit of the apple he was holding. "And I love the fact that there's a ten year old on the League."

"There is?" Raquel Ervin A.K.A. Rocket turned to the speedster and gave him a look of confusion. Like Red Huntress, Rocket was a new member of Young Justice. She was a dark skinned girl with a nice figure and short dark hair. Rocket's abilities came from her belt which allowed her to control kinetic energy.

"Ow!" Wally groaned when Robin elbowed him.

"Way to keep a secret, genius." Robin noted.

"Hey, she's on the Team now, right?" Wally argued.

"He's got a point. No reason to keep secrets from new members." Phantom stated.

"You're just saying that cause your girlfriend's here." Conner noted.

"That is…not false." Phantom's shoulders slumped.

"Good boy." Valerie patted him on the shoulder.

Superman began to pass out the membership cards to the new League Members. He gave them to Dr. Fate, Plasticman, the Atom, and Icon.

"You know, I was the one that convinced Icon to become a hero in the first place." Raquel did not look pleased. "I should be out there celebrating with him. Not hidden away in here."

"Welcome to our world." Kaldur noted.

"Well…" Raquel eyed Kaldur. She gave him a once over and seemed pleased. "I suppose there's an upside too."

"And there goes Red Arrow." Phantom noted as Green Arrow gave the card to his former protegee.

"Way to go Roy!" Wally fist pumped.

"At last he has his wish." Kaldur smiled.

"First one of us to make it. No one's going to call him a sidekick anymore." Robin seemed pleased.

"Wait." Raquel spoke up. "Since when is being a sidekick a bad thing? You sidekicks were my inspiration."

"It's a really long story." Phantom chuckled.

"We have time…Wait." Raquel tilted her head. "Why are you in here? Shouldn't you be out there with them? You were never a sidekick."

"She has a point." M'gann stated. "I thought you would be the first of us accepted into the League."

"I guess the tension between the League and the ghosts was too much." Phantom shrugged.

"Ah, that's not fair." Artemis noted.

"Yeah…" Conner eyed Phantom. "…Not fair."

"Well-" Phantom was interrupted when Robin's wrist computer beeped.

Robin looked at the hologram. "Oh…This is good. Guys, you're going to want to see this."

Phantom looked at the picture. He saw something very interesting. Jade Nguyen A.K.A. Cheshire. Not only that, she was carrying the case that appeared on the mission to New Orleans. "Now that is interesting…Why don't we go pay her a visit?"

* * *

><p>"Truth be told, I just thought this place was for show." Raven noted as she looked around the Fenton Ops Center. She was surprised to see that it was fully functioning. All the radars, monitors, and bleeping monitors shocked her. "Why haven't we used this before? It could have been useful in preventing attacks."<p>

"Are you kidding?" Dani turned and raised an eyebrow. "Look around at this place."

Raven did look around. There was so much technology. It was taking half of the Phantom Family to monitor everything. The room was filled with Vlad, Vision, Wulf, Nyx, Youngblood, and even Secret. "Oh…This is because of the massive energy in Amity Park, right?"

"Yeah…" Dani sighed. "That's the reason you came here, right? This city literally blocks every other energy signal other than ectoplasm. And even with ectoplasmic energy, it can be hard unless one or several machines are dedicated to tracking one specific signal…Did I get that right?"

"Yes." Vlad gave her a thumbs up and turned back to the monitors he was watching. He could use his duplicates to monitor all of them, but he didn't want to risk the chance of using too much energy before the potential conflict.

"I wanted to use this before, but it's usually impractical." Vision spoke up. "The big threats like Freakshow and the Black Power Ring users would hide their signatures until that last minute. Sneak attacks by human threats wouldn't show up at all unless there was enough energy. Truth be told, doing this all the time would be a waste of resources. Now, though, Savage's group must be prepping for an all-out assault. That just might be enough to get a glimpse through the veil."

"Especially if a powerful magic users shows up…" Nyx noted. It was obvious who she was thinking of. Just what her thoughts entailed was a mystery, but no one asked. It was not their place to intervene. Pandora already spoke with her on the matter, and that should be enough.

Besides, it wasn't like they could get the tall woman right now. She was part of the four person response group made up of her, Torch, Frostbite, and Solomon Grundy. Amity Park was divided into four sectors. If something popped up on the monitors, one of the response members hidden in Amity Park would react.

Then, there was the patrol team that was made up of Dusk, Fright Knight, and Cujo. If something happened that was below the radar of the Ops Center, then the plan was for the patrol team to notice. Cujo's nose would help with Dusk and Fright Knight's keen perception of their surroundings.

All other ghosts allied to the Council were in the Ghost Zone ready to defend the alternate dimension just in case of a sneak attack. Colossus and the Ghost Writer would lead the groups made up of Pandora's, Frostbite's, Torch's, and Vision's followers. Strategically speaking, there might be even more if the rest of the ghosts react to the possible fighting. They would not like the fact that someone had the gull to attack their home.

Luckily, all the preparation and planning was done before any notice of Savage's group contacting Phantom. Today, though, the villains contacted him and told the halfa that he would need to meet with them. Thus, the heroes of Amity Park were on full alert. The enemy would surely be ready to attack if Phantom declined to follow their demands.

Which was what exactly was going to happen. So the attack was now imminent. It was only a matter of time now.

Once Phantom denied the offer, though, he would surely be attacked. Red Huntress's presence would hopefully give him enough back up to escape and retreat back to Amity Park. Then, they would join the fight against Savage's group.

If they managed to find the attackers first, though, then a lot of fighting could be prevented.

"So, this is my station?" Raven sat down at the computer.

"Yep." Dani also sat at her own station. "And let the boredom leading up to the battle begin."

"It's not that bad." Youngblood spoke up. "I'm pretending to be a submarine captain. Does this place have missiles?"

"Yes, but you're not allowed anywhere near them." Vlad glared at the boy.

"Fair enough." Youngblood shrugged. "I wouldn't give them to me either. And that's saying something."

"Hey…" Nyx spoke up. "Where's Polly? Shouldn't your pet be here just in case?"

"Secret."

"Greta, even I'm sick of that joke now. And I'm amused by the word booty…hehehe…booty…" Youngblood turned to the blond haired girl. "So just…stop."

"Secret…" Greta hung her head.

"And as for Polly…" Youngblood shrugged. "I have no idea where he went. I think he was talking about getting ready."

"Alright…" Nyx accepted that. Youngblood usually let his parrot do his own thing. "And while we're asking questions…Why are they here?"

Dani looked over to where Nyx was pointing. "They're helping us."

"But they don't have any powers or fighting experience." Nyx argued.

"Well, no, but someone has to run the Ops Center when you're not here." Victor Stone turned from his computer.

He was not the only regular human there. There was also Damon Gray, Angela Roth, Harriet Chin, and even Victor's parents, Silas and Elinore Stone. Victor's parents were shocked when everything was explained to them, but they were scientists, so as long as the facts were sound, they would cope.

Everyone was sure that they would rethink their position in Amity Park after this was over. They had made a lot of friends and acquaintances in Amity Park, though. So, that, along with Victor's insistence to help his friends, pushed them to help.

"Besides, this is the safest place in the city besides Masters Mansion and Axion Labs." Harriet mentioned. She seemed to be working at several stations with ease. The woman was used to multitasking.

"Even more than Axion Labs…" Silas spoke up. "I saw the specks on this place. It's a fortress, especially after all the adjustments that were put into it."

"Especially the energy shield." Elinore Stone mentioned. She was a tall African American woman with wavy dark hair and a lab coat. "It's amazing. How much time did you put into it?"

"I've been constantly developing the human/ghost shield to block off all beings." Vlad mentioned. "It takes a lot of energy, but the energy field will stop all living beings from entering or exiting the dome while active. This will include magic users and other forms of teleportation. Thus, no enemies will be able to get in or out as long as you keep the Ghost Portal in the basement closed."

"So, we'll be safe?" Angela questioned. Like usual, she seemed worried.

"It is doubtful that the enemy will attack here or Masters Mansion because of their interest in Daniel Fenton." Vision mentioned. "But this is all just in case something happens. The shield will also stop stray attacks and even explosions. After everything begins, put the shield up, and you'll be safe."

"What about the Red X suit?" Victor questioned. "Do you want me to control it from here?"

"It's still broken, but thank you anyway." Vlad mentioned.

"It could be useful, though." Dani spoke up. "We have no clue how many different threats are out there…"

"Knowledge would be helpful. Preparing for everything is one thing, but without any knowledge of what's going to happen…" Raven muttered.

"Um…" Wulf spoke up. "Maybe know more."

"Huh?" They all turned to his screen.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

"Something happened." Wulf stated.

"I'll contact the patrol team…" Youngblood spoke up. It turned out that he didn't need to, though.

"_Control team, this is the patrol team. We have found something that might interest you."_

* * *

><p>"I see…" The Fright Knight nodded as they flew through the sky. "And does this hidden knowledge bother you?"<p>

"No." Dusk shook his head. "But I felt that I needed to bring it up just in case they try to use it against me. I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea."

"Bark!" Cujo licked his face as they flew.

"Ah, dog slobber…" Dusk wiped his face.

"Hmm…Are you sure that you're not interested?" Fright Knight questioned. "This does involve your parents."

"Even if my parents were more than I thought, then it doesn't matter." Dusk noted. "I have a new family now. That's all that matters."

"True." Fright Knight nodded as they stopped. They landed on a building and overlooked the city. "Just…be careful, young knight."

"I will…" Dusk's eyes widened. "…What's that?"

"A flashing light?" Fright Knight looked at the light which was several blocks away. It flashed momentarily and then faded. "We need to check it out. Be careful, though. It may be a trap."

"…No, I doubt that." Dusk mentioned when he saw who it was. Cassandra Cain. "From what I heard, she doesn't want to hurt ghosts."

They approached the girl on the rook. She was looking at them expectantly. None of them had met the girl before, but she did help them twice. That was enough to take a leap of faith and talk to her, even if she was Shiva's daughter.

"Hello." Cassandra spoke.

"Hello, child." Fright Knight stared at the girl. "Did you want something?"

"Yes…" Cassandra noted. "I have information for you."

"Info, huh…" Dusk eyed the girl.

"Joel…" Cassandra eyed him back. "You've changed."

"Becoming a ghost will do that to you." Dusk mentioned. "And I go by Dusk now."

"Ah…You took a professional name. It suits you." Cassandra stated.

"Do you two know each other?" Fright Knight questioned.

"Yes, Cassadie…"

"Cassandra, Dusk."

"Right, Cassandra and I trained together a few times. She's extremely talented, if not a little strange." Dusk mentioned.

"Says the assassin that refused to kill." Cassandra noted.

"Because it's wrong, but I learned that arguing with you is useless." Dusk stated. "But…I also know when you're trying to trick someone or not, and right now you're not. What information do you have?"

"My mom…she's at one of the bases and is setting up for an attack in case Phantom refused the offer." Cassandra stated. "I know he will, so it's only a matter of time before something happens."

"That much is certain." Fright Knight noted.

"But…I know that there will be casualties on both parts. I have the feeling that my mother will die and Phantom will suffer from all this." Cassandra frowned sadly.

"I see…" Fright Knight nodded slowly.

"So…I want to make a deal. If I tell you the information, you make sure my mother stays alive." Cassandra proposed. "That way, everyone I care for is safe."

Dusk and Fright Knight shared a look. That sounded fair, and Dusk could tell that she was telling the truth. This would be extremely beneficial if everything went smoothly.

Nodding, Fright Knight contacted the control team. "Control team, this is the patrol team. We have found something that might interest you."

* * *

><p>"Damn…" Phantom looked around at the crashed plane.<p>

"What happened?" M'gann questioned as she investigated the wreckage.

"Who knows…" Kaldur did not seem happy by this development. "We will just have to search and find out."

After finding out about Cheshire's movements with the secret briefcase from New Orleans, Young Justice went out to search for the plane. They wanted capture Cheshire and take the briefcase. All this was to figure out why the allies of the 'Injustice League' still schemed behind the League and the Team's backs.

Phantom knew the truth, of course. The Injustice League was just a decoy for Savage's group. He couldn't say that, though. Not yet, at least.

Nevertheless, he wanted to know what was in that case. If the Brain, Klarion, and Ivo were involved with it, it must be bad. Plus, any injury against Savage's group was a good one, and Phantom knew that whatever was in that case could cause a big injury if lost.

"How come Homeland Security and the NTSB aren't all over this?" Kid Flash turned to Robin and questioned.

"Cheshire's ID was a League alert. The authorities didn't pick it up and didn't follow its flight plan." Robin explained. "It flew under the radar. Literally. But the Watchtower auto-tracked the jet and recorded the crash."

"Then why isn't the League here?" Rocket finished walking around the downed plane.

"Because our Boy Wonder has some mighty hacking skills and arranged to get the alert first." Zatanna smiled at Robin.

"And because Cheshire and that case represent our unfinished business." Aqualad's eyes narrowed.

"Guh!" Superboy picked up one of the wings and flew it into one of the many different piles of snow on the freezing cold mountain. "Where are the bodies?"

"Here's one. And it. Is. Stunning…" Cheshire's voice caused Young Justice to look up and see the assassin looking down on them.

"Vain much?" Red Huntress rolled eyes.

"She's not wrong…" Kid Flash muttered.

Wack!

"Ow!" Kid Flash rubbed the back of his head.

"Hush." Aqualad ordered.

"I am flora, not fauna. I am foliage, not trees. What am I?" A man in a green suit with question marks on it spoke from the top of the mountain. The man known as the Riddler looked down on them.

With a snap of his fingers, large mechanical beams rose from the rock and snow around them. They formed a perfect circle. The machines quickly began to glow and a large dome of green energy formed around them. Young Justice was trapped.

This wasn't good considering they were surrounded by several men armed with Apokoliptic technology. Not only that, the brute known as Mammoth and the assassin known as Jinx was there as well. Things did not look good.

"Come on, you can get this." The Riddler smiled and showed his gaped teeth. "I am shrubbery, not grass. What am I? I…"

"Am bush…" Robin frowned.

"Oh...That's so terrible..." Phantom noted. "I love it so much, though."

Riddler walked over to the edge of the cliff and leered down. "Didn't you think we'd be tipped you were on Cheshire's trail? We're tired of you interference, kiddies. This is the end game. Ordered from above, and executed by their master strategist, moi."

"I call punching him in the face." Red Huntress noted.

"Damn, I wanted to do that…" Superboy grunted.

'Miss Martian, are we all hooked up?' Phantom questioned mentally.

'Yes.' M'gann nodded.

'Alright everyone, time to show the newbies how to kick ass Young Justice Style.' Phantom grinned. 'Go!'

They all took off in different direction. The enemy responded just the same. Zatanna hung back and used her magic to give them an edge. "Ekahs siht ebolgwons!"

A massive snowstorm formed around them. This hid the young heroes and allowed them to use their stealth training to their advantage. They quickly took advantage as all the members of Young Justice instantly knocked a few of the mercenaries out.

'Superboy, the pylons!' Kaldur yelled after he knocked a few of the mercenaries away.

'I'm on it!' Conner yelled back.

Artemis instantly went the Cheshire and tried to shoot her down. The assassin countered, though, and went of the offensive. The blonde archer was forced to block several sword attacks to her head.

As this went on, the members of the Team quickly went to work on the mercenaries. M'gann used her telekinesis to pull the weapons away from the mercenaries, and Red Huntress quickly shot them down. Rocket and Kid Flash worked to take down several mercenaries. The kinetic energy using girl flew above the mercenaries to distract them as Kid Flash knocked them out using his speed.

Things were not completely smooth, though. The Apakoliptic technology made the normal mercenaries into powerhouses. They almost got the better of the young heroes a few times, but luckily their excellent teamwork saved them.

"Jinx!" Phantom hissed as he once again traded blows with his frienemy…that was the best word for it. "What the hell is this?"

"Idiot. You think you can interfere so much and get away with it." Jinx glared.

"I'm sick of your father and his group." Phantom glared. He flew back and sent several blasts of energy at the girl. Jinx quickly blocked when she used an energy shield of her own. She then sent several hex bolts at the teen boy.

The halfa dodged and flew around to avoid the blasts. He then activated his ice powers. Forming an ice broadsword, Phantom sent a wave of blue energy at the assassin. Before the wave of energy could freeze her, though, Jinx used her bad luck ability to destroy the ice around her.

"This isn't a game!" Phantom roared and charged at Jinx with his sword.

"I know!" With a wave of her hand, Jinx went a blast of energy at Phantom. Unable to dodge, Phantom tried to block with his ice weapon. The following explosion destroyed the weapon and knocked him into the cliff.

"Then stop…" Phantom's eyes widened at the sight above him.

'SB, you're flying!' Robin's shock could be heard through the mind link.

It was true. The clone was flying through the air and carrying the brute Mammoth like he was a pillow. Conner flung his enemy into the shield above him. Mammoth bounced of the dome like a rubber ball. He was sent rocketing down into the cliffs where Superboy used his heat vision and a flurry of fists to beat his enemy into the cliff side.

…And straight through it…

The rocks of the cliff crumbled and fell. They almost smashed Artemis, but she was quickly saved by her sister. It appeared that the bonds of blood were stronger than what Cheshire liked to admit.

Jinx paused as she saw Robin tie up Shimmer and knock her out. Zatanna then used her magic to tie the Riddler up. This allowed Red Huntress to fly up and punch him in the face. The force knocked him out instantly.

"Told you I'd punch him!"

"…Jobs over…" Jinx noted. She turned to Phantom and flung a piece of paper at him. "But I'll see you soon, Danny."

Phantom caught the paper but tried to stop her. "Wait! What do you mean…"

It was too late. In a swirl of pink energy, she was gone. Her message was delivered, though. The halfa frowned at what could only be described as a summons to Santa Prisca. Phantom crumbled up the paper and shoved it into his coat pocket.

It was almost time. Savage's group was calling on him. It was only a matter of time before he would be forced to refuse their offer, and Amity Park would be attacked. He had to call home…But first, he had to celebrate a little. Artemis got the case. They had won.

'Good job, everyone.' Phantom called mentally as Zatanna dismissed the snowstorm.

'So this is what you do with this Team all the time?' Valerie's voice sounded amused. 'I can see why. This was a blast.'

'Yeah! First battle with Young justice!' Kid Flash grinned. 'You two are officially a part of the Team.'

'And all the madness that comes with it.' Robin added his two cents.

'Hoo…ray?' Rocket didn't know what to think.

* * *

><p>"This is where the first base is." Cassandra pointed to the map below them. "It's the control center and will give the orders to attack. Once Phantom refuses the offer, the call will be put out and all the other bases will send out an attack force to draw the ghosts out. Then, the second wave will come."<p>

"How many people do you have?" Spirit questioned as she knelt by the girl on the rooftop. She decided to join the patrol team to hear this. Vision wanted her to be there just in case the girl was trying something. Spirit was the only one besides Phantom and Dusk to interact with her before after all. Everything seemed legit, though.

"I have no idea." Cassandra shrugged. "I'm still a kid, you know. I just know where this base is and what's in it because my mom is there."

"Fair enough." Dusk nodded. "What's in it?"

"My mom, Walker, a dozen Necromancers, and…Klarion." Cassandra stated.

"The Witch Boy?" The Fright Knight scowled. "Is he after Nyx?"

"Yes." Cassandra nodded. "His plan was to call Nyx by sending out a small bit of his energy. He knew that she would sense it. Someone would come, and he would capture them and use them to bargain for her."

"I figured that…"

They all turned. "Nyx…what are you doing her."

"I pretended to use the bathroom and snuck out." Nyx frowned. "I knew that this would involve me when I sense the little bit of energy. Not even Vision could feel that much, but me…It's a part of me."

"That's part of the trap. If you go, he wins." Cassandra noted.

"No, if I go, we win." Nyx frowned at the group. "Use me as a distraction. Then, Dusk can sneak in and dismantle the Necromancers while the others attack and capture the enemy. I could then use my own magic and ectoplasm to close any gates my dad forms and keep him from leaving. Then, Mom can come and capture him in her Box."

"That could work…" Fright Knight nodded slowly. "But there is great risk. First for you, and then if they managed to contact the others. I doubt Pandora or Vision will agree to this plan."

"What if we used a signal jammer?" Spirit suggested. "That way, they wouldn't be able to make any calls or signals."

"And I wouldn't be alone." Nyx argued. "I have all of you as back up. This can work."

"…I don't know…" The Fright Knight didn't seem so sure.

"This could be the help we need." Dusk spoke up. "I know it's a risk, but it would be a bigger risk not to act now. Nyx is probably the only one that could cause a big enough distraction that would take Shiva and Walker's attentions enough that would allow us to get the jump on them without them sounding an alarm or trying to kill us."

"But…"

"I can do this. Trust me." Nyx stated.

"…Fine, I'll call the control team…" Fright Knight stood and walked away to call home.

"…There is a few other things I should mention." Cassandra spoke again. "There are a few more orders that even I know about. Joel is not to be killed or hurt too badly, while the girl you call Raven will be killed on spot."

"What?" Spirit's eyes widened.

"They know that she is the daughter of Trigon. When she exited Amity Park when the world was separated, Klarion sensed her demon side…just like Dr. Fate did." Cassandra mentioned. "She is a threat that needs to be eliminated according to the organization. If she is left alive, the entire planet will die."

"No!" Spirit hissed. "I won't let my friend die."

"Same for me. Gloom and Doom will live." Nyx glared.

"We're all on the same page with that, but…" Dusk frowned. "Why do they want me captured?"

"It was ordered by Talia Al Ghul." Cassandra noted.

"Huh…So they have specific targets, huh…" Dusk glared at the map. "Well it won't matter. Because we're going to stop this before it can even start."

"Hell yeah." Spirit grinned. "No one threatens my friends."

* * *

><p>"Tell me if this sounds familiar…" Batman glared Young Justice as they stood in the Cave. "You hacked League systems, disobeyed protocol, and endangered your lives. And your initiative resulted in the capture of three escaped felons, proving Warden Strange runs Belle Reve as a cover for criminal activity…Well done."<p>

Smiles and shocked looks spread through the faces of the Team.

"And there's this…" Batman approached the briefcase they retrieved. "Biotechnology integrated with some form of nanocircuitry.

One of the newest League members, Icon stepped forward to pick up one of the squid-like chips. He was a tall muscular dark skinned man wearing a black and red jumpsuit and cape. "Though I am unfamiliar with the species, the biocomponent is clearly not of Earth."

"We'll take it to the Watchtower for further study." Batman grabbed the case and headed for the Zeta Tube.

As Batman and Red Tornado disappeared into the Zeta Tube, Rocket flew up to her mentor. "Congratulations on the League thing. Sorry I skipped out."

"Yes, well, we both seem to have found teams that suit us." Icon smiled.

Rocket smiled back.

"We should go too." Black Canary placed a hand on Icon's shoulder. "Don't want to miss the League's induction party."

With that, the remaining members of the League disappeared.

"Do we have an induction party?" Red Huntress questioned as her visor slid down.

"Nope, but we do have cake." Phantom whispered. "Don't tell Wally, though. I've been saving it."

"My lips are sealed." Valerie had to hide her laughter.

Robin turned to the rest of Young Justice and spoke. "You realize we were set up."

Phantom nodded.

"Yes, Cheshire and Riddler were tipped and ready for us." Kaldur didn't seem pleased by this, though.

"Not the mole thing again…" Artemis placed her face in her hand.

"Mole thing?" Rocket turned to her new friends and gained a confused look. She was really out of the loop. "Again?"

Wally sighed. "We had intel that there was a traitor on the Team."

Conner pushed his way forward. "Mainly Artemis, M'gann, Phantom, or me."

"It is more complicated than that." Kaldur placed a hand on Superboy's shoulder. Conner just shoved it away, though. The clone then began to walk away.

"Hey." Phantom spoke up. "What's wrong with you? You've been acting even angrier than usual, SB. You almost got Artemis crushed. I get that the mole thing pisses you off, and I feel the same way, but that's no reason to act like a jackass."

Superboy winced and grabbed his ear for a moment. Phantom thought that he felt guilty, but he looked angry and in pain instead.

"Superboy?" Kaldur questioned.

Conner turned to them. "There's something I need to do…Something I need to tell you. Last month, on Thanksgiving, I went back to Cadmus and found a few things out. When I was cloned, only half the DNA was Superman's. The other half was human. That's why I don't have, will never have full Kryptonian powers."

"You sure?" Robin questioned. "You sure seemed to have them today."

"I've been using these." Superboy pulled up his shirt sleeve to reveal a black shield on his arm. "Shields. They suppress my human DNA. I get the flight, the heat vision, but I think I also get angry…well, angrier. I'm sorry."

"Where did you get those?" Kaldur questioned.

"From my human father…" Conner pulled out what was probably the shield case. "Lex Luthor."

Everyone's eyes widened. Robin was the first to speak. "Lex Luthor…is your Dad!?"

"He's summoned me to Santa Prisca." Superboy's eyes narrowed.

Everyone was silent for a moment. But then, someone spoke.

"Ah…" Artemis took a deep breath. "Listen. Superboy's not the only one suffering from bad DNA."

The blonde archer walked over to the virtual computer and brought up the pictures of the masked and unmasked Cheshire, Sportsmaster, and Huntress...Not to be confused with the Red Huntress. There was a difference.

"My mother is Huntress, an ex-con. The rest of my family aren't even ex." Artemis gritted her teeth. "My Dad's Sportsmaster, and he's sending my sister Cheshire to fly me to Santa Prisca too."

"That's why…" Kid Flash muttered.

"Yeah…" Artemis nodded. "I was so desperate to make sure none of you found out…"

"I knew." Robin spoke up.

"So did I." Phantom nodded.

Everyone turned to them.

"Hey, I'm a detective." Robin smirked.

"I just had a lucky guess." Phantom shrugged. "It's not like it mattered, though. You don't get to choose who you're related to, but you do get to choose who you'll be. And you…both of you…chose to be one of us. That's what matters."

Both Artemis and Superboy seemed relieved.

Wally walked up to Artemis and smiled. "What he said. So…Who's next?"

"I am…" M'gann had her arms crossed and looked down in shame.

"I swear I was kidding…" Kid Flash raised his hand in defense.

"Queen Bee's been blackmailing me." M'gann muttered. She looked up. "She wants me in Santa Prisca too…"

"Blackmailing?" Kaldur asked in confusion. "How?"

"She knows my…true Martian form…" M'gann stated.

"Bald M'gann?" Robin chuckled. "Who cares if-"

"No…" M'gann took a deep breath. Then, her form began to shift. The cute Martian girl slowly changed into what could be described as a monster from a horror film. She was now white and tall with long veiny limbs. Her head was misshapen with red eye, a strange jaw, and a jewel on the middle of her forehead.

Everyone took a step back in surprise besides Kaldur, Phantom, and Conner. Phantom was not shocked. Long ago, back during his first mission in Bialya, he saw her true form briefly when he witnessed some of the Team's memories. He never brought it up, because he didn't think it mattered.

"Woah…" Rocket muttered.

M'gann looked away in shame and hugged herself. She spoke mentally. 'I realized that none of you would ever accept me if you saw what I really am.'

"M'gann." Kaldur spoke up. "Did we really seem so shallow?"

'I couldn't take a chance…' M'gann's mental voice spoke of only despair. 'Being a white Martian among the green on mars, I endured constant rejection. I couldn't face that from-'

"From me?" Superboy asked. He walked up and took her large three fingered hand. 'I've known since you restored my memories back September in Bialya.'

'But…that was before we ever become a couple…' M'gann mumbled. 'Why didn't you say anything?'

'I figured you would tell me when you were ready.' Superboy explained.

'…' M'gann changed back into her green form and hugged the boy. "Thank you…Thank you so much…"

"Don't mention it." Conner held her close.

Phantom shared a look with Red Huntress. She nodded at him. "Er…I hate to ruin the moment, but…I'm being blackmailed as well."

Everyone turned to him.

"It doesn't have to do with my secret, but with someone else's." Phantom explained. "Vandal Savage approached me a while ago. He revealed that he was the one calling the shots along with…everyone you just mentioned. He threatened to destroy Amity Park if I didn't keep quiet from the League and cooperate with him. And…he called me to Santa Prisca as well."

"Wow…" Zatanna's eyes widened. "For the love of God, tell me that's everyone."

Everyone was silent.

"Good…"

"Danny…I am sorry you were put in that position." Kaldur apologized. "If I knew…"

"It's fine." Phantom rubbed the back of his head. "Are any of you mad?"

"You kidding?" Superboy raised an eyebrow. "That's probably the most legit reason I've ever heard."

"Yeah…People's lives were at stake." M'gann smiled.

"Don't sweat it." Artemis smirked.

Phantom was revealed. They were all smiling at him. "Okay…And while we're telling secrets…"

"Danny." Red Huntress gripped his arm. She knew what he was going to do.

"It's fine. I have to do this." Phantom looked at his friends. "The backstory I told you a long time ago…I left a few parts out. Important parts."

"Like?" Wally questioned.

"The fact that I blur the line between life and death. You see…I was there on your mission to protect Fenton." Phantom stated.

"Yeah, you told us that you were operating the Red X suit from afar." Robin noted.

"No…That's not it." Phantom clenched his fists. "It was this."

A white ring appeared above his head. It traveled down and changed Phantom into his human form. Danny Fenton now stood before them.

The amount of shock in the room could not be expressed in words.

"Wha…How…Why…" Wally's jaw dropped. That about summed up how everyone felt.

"You see, about a year and a half ago, my parents…" Fenton paused at the memory but continued. "Built a Ghost Portal. At first it didn't work, so I messed with it, and…there was an accident. Danny Phantom, a half-ghost, was born."

"Half-ghost?" Rocket seemed to get over her shock the fastest. "Those exist?"

"There are a few of us. You can probably guess who they are now, but…That's beside the point." Fenton explained.

"I know this is a lot to take in." Valerie spoke up. "It was for me when I first learned the truth."

"But…how is that possible? Too much ectoplasmic radiation is lethal." Zatanna remembered her lessons with her father on ghosts.

"It's…complicated." Fenton admitted. "Especially for me."

"I see…this changes your story does it not?" Kaldur gained a sad look.

"The Nasty Burger Incident!" M'gann gasped. "That was your family."

"…" Fenton looked down. "It was."

"Bro…" Wally frowned. "That's…Damn."

"What he said…" Artemis nodded.

"I'm sorry I hid this from you." Danny stated. "I just…wasn't ready to share it yet."

"It's fine." Conner nodded to his best friend. "We get it."

"I'm glad…" Fenton smiled. "There are other things I need to explain…especially revolving around my powers, but it can wait. I think right now, we have other things to deal with."

"Yeah, Santa Prisca." Robin scowled. "What do we do?"

"I say…we take them down." Valerie's visor slid up. "Get some payback."

Everyone grinned. They liked that idea…

* * *

><p>"Kekekekekekeke!" Klarion grinned down at the girl before him. "I knew you'd come!"<p>

Nyx frowned up at him. "I wanted to talk to you."

"Of course you did, I'm incredibly interesting." Klarion beamed in pride as he petted Teekl.

"Well…I know where I get my arrogance from at least." Nyx noted mostly to herself.

Following both the signal and Cassandra's directions, Nyx easily found the hideout. Klarion and the equipment was based in underground storage. The building above it was a simple real-estate office. Nyx had to wonder how all this was moved here. Was it moved by magic, technology, or discretely through the Ghost Zone? Perhaps she would find out soon enough.

The room was very big. It was filled with machines that probably had a wide range of functions. Not only this, the room was filled with Necromancers that seemed ready to go to action.

"Klarion," Shiva glared at the lord of chaos. "This was not part of the plan."

"I was never good with plans." Klarion shrugged. "Besides, I want to talk to her before anything happens. If things go as Savage planned, I won't even get a chance to see her."

"Please, Phantom will rebel. It is in his nature." Shiva rolled her eyes.

"You underestimate Savage." Klarion mentioned. "He plans for everything. A little extra motivation is all it will take. Kekekekekeke…"

As this was happening, the patrol team plus Spirit and Cassandra were surveying the area invisibly. They were using the Fenton Disguise Belts newest upgrade of hiding their ecto signature to keep the machines from sensing them. Luckily, that was a bit of information the enemy did not have. They could tell because Walker was by the machines watching for any other ghost signatures besides his and Nyx's to appear. That was probably the reason they thought Nyx was alone.

"No…" Spirit's jaw dropped at the rows and rows of Necromancers. "I thought you said it was only a dozen."

"There was when I left…" Cassandra mumbled.

"This changes things…" Fright Knight mentioned.

"No it doesn't. They're all still made from Matter Make ectoplasm." Dusk whispered. "I can still make them dissolve. Disintegrating all the way takes time and is extremely flashy. Instead, I can just use my powers to speed up their degradation by ten. While I'm doing that, you can set up the signal jammer and find out where the other bases are."

"What should I do?" Cassandra asked.

"Assist Nyx in acting as a distraction." Fright Knight ordered. "Those three…well, in Klarion's case, the cat…are extremely perceptive. We need their attention to be completely away from what we will be doing."

"I can do that…" Cassandra nodded.

"Wait…" Dusk frowned. "Is the Matter Make machine here? If it is, I could destroy all the Necromancers in Amity Park at once by reversing the flow of energy. I know machine can't be too far out of range of the machines, or they would fade instantly."

"It's not here. It must be at the other bases." Cassandra shook her head.

"Damn…Oh well, let's work with what we got." Dusk sighed.

"Okay then. Let us go." Fright Knight nodded.

The ghosts then spread out. Dusk rode Cujo who was in attack more. The large dog allowed the boy to focus completely on the machines. Dusk still needed time to start the dissolve the process on such complicated creations. He spent several seconds focusing on the first Necromancer. His eyes were closed as he placed his hands on the machine and spread his energy into it. When he was done, he patted Cujo, and the dog took him to the next one.

Spirit and Fright Knight first when to put Cassandra in a spot where her sudden appearance wouldn't be noticed. The girl was quickly turned visible and left to add to the distraction. The duo then went to the machines and began to work with them. Staying clear of Walker, Fright Knight and Spirit set up the signal jammer device they were using to disrupt the bases ability to communicate with the others. They hid the device behind one of the machines and prepped it to stat when they needed.

They also looked for any clues to where the other bases were. Unfortunately, this proved to be difficult. They couldn't work with the machines without alerting the enemy, and any paper plans were wild and disorganized.

"So…" Nyx ideally juggled ectoplasmic balls of energy in her hands. "You made me to be a monster, eh?"

"That was my original intent." Klarion shrugged.

"And you did that to fight against my mom…to fight against order." Nyx commented.

"Yep." Klarion grinned at what he considered to be a happy thought.

"My nature is chaos, but I was raised to protect order." Nyx frowned in thought.

"Quite the conundrum, eh? But I always say that nature defeats nurture." Klarion chuckled. "Let me show you just how much fun chaos is, and I'll sure you'll love it a lot more than order."

"Well, I do like chaos, but I don't want anyone hurt…" Nyx 'accidentally' tripped and caused one of the shadow balls to hit a nearby machine. The machine sparked and exploded into a million pieces. "Oops…"

Klarion was delight. "Kekekekekekeke! See! That was amazing! You weren't even trying!"

"Klarion!" Walker snapped. "We need those machines. Control her."

"Shut up, I'm bonding with her." Klarion glared.

"Meow." Teekl spoke up from Klarion's arms.

"I am too staying focused." Klarion frowned. "My focus is on Nyx right now."

"A cat…" Nyx eyed the animal. "Wait…No it isn't. What is that?"

"My familiar!" Klarion stated proudly. "Teekl is the bestest cat ever!"

"I know cats. That is no cat." Nyx frowned.

"She is very perceptive…" Shiva mentioned.

"SHUT UP!" Klarion roared. His magically energy flared around him.

"Okay, so I got my temper from both you and Mom…Good to know." Nyx mentioned.

"Raw…" Klarion growled.

"Meow." Teekl looked at the Witch Boy.

"Calm…I'm calm…" Klarion let out a breath and dropped his energy.

"Meow."

"Of course you smell ghosts. There's two of them here, dummy." Klarion rolled his eyes.

"Me-"

"So that girl is really Klarion's daughter? Weird…" Cassandra noted as she walked up to the adults.

"Cassandra! What are you doing here!?" Shiva glared at her daughter.

"I was interested in what you were doing in Amity Park again." Cassandra answered.

"How did you follow me…again." Shiva questioned. She was quite perplexed in how her daughter could follow her so often without her noticing. Perhaps she had a blind spot for her daughter.

"I don't really know. Sometimes I just do things. I don't really know how." Cassandra shrugged.

"Amen to that, sister! Testify!" Nyx raised a fist in support.

"I'm glad I did come, because I have some concerns with what you're doing." Cassandra noted. "You taught me that you should only kill with purpose…Only if the person truly deserves it. But the ghosts of Amity Park do not deserve death. They have only done good in the world."

"They oppose the Great One." Shiva stated.

"Well, maybe the Great One is wrong." Cassandra responded.

"OOOOOOOOH!" Klarion's eyes lit up. "Now that's a fun thing to hear! Why don't you go tell that to the Shadow cultist weirdos and see what happens?!"

"…Cassandra. You can't say such things." Shiva explained.

"So we aren't even allowed to express our opinions?" Cassandra did not seem pleased. "Is that the hand that fate has dealt us? Are we merely slaves to Ra's Al Ghul?"

"It's more complicated than that." Shiva sighed.

"More complicated? You're working with a man that's main goal is to kill an innocent child." Cassandra glared at Walker. "Not only that, you want to kill the Raven girl yourself. I know that she's a threat…but she's the same age as me."

"Cassandra, you speak of things you don't understand." Shiva glared down at her daughter.

"That's the thing…" Cassandra glared at her mother. "I understand far more than you give me credit for."

"…And I can read you better than you think I can." Shiva stared at the young girl's face.

"Well, this is a change of pace." Nyx noted as she tried to take the attention back to her. "Why don't we go back to you convincing me to be your puppet...slave…bla bla bla bla… stuff?"

"No." Shiva looked at the machines. They still weren't showing anything. "We are not alone here."

"But the machines aren't showing anything." Walker frowned.

Shiva's eyes swept the room. They paused when they noticed the slightest bit of movement around the machines at the far wall. The assassin instantly went for some ectoplasmic empowered shuriken, but she was stopped when a fist rammed into her face.

"No!" Dusk became visible as Shiva was sent flying back. He knew that their cover was blown. Logically, he probably shouldn't have attacked first. Spirit's Premonition and Fright Knight's Armor would have protected them, but he had to make sure. It was a good thing he did, because the shuriken that Shiva had went flying to the side and blew up.

"Damn!" Walker growled. He reached to a nearby machine and hit a large button. All the Necromancer instantly came to life. Immediately after he did this, though, Cujo turned visible and mauled the ex-warden of the Ghost Zone.

"Change of plans! Attack!" Spirit turned visible and attacked. The Fright Knight quickly followed and did the same thing. It was now a brawl between them and the Necromancers.

"You!" Klarion glared at Nyx. "You tricked me!"

"Yep." Nyx grinned. "But what are you going to do about it?"

Klarion's features became demonic. "I'LL TEACH YOU A LESSON!"

* * *

><p>"You came…" Jinx noted as Phantom landed down next to her in the jungles of Santa Prisca. She had used her pink energy as a flare to attract his attention to her.<p>

"It's not like I had a whole lot of choice." Phantom glared at the pinkette.

"Look, I'm sorry about this." Jinx sighed. "I didn't want to do all this. It was Dad's idea."

"Of course it was." Phantom did not seem to be any less upset.

"Please don't be mad. I did try to change his mind." Jinx pleaded. "He's just kind of really stubborn…Kind of like someone else I know…"

"Look…I'm not mad at you, so don't apologize, but also don't compare me to him." Phantom crossed his arms.

"Right…" Jinx nodded.

"Good…Let's get this over with." Phantom stated.

"Alright. This way, some of the bosses are here waiting for you." Jinx pointed to the West.

"Fine. Lead the way." Phantom shrugged.

The pink haired teen then led the halfa through the jungle. They were both silent as they went, until Jinx spoke once more. "What are planning to do when you refuse to work with us?"

"How do you know that I'll refuse?" Phantom questioned.

"Because I know you." Jinx noted. "You won't work with us. Your honor won't let you. Just tell me…do you have a plan so that you don't die? I…don't want you to die."

"Don't worry. I don't plan to die any time soon." Phantom grinned at her.

"I see…" Jinx looked away. "But…I wonder if you're really prepared."

"Prepared for what?"

"For that…" Jinx led him into a clearing.

Phantom stared at the group of people in the clearing. Superboy…Artemis…Miss Martian…They were all here and were surrounded by some of the most well-known villains in the world. Bane was there with his men who were equipped with Apakopitic technology. Cheshire and Sportsmaster were with Artemis. Blockbuster was looking menacing, while Mercy was protecting both Lex Luthor.

"What is this?" Phantom glanced to Jinx.

Jinx looked away in shame.

"Ah, and the last one arrives." Luthor smiled.

The other members of Young Justice looked at Phantom in shock. Phantom scowled. "It's not like I have a whole lot of choice in the matter. What is this? Even more collateral?"

"That wasn't the original plan, but it worked out that way." Queen Bee smiled at Phantom. She knew that her enthrallment would not work on this man, so she needed to be more careful in case he turned of them.

"…Fine." Phantom frowned and reluctantly said. "Just…Leave my obsession alone, and I'll do what you say…"

"Excellent." Queen Bee seemed delighted. Like right after the Ghoul Project was destroyed, she gained a look of desire. She looked at him like he was an important piece of furniture needed in order to bring everything together.

Superboy eyed his friend then turned to Luthor. "…Give me more shields, and I'm in too."

Luthor approached Superboy and looked him in the eye. He smirked. "My boy…You're a terrible liar. Red Sun."

Superboy froze before he could do anything. Phantom frowned at his trapped friend but knew there was nothing he could do.

Artemis walked forward. "What do you want us to do?"

"You three, follow me." Sportsmaster pointed at all the young heroes besides Superboy.

"What about Superboy?" Miss Martian questioned.

"He'll be fine." Queen Bee spoke. "He simply requires a few…adjustments."

"Bring him along." Luthor ordered Blockbuster as they began to walk to Bane's Venom factory.

Before Blockbuster could grab Superboy, however, Artemis stepped forward and drew her bow. She shot a foam bow to trap the monster that used to be known as Dr. Desmond. The archer then quickly turned her attention back to her fathers. She drew and arrow and pointed it at him. "Sorry, Dad, I wanted to play you like you tried to play me, but I can't let them mess with Superboy's head."

In anger, Sportsmaster tried to use a javeline to strike Artemis, but M'gann was faster. She lifted up Artemis into the air and floated her there helplessly. At least, this what everyone thought, until M'gann telekinetically knocked Queen Bee into a tree and knocked her out.

"Damn." Jinx hissed as her hands lit up with pink energy. "We need to-Gah!"

"Sorry." Phantom mumbled as he knocked her away. "But I can't let you hurt them."

Phantom then turned to the Bane and his men. He sent ectoplasmic blasts at them. This caused the mercenaries to scatter. As he did this, Artemis used an explosive arrow to do the same thing to the assassins.

'Queen Bee is down. Superboy, you're safe from her control.' M'gann noted mentally.

Superboy instantly cut the act and walked towards Luthor and his assistant Mercy. "I may not be much of a liar, but I fooled you."

"And I'm so proud." Luthor noted as Mercy stood in front of him defensively. "I take it Miss Martian cleansed the Red Sun program from your mind?"

"And confirmed that Phantom, Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash rescued me from Cadmus before you had time to install any other programming."

"All true." Luthor admitted. "Personally, I blame Dr. Desmond."

"RAW!" Blockbuster broke through his restraints and charged at Superboy. He crushed the clone into the ground and towards the cliff side.

It was then that the separated mercenaries of Bane began to fire their weapons. In response, Sphere the Supercycle floated into the air and began to attack them. The following shot lit up the jungle and caused a few fires to start.

"Luthor!" Phantom flew at the billionaire. The bald man was the one in charge now. If he could capture Luthor, then Phantom might be able to get the others to stand down…It wasn't likely, but it was possible. Either way, he needed to make sure Luthor didn't make any calls off the island. He would have helped his friends, but Artemis had already mentally called for reinforcements.

Mercy stepped forward. Her right armed extended and morphed into a canon. A blast of energy was shot at Phantom, but the halfa was used to dodging such blasts at this point. The blasts were strong, though, and he was forced to retreat a before he could get to them.

Luckily, Aqualad worked as backup. He dropped down and held his Water Bearers to Luthor. This caught Mery's attention. She instantantly turned to protect her master. This allowed Phantom to get to Mercy, destroy her weapon arm, and knock out what he assumed to be an android.

Luthor glared at the teens. He held Queen Bee in his arms protectively. "You do realize that you won't be able to keep us captured for long. My lawyers will have me out in hours, and Queen Bee has diplomatic immunity."

"It is the principle of the matter." Kaldur responded.

"Yep." Phantom then froze Luthor's legs to the ground. He wasn't going anywhere. "You got to love payback."

"They are not going anywhere." Kaldur noted. "We should help the others."

"Right." Phantom nodded.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe this…" Jinx growled as she watched Young Justice enter the area and take down Bane's mercenaries with ease.<p>

"Believe it." Red Huntress pointed an ectoplasmic pistol to Jinx.

"So…you're here too." Jinx glared at the girl.

"I am, and I'm taking you down." Red Huntress glared back.

"Just try it!" Jinx sent hex bolts at the other girl. Red Huntress quickly dodged the blasts and sent some of her own energy blasts at the girl. They continued this dance for a minute, but then they figured out that this strategy wouldn't work with their current opponent. Thus, the girls rushed in to fight in hand-to-hand combat.

As they did this, the other members of Young Justice quickly went to work on the people in the clearing. Rocket's kinetic abilities made quick work of the mercenaries. Superboy and Miss Martian were fighting back Blockbuster, but the monster proved to be resilient. Robin and Zatanna were taking down Bane. Artemis, however, was being pushed back by her family. She fell to the ground after being hit back by Sportsmaster.

"You know I don't tolerate disobedience…" Sportsmaster glared down at the blond archer.

"Yeah Dad…Jade and I learned that the hard way." Artemis looked back at Cheshire who was pointing a sword at her sister. The female assassin wasn't given a chance to respond, though. Kid Flash quickly came to Artemis's aid. He used his speed to knock Cheshire away and tried to do the same to the blond man. This time, though, the speedster was caught and thrown into the branches behind them.

It was at this point that all the fights were quickly resolved when Phantom, Kaldur, and Rocket used the Apokoliptic technology dropped by the mercenaries to trap Blockbuster and Sportsmaster into the ground.

"GRAW!" Blockbuster roared.

"You should really learn to channel that anger." Superboy noted.

While that was happening, Cheshire quickly retreated, abandoning her father to his fate.

"Jade!" Sportsmaster yelled in rage. He was quickly silenced when Artemis rammed a foot in his face.

"…" Jinx looked over the scene. She and Red Huntress had been trading blows, but when she the tides begin to turn she moved back. "It appears we lose…I lose. He made his choice."

"That's right, and I'm not letting you escape." Red Huntress noted. She ran forward, only to stop when the pinkette raised her hands in surrender.

"Forget it. I'm done fighting today." Jinx noted. "Besides…Danny's going to need a bit of help with what's going to come next. Because all hell is about to break lose."

"What do you call this, then?" Red Huntress glared.

"The entree."

* * *

><p>Despite the activation of the Necromancers, the fight proved to be very anticlimactic. Dusk managed to get his job done before Shiva attacked. Nyx and Cassandra bought him just enough time. Thus, the Necromancers quickly fell apart as soon as they were activated. The shock caused the ghost's enemies to pause for the briefest of moments.<p>

That was all they needed, though.

Walker was easily overpowered by Cujo. He was tossed around and pushed down by the large dog. The ex-warden of the Ghost Zone was too rattled by the sneak attack to get any leeway, despite his skill. Cujo held him down long enough for Spirit to use a now rarely used Fenton Thermos to capture the enemy.

Shiva also didn't recover from the sneak attack. Dusk's blow nearly knocked her out. She did manage to put up a bit of a fight, but this did not last long. Cassandra quickly helped the boy in his fight with Shiva. The adult assassin was so shocked by this betrayal that she did not even put up a fight as Dusk used his Pendulum Nunchaku to tie her up.

Klarion actually managed to do a bit of damage. He used magical black electricity to punish Nyx for her actions. The girl screamed in pain until the Fright Knight intervened. The knight ghost used his blade to cut Klarion in half. The Lord of Chaos wasn't killed because of his nature, but this did give the Fright Knight a chance to grab Teekl, throw the cat demon to the floor, and point his blade at its neck.

"No! Don't hurt her!" Klarion cried.

"I won't. I don't know what your death will do. The burst of energy might alert the enemy." Fright Knight noted. "But if you or this cat even twitches, you're both dead."

"Grr…" Klarion glared at him.

"Are you alright, Nyx." Fright Knight questioned.

"I…I think so…" Nyx stood. A small bit of black electricity still danced around her, but it quickly faded.

"Good…" Fright Knight turned to the others in the room. "And all of you?"

"I'm good!" Spirit grinned and waved the thermos around.

"I am as well…" Dusk kept an eye on Shiva.

"Good…" Fright Knight nodded.

"…" Shiva looked at her daughter. "Why did you do this, Cassandra?"

"I saw where the hands of fate were leading us." Cassandra noted. "If things continued the way they were, you and a lot of good people would have died. I couldn't let that happen."

"Foolish girl…I don't care about myself or this city. I only cared about you and your safety." Shiva stated.

"I would prefer happiness and a clear conscience compared to safety." Cassandra argued.

"You are too much like your father…" Shiva gained a distant look. "But…maybe that's a good thing."

"Hmm…" The Fright Knight hummed as he turned his attention away from that scene and to Klarion. "Now that we have captured this base, we can focus on the others. Tell me, Witch Boy, where are the other bases and what is in them?"

"Like I would ever tell you. I ain't no snitch!" Klarion glared. "Even if you threaten Teekl, I won't talk. It may take a while, but we'll reform again one day."

"Damn…" Fright Knight cursed.

"I'll talk." Shiva spoke up.

Everyone turned to her.

"You will?" Cassandra's eyes widened.

"Yes." Shiva nodded. "I…I have never seen you care for anything like this before. You have made your choices, and as your mother, I need to support you."

"Then…you'll tell us what you know?" Spirit questioned.

"Yes."

"How do we know you aren't lying?" Dusk questioned.

"You have my word."

"…Fair enough. Speak."

"What I know…It's hard to say. I don't care how prepared you are, you still aren't prepared enough." Shiva explained. "Savage has planned for everything. "This is by far, the weakest base. We were only meant to signal the beginning of the attack. The fact is, that the battle soon to come shall bring an end to you all."

"Why do you say that? We are strong and ready." Dusk argued.

"Because we have a plan to take each of you down." Shiva noted. "Necromancers, failed ghouls, special tech, and every single villain that has even the slightest grudge against the ghosts."

"What?"

"And they are ready and willing kill all of you." Shiva explained. "Except for Joel and Nyx…You two are special, because the Light has ordered your capture instead of your death."

"Why's that?" Nyx questioned.

"Because you are destined to join our cause." It wasn't Shiva that said that. It was a female voice, though.

"What?!" Dusk turned in alarm. He recognized that voice, but it was too late.

Swish! Crack! Boom!

"No!" Spirit yelled out as the Fenton Thermos was cut in half. Walker was instantly freed. While this was happening, Fright Knight was blasted away and Dusk was knocked back. The youngest halfa felt a foot push him down.

"…Talia…" Dusk looked up at the woman.

Before he could say more, everything went into chaos. Klarion grabbed Teekl and quickly teleported away. Walker grabbed Spirit and used her to bat Cujo into the far wall.

"Hello, Joel. I think it's time that we talked." Talia mentioned.

"Same here, girl." Walker grinned at Spirit. "Let's go somewhere more comfortable."

Swwwwwiiiiiiiisssssssshhhhhhhhh-Boooooooooom!

A white swirling portal called a Boom Tube formed underneath the duos of Shiva plus Dusk and Walker plus Spirit. In a flash, they all disappeared into the different portals. This left the others gaping and in a rage.

"NO!" Fright Knight roared. He looked at Shiva. "WHERE DID THEY GO!?"

"I don't know, but I doubt it is to a good place…" Shiva frowned.

* * *

><p>"Did you have to knock out Luthor?" Phantom questioned as he looked at the unconscious billionaire.<p>

"Yeah, when would I ever get a chance like this again?" Superboy shrugged.

"We could have interrogated him…" Phantom sighed.

"He wouldn't have talked anyway." Kaldur noted.

"True." Phantom nodded slowly.

"It's fine. Maybe I can look their minds anyway. Although, it's a bit harder when they're unconscious…" M'gann muttered.

The group of four was quickly joined by the remaining members of Young Justice.

"Wow…" Rocket noted as she looked across the entire scene. "It really is always like this."

"Told you." Zatanna smiled.

"Hey," Robin smirked. "Disaster averted. Feeling the aster."

"Not yet." Artemis noted as she and Wally approached them. "We're not done."

"Yeah, what about Amity Park?" Kid Flash questioned.

"That's why I wanted to talk to Luthor. I wanted to figure out what they were planning, but that can't happen now." Phantom sighed.

"Maybe it can…" Red Huntress stated as she led the cuffed Jinx to the group.

"Hey…" Jinx muttered.

"Hey." Phantom nodded to her.

"You know her?" Rocket gained a curious glance, as did most of the Team that didn't know about Phantom's relation with Jinx.

"It's part of the long story that revolved around my secret identity. I'll explain it later." Phantom stated.

"Fair enough." Superboy nodded. "But how will she help us? She's an assassin. They don't normally talk about business.."

"Yes she will." Red Huntress spoke. "Tell them what you told me."

"I know a lot more than most people. As long as no one finds out…I'll talk about the threats in Amity Park, but nothing else. If only to make sure Danny doesn't die or lose someone he cares about." Jinx mentioned.

"Thanks, but we're kind of pressed for time." Phantom noted. "No one here will contact the enemy in Amity Park, but Cheshire got away…"

"I don't think Jade is in the mood to help the enemy." Artemis noted. "She'll probably just go to one of her safe houses."

"Then that buys us some time." M'gann mentioned.

"Right." Superboy nodded and turned to Jinx. "What do you know?"

"Everything." Jinx stated. "But now that I think of it…I don't think it's going to matter. It may already be too late. You're already in check. No matter what your next move is, you'll either be put in check again or…it will be checkmate."

"Why?"

"Because the real plan is already finished."

* * *

><p>Dr. Fate was staring down at the planet below her. The Watchtower had a truly beautiful view. She always loved looking down on Earth. It made everything seem so small.<p>

"Are you not going to join the party?" Red Arrow questioned as he walked behind the Lord of Order.

"No…I am not a part person. Besides, it feels wrong to be here without Phantom." Dr. Fate sighed. "I understand and respect his reasons, but I am still disappointed. I wished to work with him again."

"Oh?" Red Arrow was right behind her now.

"Yes. He is a unique individual, and he was once one with me." Dr. Fate noted. "Fate has already decided that he shall do great things…" She froze as Red Arrow placed a small tentacle like chip on the back of her neck.

"Go wait with the others." Red Arrow ordered. Dr. Fate obeyed without questioned.

She walked to the main hall of the Watchtower and stood next to the others.

'_What's happening?_' Dora questioned.

'_I don't know! I can't move!__'_ Nabu shouted in panic. He couldn't be contained anymore! He refused to lose control of his own fate yet again!

'_Calm yourself._' Dora said soothingly. '_We will figure this out. We just need to stay calm._'

'_You're right.' _Nabu admitted._ "But what can we do?"_

'_We wait and pray…What is Batman doing?_'

"Override. Batman 02." Batman ordered the computer as he typed on the hologram keyboard.

**Recognized. Access Granted: Vandal Savage A04**

Vandal Savage walked into the Watchtower. All the League members knelt down before the man. The only one that didn't was Red Arrow. Instead, he held his head and groaned as if he was waking up. He looked around and realized, "I…I was the mole?"

"Yes…Yes you were…" Despite the situation, Savage did not seem pleased. He walked up to Red Arrow and delivered a vicious back fist. The archer fell to the ground in an unconscious heap. "But not anymore…"

The immortal caveman walked over to the far window and looked down at Earth. "Klarion."

Klarion appeared in a blaze out of the ring on Savage's finger. Like Savage, he did not appear happy. He already told Savage what happened in Amity Park. "So…what now?"

"I have not heard from Santa Prisca. Something happened. That means Phantom denied our offer." Savage frowned. "And it appears that the ghosts are more prepared than I thought they would be."

"I say we burn them all." Klarion noted.

"Not Phantom…not yet at least. He's still useful." Savage frowned. "I'll send a message to Amity Park, though. It is time to start the attack. After I call them, I'll tell them to set up all the signal jammers. We can't have Phantom going there just yet after all."

"What about the rest of the ghosts?"

"If we can use the Starro Tech to control them, then we will. But if they put up too much off a fight…It might just be better to kill them all."

"Excellent." Klarion rubbed his hands together devilishly. "Just leave Nyx. I've just planted the seed of madness after all."

"That's fine." Savage nodded. "And Ra's has dealt with Joel already. That means everyone else there is expendable, and they will all die if they refuse to step into the Light."

* * *

><p><strong>The beginning of the end...But it is going to be an extremely longer and different end than in the show.<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

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	29. Defeat

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of those depths."

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

* * *

><p>Chapter 29: "Defeat"<p>

(Friday-December 31, 2010)

"Damn." Phantom hissed. "I can't get in contact with Amity Park. My calls won't go through. I need to warn them…"

"Do not worry, Danny." Kaldur looked over to his friend. "We will talk with the League and move to Amity Park soon enough."

Young Justice had just exited the hanger and was heading to the main hall of the Cave. Jinx had given them her father's entire game plan to attack Amity Park. It was quickly decided that they needed to talk to the League for help. Unfortunately, there was trouble with communicating with both the Justice League and Amity Park, so they decided to quickly return to the Cave in order to speak with the League and Zeta to Amity Park.

"Bro, I'm sure everything's fine right now." Kid Flash spoke to his friend. "We made sure that the group on Santa Prisca didn't contact anyone on the outside."

"It's not that." Red Huntress mentioned. "The amount of force they have. We're not prepared for it right now."

"That's why we and the League will help." Artemis smirked. "With all of us together we can totally win."

"True…" Phantom sighed.

"Hey…" Zatanna looked over to Robing. "Rob, you okay? You've been quiet for a while."

"I've been wondering…" The Boy Wonder frowned. "There was obviously a mole, but it's none of us."

"Good point." Superboy frowned. "That would have definitely been the time to betray us."

"Then who was it?" Miss Martian questioned.

"The mole was Red Arrow." Batman looked to the Team as they entered the main hall of the Cave. Several of the League members was waiting for them. This included Red Tornado, Zatara, Captain Marvel, and Black Canary.

"What?" Rocket voiced all of their thoughts as their jaws dropped.

"No way!" Robin shouted.

"Roy was Green Arrow's protégé for years." Kaldur frowned.

"The Roy Harper we have known for the last three years is another Project Cadmus clone." Red Tornado noted. The Cadmus building appeared in the virtual computer.

"We've learned that real Speedy was abducted and replaced immediately after becoming Green Arrow's sidekick." Batman explained. "The clone was pre-programmed with a drive to join the Justice League, which is why he was so angry to any delays of his mission and why he refused to join Young Justice. This Roy Harper had no idea that he was a clone or a traitor, and his subconscious programming drove him to become League worthy. So he struck out on his own as Red Arrow and when he did, his secondary programming kicked in; and he attempted to betray the League for Vandal Savage. Fortunately, I had already deduced Red Arrow was a clone. We were prepared."

"Savage was subdued. As was Red Arrow, Martian Manhunter is working on erasing his reprogramming as we speak." Red Tornado spoke again.

"If you hadn't rescued me from Cadmus…" Superboy rubbed the back of his neck.

"What…What happened to the real Roy?" Robin questioned.

"We don't know. He isn't at Cadmus. We have to face the possibility that the real Roy Harper is dead." Batman sighed.

Everyone gained a saddened look. Phantom saw that the original sidekicks were the most devastated.

"Did…any of us even know the real Roy?" Kaldur questioned.

"That is uncertain, but it is likely that the only Roy you ever knew was the clone." Batman mentioned.

Phantom looked around. "Look…I don't want to be a jerk here, but there's kind of an emergency going on…"

"Yeah…You're right." Wally gained a hardened look. "Amity Park needs our help."

"I know. J'onn read Savage's mind and found out everything. We know how he blackmailed you and threatened Amity Park. Several League members are there helping your family." Captain Marvel stated.

"There appear to be signal jammers all around the city, though." Black Canary mentioned. "We can't contact the other members of the League, but the Zeta Tubes seem to still work. We should leave immediately before something terrible happens."

"We need to be careful, though. It could be…dangerous…" Zatarra looked over to his daughter.

"Dad…" Zatanna groaned. "I'll be fine."

"Yeah, she's tough as nails." Rocket grinned at her new friend.

"It will be fine Zatara." Black Canary comforted the magic user.

"I know…" Zatara sighed.

"Come…" Red Tornado approached the Team to lead them to the Zeta Tubes. "Let us go…"

"Huh?" Phantom blinked. Red Tornado was about to touch his shoulder. The halfa didn't think anything of it. The android was beginning to learn more about humanity and caring for people. He probably thought the gentle touch would be comforting. The odd thing was…The android froze just as his hand was about to touch Phantom.

Phantom looked at Red Arrow's hand. In it was a squid like chip. It was exactly like the ones they recovered in the Rocky Mountains. It was likely that these things were used in Batman's story of Savage trying to control the Justice League. And Red Tornado was about to put one on him. That means… "No…They're still under Savage's control!"

Bam! Captain Marvel rocketed forward and sucker punched Phantom.

"Danny!"

* * *

><p>"Where did they go?!" Fright Knight roared.<p>

"I do not know." Shiva glared up to the knight ghost. "I already told you that."

After Dusk and Shiva disappeared, Fright Knight when into a frenzy. He leveled the base and dragged Shiva back to Fenton Works along with Cujo and Nyx. It was there that he explained everything that happened and tried to interrogate Shiva further.

"I want you to think about this really carefully." Vision glared down at the woman who was chained up. "A girl I consider my daughter and a boy have I become quite fond of have disappeared. Tell me, what would you do in my situation to someone that was holding back information that could be used to save them?"

"If my daughter was in danger, I would kill anyone in my path." Shiva admitted. "But I already told you everything I know about the other four bases…"

"What about the hidden bases." Plasmius questioned. "You mentioned that there were two of them."

"Even I don't know where those are. They are being used to house the Matter Make Machine and the device used to control the ghouls. We need them both here so that none of the Necromancers dissolve too quickly and none of the ghouls go out of control." Shiva frowned. "We had no idea how they would react in Amity Park."

"How did you even hide all this equipment in Amity Park without us knowing…" Fright Knight growled.

"Magic, trained assassins, alien technology, though the Ghost Zone, and a lot of pre-planning…" Shiva explained. "Anything that would make sure that we didn't gain your attention."

"Hmm…Is there anyone that would know where the hidden bases are?" Plasmius questioned.

"Klarion, Walker, and Talia." Shiva stated.

"Why Walker?" Vision questioned.

"He has a way with the ghouls. He makes controlling them easy." Shiva mentioned. "He was about to head out to the hidden base before Nyx arrived."

"Damn…" Fright Knight grunted. "What do we do now then?"

"We just try our best to find them. It's going to be hard with the signal jammers, though." Plasmius noted. "I do hope the jammers don't influence the Zeta Tubes…I don't think they will because of the different frequencies, but you never know for sure…"

"It won't." Shiva noted. "I know they won't..."

"Okay…" Vision nodded. "But…I have to ask…How do you plan to contact each other like this? You can't use radios and Amity Park is too big from mental instructions."

Boom!

Everyone turned to the window to see the giant explosion.

"We were going to blow up a building to signal the beginning of the attack." Shiva noted.

"We can see that…"

* * *

><p>"Guh…" Spirit groaned as she pushed herself to her feet. "…Oh crap. I'm in a cage again…If Nyx is trying to sell me to a zoo again, I'm going to be so pissed."<p>

It was true. She was in a cage that was like the ones in the Ghoul Project. She couldn't see or hear anything. As she was about to use her ectoplasm to light up the area, a little bit of light appeared around her. At the same time, the cage opened, and she was allowed stepped out.

"Good. You woke up." Walker was standing a good distance away at the edge of the light.

"Walker…" Spirit growled and slid to a self-defense stance. "Where are we?"

"In an underground cave deep beneath Amity Park carved out by Undergrowth back during the Injustice League fiasco." Walker gestured around. "At the bosses orders, he built two of these things. The only way in or out is by a portal, teleportation, or intangibility. Of course, there's no air down here, but that doesn't matter to ghosts."

"Why did you bring me here?" Spirit questioned.

"Why, for you judgment of course." Walker grinned. "You see, there are rules about these things. Before the prison inmate can be executed, he…or she must first be caught. Done. Put in a jail cell. I improvised. Have a trial. That's happening right now. And then the executioner, that's me, deals your punishment."

"You…" Spirit growled. "I don't get it. Why not just kill me while I'm unconscious?"

"My obsession to follow the rules and to punish those who break them." Walker explained. "I cannot go against those fundamental rules, even if it would be the smart and easy thing to do."

"I see…"

"I've decided that you're guilty." Walker gave her a nasty look. "And your sentence is death."

"And what am I guilty of?" Spirit questioned.

"Being Phantom's sister." Walker mentioned.

"Since when is that breaking the rules?" Spirit glared.

"Since Phantom took my prison from me!" Walker shouted. "He took what I cared about most, so I'm going to take away what he cares about most. I'll kill you, throw your lifeless body before him, and end him once and for all."

"There's a flaw in your plan, cowboy." Spirit mocked his appearance. "There is no way I would lose to you. I've faced way stronger enemies than you and won."

"True, I've always lacked the raw amount of power to rival an S-rank ghost, but that doesn't matter. It's not about raw power. It's about intelligence and cunning, and I have that in spades." Walker grinned. "For example."

Walker clapped his hands. The lights in the room turned completely on. This revealed the rows of cages around the entire metal coated cave. There was a failed ghoul in each cage. They were all misshapen and deformed, but they were still holding their forms stably.

"What?" Spirit blinked at them. "Why are they…so still?"

"You see that machine?" Walker motioned behind him. A large computer was there. It had many monitors and blinking parts. "It was created to control these freaks. And guess who's in control?"

"No…"

"Yes." Walker grinned widely.

Boom! Rumble!

"What was that?" Spirit questioned.

"The signal." Walker reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a red button. With a quick press, the failed ghouls were released from their cages. "Go."

Spirit prepared herself. The waves of failed ghouls would surely attack her. Except…they didn't. The failed ghouls instead raced for the ceiling of the cave and fazed through the metal and rock.

"What?" Spirit blinked.

"That was part of the plan. The failed ghouls will attack the surface and cause some havoc." Walker explained.

"But…I thought the plan was to have the failed ghouls attack me?" Spirit questioned.

"Nope."

"That's stupid then." Spirit smirked. "Without them, I can kick your ass."

"You think so?" Walker reached into his jacket again. He pulled out a vile of red liquid. "Wrong. Did you really think that all that time in the Shadows was for nothing? I was able to research in all of their allies assets. I managed to all their genetic modification research to create this serum."

"Wait…Is that like Blockbuster formulas or Kobra Venom?" Spirit's eyes widened.

"No. This is the a far more modified version for ghosts." Walker grinned. "They used this on Undergrowth. It does boost strength by a large margin, but it won't change my appearance too much…at least in comparison to Blockbuster or Mammoth."

"No, wait!"

"Too late." Walker downed the vial of red liquid. The effect was instantaneous. The ex-warden's muscles began to bulge out. His green veins popped out. Green energy danced around him, and a wave of raw anger washed over the area. It appeared to be a Haunting Aura. Spirit hadn't faced one of those in a long time.

Wait that meant…Walker was pushed to the power of an S-rank ghost.

"No…" The now hulking Walker grinned at her. His white suit was in ruins as it was ripped from Walker's sudden growth. This allowed Spirit to see his massive muscles and intimidating form. "Time to do my favorite job. Execution time."

* * *

><p>"…" Dusk frowned at Talia. "Where did you take me?"<p>

Talia Al Ghul was wearing an oxygen mask over her mouth. "This is the secret area where we are keeping the Matter Make machine."

"What?" Dusk's eyes widened.

"Yes." Talia smirked. "I thought that would get your attention. After all, the Matter Make Necromancers are the only ones we have left. The last attack on Amity Park for the Mirror of Memories destroyed our last ones and used up all the materials to make them. They are extremely expensive and hard to make after all."

Dusk did not remember anything after falling through the portal. He woke up in a small room that also had Talia in it. She was watching and waiting for him to wake up.

"Where?" Dusk's eyes bounced around the small room.

"Through there." Talia pointed behind her. As she did this, a door opened to reveal a large, incredibly bright area.

Dusk glared as he formed Pendulum Nunchuku. "And you're going to try and stop me?"

"Oh? So quick to resort to fighting? You have changed, Joel." Talia noted.

"No matter what…I still hate violence…Hurting others always feels wrong, but I can't think about that right now." Dusk noted. "My family is in danger. If I hesitate, they could die. So, I will fight without a second thought."

"I like that new attitude, but…" Talia stepped to the side. "I won't stop you."

"You won't?" Dusk did not relax.

"Of course not. That would ruin what I have planned." Talia chuckled. "Go ahead and try to destroy the machine. I won't stop you. The only thing you have to do is defeat the guardian."

"Guardian? Who's that?" Dusk questioned.

"That would be telling, but he does have a grudge against ghosts. I think he would have preferred Spirit, but Walker was promised her a long time ago. I think as long as he knows that the ghosts are being killed, he's happy." Talia mentioned. "But when I mentioned that you were close to Spirit…He just smiled."

"…Fine…" Dusk began to walk forward. He did not take his eyes away from the woman though, just in case she tried to attack him. She did nothing, though, other than smile. The boy quickly made it out of the room.

"Good luck…" Talia noted as the door closed behind him.

Dusk looked around the much larger room. It was far too bright. This was because the entire room was filled with rectangular mirrors around the size of a man. They were all connected and covered the floor, walls, and ceiling.

On far wall was a machine. It had a single monitor and keyboard on the side, but that was only a small part of it. The massive machine was smooth and slick on the front and top, but not on the sides. On one side was a container of green ectoplasm. On the other side was an opening that allowed the Matter Make weapons to be removed.

"Hello. You must be Dusk."

Dusk turned around in alarm, but he saw nothing other than his own reflection.

"I asked you a question."

Dusk looked up. Nothing…

"Oh, you're confused. I'm not surprised. I'll show myself."

It was then that the entire room was filled with people. Actually, it was only one person really. This one man appeared in every mirror at once. Each reflection looked at him. Dusk recognized the man. He was Mirror Master.

"I was waiting for you." Mirror Master noted. His voice came from everywhere in the room.

"Sorry. I was a little unconscious." Dusk scanned the room for the mirror that Mirror Master was really in. He couldn't tell, though.

"I know. But now, I get to test out my new toys." Mirror Master grinned. "This fight is a test to see how the next year will go for me."

"Not very well, I can assure you." Dusk did not make any sudden moves. The first attack could come from anywhere.

"Oh I doubt that." Mirror Master chuckled. "You see, the only reason I lost last time in Amity Park was because the Mirror of Memories, and that's gone."

Dusk was silent.

"Nevertheless, I have made some adjustments to my weapons and tech." Mirror Master noted. "I can now fight ghosts perfectly. In fact, when I kill you, I'll got to the surface and discretely attack the ghosts from any reflective surface available."

"You talk a lot." Dusk mentioned nonchalantly. "Can we just get this over with so I can destroy that machine? I'd do it now, but I feel that any attack on the machine would be pointless if you're still conscious."

"Smart kid." All the images pointed a laser gun at Dusk.

Zap!

A beam of yellow energy was shot at Dusk's side. Acting quickly, Dusk swung a nunchuck at the beam. The energy blast was stopped without any trouble. There wasn't even any explosion. That was odd because…

"What?" Dusk's eyes widened. The nunchuck was partially disintegrated. The only parts left were the side he was holding and the loose hanging chain.

"Told you I was prepared. I altered my ray gun to scramble exctoplasmic particles." Mirror Master grinned darkly. "Even the most powerful ghosts will crumble before these beams. Their attacks will be stopped easily. Their defenses will crumble. Their bodies will fall apart."

Dusk heard another blast being sent out. This time, it was from the other side of the room. Learning from what happened last time, Dusk dodged this time. Unfortunately, the mirror on the floor bounced the beam up. This continued to bounce around. It even bounced off the reflective surface of the machine. That meant that the beam couldn't hurt the machine.

Growling as the beam came back to him, Dusk threw his broken nunchuck to block it. This was bad. All of his weapons would be disintegrated before he could use them against Mirror Master. He had worked on his other powers with Mentor and the others, but he didn't think that they would help too much right now.

Regular ectoplasmic blasts would be stopped with ease, and he would be defenseless while using them. Flight wouldn't help much. The beams would probably make intangibility useless. Invisibility…that could buy him time and let him get close to the machine…

Dusk turned invisible.

"Ha! I thought you would try that." The hundreds of Mirror Masters smirked. "That's why I'm going to do this.

All of the mirror images opened fire. Hundreds of beams reined down across the room. It turned out that invisibility wouldn't matter much. After all, even if the villain couldn't see the target, Mirror Master could still hit him by attacking everywhere at once.

"Damn." Dusk hissed as he turned visible. This was going to be tough.

* * *

><p>"Ugh…" Phantom groaned as his brain stopped spinning. "What the hell happened?"<p>

"The….League….control…attacked you."

"Huh…" Phantom's vision came back into focus. He saw Red Huntress. "Where are we?"

"In Red Tornado's apartment at the top of the Cave." Red Huntress answered.

"Why…Oh…The League!" Phantom jumped to his feet. "Damn! What happened?"

"The sucker punch really rattled you." Red Huntress explained. "I brought you up here before they could get to you."

"Where are the others?" Phantom was in a panic.

"They're fighting off the League." Red Huntress stood and tried to calm him down. "It's only been a few minutes. They're fine, it's eight against four."

"Still…It's the League…" Phantom tried to focus. 'M'gann?'

'Dannny! You're awake!' M'gann seemed overcome with joy.

'I am.' Phantom noted. 'I need an update.'

'We're fighting off the League, but we're being pushed back.' Robin spoke out.

'Wolf and Sphere came to help, though. We might be able to beat them.' Superboy mentioned.

'That will take too much time. Other members of the League shall surely show up as backup.' Kaldur argued.

'Right. We need to retreat right now.' Phantom frowned. 'Is RT still not moving?'

'Yeah, he's like a statue.' Artemis noted. 'He totally shut down.'

'I might have a solution to that.' Zatanna noted. 'Tornado was making a body that looked more human so he could party. Maybe we can use that?'

'Good idea.' Phantom nodded while ignoring the mental image of Red Tornado partying. Right now, he needed to focus, and he couldn't do that if he imagined the android twerking. 'I'm coming down. Miss M, go get the Bioship and hanger ready. RH, take Tornado's human looking body to the ship and SB, take Tornado's regular body and the Supercycle with you for prep. When you're ready, the rest of us will catch up.'

'Right!' Everyone's voice sounded.

'Okay, go!' Phantom fazed through the floor and to the main portion of the Cave. He instantly went to work. The halfa first tried to get a bit of revenge on Captain Marvel for the sucker punch. This helped Superboy get away, grab Red Tornado, and lead Sphere the Supercycle out to the hanger.

The blow to Captain Marvel did nothing, however. He barely even seemed to feel it. The magical brawler turned to Phantom and punched the ghost back. The ghost went sprawling back. He was quickly assisted when Wolf, the Team's genetically enhance pet wolf with a really original name, helped by biting Captain Marvel's arm. This only distracted the secret ten year old for a little, but it allowed Phantom to regain his bearings.

As Miss Martian, Superboy, and Red Huntress retreated out of the main hall, the rest of Young Justice fought off the members of the League.

"Wolb mih yawa!" Zatanna sent a large blast of wind towards her father. Zatara's magical shield stopped the cutting wind, however.

"Nrub reh evila!" Zatara pointed his wand at his daughter. Waves of fire poured down at the magical girl.

"I got you girl!" Rocket formed a kinetic shield around her and Zatanna.

"Nehtgnerts eht dleihs!" Zatanna used her magic to reinforce the shield.

As this was happening, Kid Flash and Artemis were trying to defeat Black Canary. Kid Flash's speed managed to allow him to run in a circle around the master martial artist at top speeds. He made sure to stay out of her range so she couldn't grab him. When she was about to use her Canary Cry, the speedster pulled out and dashed away.

Just as he did this, Artemis shot an explosive arrow at Black Canary. The blond woman rolled out of the way, but she was still rattled by the explosion when the arrow hit the ground. This allowed Kid Flash to rush in and ram into her side shoulder first. This did hurt the brainwashed hero, but she was still awake. Thus she was able to use a Canary Cry to Artemis when she saw the blond archer pull back another arrow.

"Gotcha!" Kid Flash ran in and carried Artemis away bridal style.

"Thanks…" Artemis smiled.

"No problem." Wally grinned.

Nearby, Batman was fighting Robin and Aqualad. The Dark Knight and the Boy Wonder were exchanging blows as Aqualad ran in with his Water Bearers shaping the water in the form of a giant hammer.

"Raw!" Aqualad swung at Batman as Robin flipped away.

The World's Greatest Detective flipped over the Atlantian. When he landed, Batman turned and threw a few Batarangs at the teen. The Batarangs hit and began to electrocute hit the blond haired Atlantian.

"Ah!" Kaldur's black eel tattoos lit up as the Altantian used his magical electricity to disarm the Batarangs.

Robin responded by throwing a few of his shuriken at the Batman. The Dark Knight blocked the shuriken by using his metal gauntlets to deflect the weapons. He then pulled out his stun gun and shot at the Boy Wonder. Kaldur, however, managed to assist and block the electricity yet again.

'Guys, the Bioship is ready!' M'gann called to the Team.

'Everyone retreat! Get to the Bioship!' Phantom ordered. 'I'll use my Ghostly Wail to knock them out!'

'What's a Ghostly Wail?' Rocket questioned.

'I've heard about it, but I haven't seen it…' Zatanna noted.

'Later! We need to follow orders!' Kaldur mentally yelled.

The Team then began to retreat towards the hanger. At the entrance, Phantom stopped and looked back at the League members. He took a deep breath and readied himself for his most powerful attack.

"Ooo..Gack! Cough! Hack!" Phantom weezed. He coughed out green blood and collapsed to his knees.

His ectoplasmic boosts were finally taking their toll from his nonstop action for the past twenty-four hours. His body trembled in pain and exhaustion. He couldn't move and was completely defenseless.

'Damn! Not now!' Phantom roared mentally

Boom! A cluster of grenades were thrown into the ground at the League members' feet. This caused them to jump back as the grenade and blasts of ectoplasm were thrown at them.

"Come on!" Superboy yelled as he grabbed his best friend and began to run him back to the hanger. As he did this, Red Huntress continued to give them cover by forcing the League members back.

"Thanks…" Phantom muttered as he wiped green blood from his mouth.

"Don't metion it." Conner grunted.

"Keep going!" Red Huntress yelled as she flew behind them.

As they went, the backup for the League arrived. The computer's voice sounded throughout the Cave and shook Young Justice to the core.

**Recognized: Superman 01, Doctor Fate 17**

* * *

><p>Amity Park was a war zone. Explosions rocked across the city. Necromancers flew across the sky. Failed ghouls stalked the streets. It was utter chaos. The civilians were lucky that the ghosts had evacuated them to the bunkers a long time ago.<p>

"Son of a…" Plasmius growled as he pushed an ectoplasmic empowered fist into a Necromancer. They were weaker than the original Necromancers. Well, their defenses were. Their offense was as deadly as ever. The scratches and bruises on his body proved that much. The Matter Make machine got that much right, at least. "This is worse that we imagined!"

"I know…" Vision frowned. She sent out a wave of purple ectoplasm and knocked a few ghouls back. "The city is covered. We are far too outnumbered…"

"Plus the supervillains…" Plasmius paused as he looked over his shoulder to see an old face and a newer enemy.

"Hahahahaha!" A man wearing a white and gold checkered sack-like suit laughed. His stringy red hair pored out the back of his cloth mask with x's for eyes. This man was a villain known as Ragdoll. "Heloooooo, ghosts! Did you miss me?"

"I know that man…Was he in Amity Park before?" Vision questioned Plasmius. She had to be careful not to allow her attention to be completely taken away from fighting off ghouls and Necromancers. Purple energy balls orbited around her like a moon to a planet. These acted as shields from incoming attacks and as weapons to cut down enemies.

"A long time ago." Plasmius was ready to turn into plasma at a moment's notice. "He wasn't much of a challenge to Daniel and Spirit, though."

"Hey!" Ragdoll yelled.

"Gah…" Madame Rogue rolled her eyes. "Fool. Of course, Zhey did not remember you well. You are a poor villain."

"Shut up! I was good enough to be recruited by the Light." Ragdoll proclaimed loudly.

"Only because they wanted bodies." Madame Rogue mumbled.

Vision glared at that woman. She was the one that hurt her fiancé…or caused him to hurt himself. Such a crime could not go unpunished.

"Hmm?" Plasmius noticed something. "The Necromancers and ghouls are not attacking as thoroughly. Are the programmed to avoid fighting and destruction around the villains?"

"Yes…Zhat is a program zhat zee Light set to make sure none of zheir loyal soldiers were accidentally harmed." Madame Rogue mentioned.

"Hey! Don't tell them that! It gives them an advantage!" Ragdoll cried.

"It is part of zee payment." Madame Rogue noted.

"Payment?"

"Yes one of two." Madame Rogue explained. "Zee information and…You."

Madame Rogue sucker punched Ragdoll much to the shock of Vision and Plasmius.

"What? Why would you do that?" Plasmius questioned.

"Like I said, payment." Madame Rogue mentioned. She threw the unconscious Ragdoll over to the pair of ghosts. The complete presence of the Ragdoll caused both the ghouls and Necromancers to back off. "I do not want to be under zee thumb of zee Light…Zhat's what the bosses call themselves."

"I see…" Vision nodded slowly. She still glared at Madame Rogue.

"I wish to leave without fighting." Madame Rogue continued to explain. "I understand zhat Metamorpho was Plasmius based on the notes of zee Light…Zhat was sad by the way. Who else with such powers would try to protect Daniel Fenton and only appear in zee world once?"

"What? I thought my performance was magical!?" Vlad protested.

"It wasn't." Both woman noted together.

"Aw…"

"I ask for forgiveness. I shall not target anyone from Amity Park again." Madame Rogue bowed her head. "It is bad for business."

"…Fine." Vision was still angry at the woman, but this was a chance to ease up the threat level in Amity Park. Plus, Madame Rogue was a better friend…or neutral acquaintance…than an enemy.

"Excellent..." Madame Rogue began to retreat into an alley. "Zhank you for accepting my truce. On a note of good faith, I shall leave you with zhis…K and O are about to snipe you."

"What?" Both ghosts formed shield around them and Ragdoll.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Damn!" An African American man wearing pure white body armor with a bunch of built in tech groaned. On the man's chest was a large K.

"I know. Madame Rogue made is so our shots were ineffective." A white man that wore the same armor as his companion grumbled. On this man's chest was a large J.

The ghosts looked up. These two men were on white hover bikes. Both of them had shaved heads and wore black sunglasses. The ghosts recognized these men. They hadn't seen them in a long time.

"Agent K and Agent O…" Plasmius noted.

"What are you doing here?" Vision questioned.

"We are here to get our revenge!" The dark skinned man, Agent K, yelled.

"You ghosts are the reason the Guys in White were disbanded!" The white man, Agent O, proclaimed.

"You were the ones that brought about your own undoing." Vision argued. "You started the war. We just dominated it."

"That doesn't matter!" Agent K gritted his teeth. "The Guys in White were our life! We dedicated ourselves to the cause! And now that's gone! The rest of the agents may have gone to work with other parts of the government, but we couldn't! We decided to get revenge and remain ghost hunters!"

"And we're not alone!" Agent O grinned.

"Dude!" A male voice called out. The owner of the voice rode up close to the ghosts while riding a hover board. The man wore black body armor with motocross helmet, goggles, and green shoulder pads. On the boy's chest was the number '10.' "We're totally going to get back at Phantom and annihilate the ghosts. It's going to be radical, dude!"

"Psh! I'm a girl, moron." A woman rode a hover scooter near the man. She was dressed in a female version the man's armor. Unlike the man's armor, however, the woman had a Q on her chest. "But everything else was right."

The ghosts recognized these two as well. Although, Plasmius hadn't seen them for well over a year. They were a small group once known as the Extreme Ghostbreakers. Vlad hired them a long time ago when he put a bounty on Phantom's head. This happened before the Nasty Burger incident, of course, and Vlad was ashamed of his actions.

Last Plasmius ever of these two, they retired and were training for the X games. They did disappear after the GIW War. It seems they were recruited by K and O to fight ghosts again.

"You all talk too much…" A small weak voice rang out. It shouldn't have carried more than a few meters, but everyone heard it clearly. The voice came from a small girl. In fact, the black haired girl was so small and thin, it was a wonder that she was still alive. She had dark rings around her eyes and wore a black and white leotard with an A on the chest.

All the ghost hunters gained a scared look and mumbled. "Sorry, Ace."

Vision looked at the small girl. For some reason, her maternal instincts and pity were being pushed back. This girl was dangerous. The woman could feel it in her bones. They would have to be careful with her.

"Please, Ace…" Agent O smiled weakly. "Just…bear with us. We just want to get some revenge on the ghosts."

"Don't care." Ace looked over at the agent. His vehicle began to creak a bit. "You promised me you all would play. None of you are any fun anymore…"

"We promise we'll play!" The male Ghostbreaker yelled.

"Yes, all day tomorrow! To celebrate the New Year!" The female Ghostbreaker nodded.

"Fine…" Ace nodded slowly.

"…I understand you four." Plasmius mentioned. "K and O recruited the Ghostbreakers to get revenger. But the girl…"

"Ace is…special." Agent K mentioned. "When the Light recruited us…They stuck us with her."

"We are meant to entertain her." Agent O noted. Ace didn't seem bothered by his words. "It's hard to argue, though. She's just too damn powerful. We knew that with her, we would be unbeatable."

"But she's hard to please sometimes…" The male Ghostbreaker sighed.

"She even forced us to take new names…" The female Ghostbreaker nodded.

"King." Agent K noted.

"Jack." Agent O stated.

"Queen." The female Ghostbreaker spoke.

"Ten." The male Ghostbreaker mentioned.

"And with Ace…We are the Royal Flush Gang."

* * *

><p>"A literal dark knight?" Deathstroke laughed. "How many 'Dark Knights' am I going to face in one lifetime?"<p>

"Only two…" Fright Knight unsheathed his blade. "Because this will be your last battle if you do not answer my questions."

"How cocky." Deathstroke unsheathed his own blade. The assassin's blade glowed green. This meant that it was infused with ectoplasm and could probably hurt ghosts. It was also likely that the assassin's guns were ectoplasmic as well. "Speaking as if you can actually kill me…Especially with those injuries."

That was true. The Fright Knight's armor was covered in scratches and dents. He had been fighting and cutting down ghouls and Necromancers. His rage was getting the better of him, and he knew it. He was still upset over the disappearance of Spirit and Dusk. They were in danger, he knew that much. As the servant to his master, Fright Knight could not let this crime against the family stand.

"Where are the secret bunkers?" Fright Knight questioned. He noted that the ghouls and Necromancers gave him space now that he was close to the assassin. This was probably a security function. Crazed ghouls and unfriendly Necromancers were well known to hurt both allies and enemies alike.

"You think I would know anything about that? I just joined the Shadows." Deathstroke mentioned. "I held out for a while, but they offered…a lot of money. As the new guy, I know the least. I do know, however, that you will prove to be an excellent challenge."

"If you know nothing, than I have no purpose with you." Fright Knight prepared to leave. He was quickly stopped when Deathstroke jumped forward and slashed at the knight ghost.

"Sorry, but I can't do that." Deathstroke apologized. "Like I said, I'm the new guy. Can't leave a bad impression by letting someone so dangerous run around. Besides…you will make an excellent puppet."

"Your drivel words and stalling annoy me!" Fright Knight shouted. His purple flaming hair burst around him. "I must save those my Lord cares for, and I won't let you get in my way! If you insist on fighting, then I shall cut you down!"

* * *

><p>"Grundy destroy all of you!" Solomon Grundy roared as he grabbed a Necromancer, threw it above his head, and tore it in half. "Huff…pant…huff…"<p>

The Necromancers had really gotten to him. He was bleeding from multiple wounds. His regular endurance and durability proved weaker against Necromancers. It hurt even worse because of Grundy's lack of experience fighting the Necromancers. The brute would fall if things continued at this rate…

"Cough! Ack! Rack!" Grundy held his throat as he inhaled some green gas. "What?"

"Oh…It does affect you…"

Grundy looked up to see the Scarecrow.

"I was waiting until you were weakened." Scarecrow cackled in madness. "After all, a brute cannot feel much fear until he is almost dead."

"You…" Grundy froze as the Scarecrow's image changed into something more demonic. Fear rand through the zombie's veins. He tried to get up, but he felt a hand as large as his head shove him down.

"Stay down, boy." A gravely voice commanded. Killer Croc stood above the downed brute. He had several new scars on him, along with a new tail and set of sharper teeth. The Light had used genetic modification to actually make him more like a crocodile. It made him stronger, faster, and more dangerous. "Straw head, put the chip thing on him already."The bosses wanted him under control."

"Psh! You could do it if your massive hands didn't crush them like bugs…" Scarecrow approached the downed zombie.

"And I'm surprised you can even hold a chip with how you tremble." Killer Croc laughed. "Master of Fear my ass! After what Masters did to you, you're afraid of your own shadow."

"I'm getting better!" Scarecrow snapped. "And I don't need genetic modification for it."

"Say that again, Straw Head." Croc growled. "I had real scars, not your flaky mental ones. I told you that we should have left Masters' kid alone!"

"Coward!"

"Like you're one to talk!"

"I'll kill-"

"RAW!" Wulf charged in and batted Scarecrow away. The werewolf ghost was injured incredibly badly, but he did not let this stop him. "Let him go!"

"You!" Killer Croc glared at the ghost. "You're the one that hurt me before! I'll tear you apart!"

* * *

><p>"Stop it!" The green skinned, red-haired woman called Poison Ivy yelled at the top of her longs. "You're killing my babies!"<p>

"Moron! Of course we are!" A blue eyed, blue haired, and blue skinned woman named Killer Frost shouted back. "You're supposed to be across the city with the rest of the Injustice gang of yours."

"Frost…Ivy…" A thick aging man looked over the two woman. This man was Icicle Sr. "Now is not the time for us to fight among ourselves."

"Come on, Pops, I was looking forward to seeing that…" A lanky teen with a layer of ice over his skin and pure white hair referred to as Icicle Jr. groaned.

"Be silent child." Mr. Freeze, a blue skinned man in a metal suit with a dome on the top, chided the teen.

"Ivy…" Captain Cold, a white man wearing completely blue winter clothing, spoke up. "This is our sector. If you want your plants to live, you should go to the other side of the city."

"It's not only that!" Poison Ivy glared. "All of your ice antics continue to put an end to so many plants lives."

"I only ever attack cities…Not a lot of plants there." Captain Cold mentioned.

"Same here." Mr. Freeze nodded.

"Well, I freeze whatever the hell I want, so back off." Killer Frost pushed Poison Ivy away. "And don't act like you can take me. My powers beat yours."

"Frost…" Icicle Sr. sighed.

"You don't think I can't make plants that can handle the cold?" Poison Ivy glared. "I'll have you know…Ah?"

Poison Ivy paused when she saw a look of fear pass over the ice villains. Now, Poison Ivy had a great threat ready, but she hadn't even got a third of it out yet. So, why did they look so scared?

"ROAR!" Frostbite stood directly behind Poison Ivy and roared so loudly that the ground shook.

Smack!

Poison Ivy was smacked away. She was instantly unconscious, even before she hit the ground and started rolling. Frostbite actually held back by a large margin, but the woman would still be hurting after she woke up.

The older ice villains were smart enough to get away from the large yeti creature. Icicle Jr. on the other hand was a teen that had something to prove. It was his blunder with that jerk Superboy that caused the almost sure plan to escape Belle Reve to fail. His dad still glared at him. Junior wanted to make him proud, and what better way to do so than to take down a yeti monster that even the mighty Icicle Sr. ran from?

"Take this!" Junior used his ice powers to blast the yeti with a wave of cold energy. Most people would be instantly frozen. This did not happen to Frostbite.

Frostbite was an ancient ghost that was so skilled he was called the North Wind. Trying to freeze this creature was one of the most useless things a person could try to do. It was effectively like trying to put a fire out with a molotov cocktail. Thus, it was easy to see why Frostbite shrugged off the cold energy as if it were gentle spring breeze.

"Raw!" Frostbite grabbed Junior's head and slammed it into the concrete. Suffice to say, the teen was no longer awake.

"I hate to be rude, Icicle, but your son deserved that." Mr. Freeze mentioned.

"I know…" Icicle Sr. sighed.

"Normally…" Frostbite looked over the four remaining ice villains. "I am disgusted at the thought of attacking woman and children, but you were the ones that came here and threatened to kill the Great One and his family."

"An ice ghost…" Captain Cold mentioned. "I do not think this will favor us if he is immune to ice damage."

"It's still four against one…" Killer Frost did not seem enthused, though.

"It is." Frosbite nodded. His eyes turned arctic blue as blue smoke rose from his body. "But you attack with ice. Tell me, do you think that will be effective against a creature that survived going Absolute Zero with only losing an arm?"

* * *

><p>"Azaroth Metrion Zinthos!" Raven shouted. Swirling black and white energy surrounded the Necromancers around the demonic girl. The machines were made out of ectoranium, an anti-ghost element. Luckily, while the metal was incredibly deadly to ectoplasm users, magic users were not weakened by it at all. In fact, ectoranium was incredibly weak to magic. Thus, the machines were easily torn apart by the demonic magic.<p>

"Secret…" White smoke danced around Secret as she blasted several ghouls away. Out of all the ghosts fighting, she had the least amount of experience fighting, so she stayed near Raven for help and protection. Greta dealt with the ghouls while Raven held of the Necromancers.

"Well…Look what I found. The Gem."

The girls turned and see a man that looked almost exactly like Plasmius except for his red body suit and black cape.

"Wotan…" Raven muttered in fear. This was bad. They couldn't be such a powerful sorcerer by themselves…

"To think…The Gem would be hidden here for so long." Wotan glared at her. "I may be a dark sorcerer, but I would prefer not to deal with Trigon the Terrible. His rein of terror could bring an end to me as well as this planet."

"Secret." Greta stared up at the sorcerer.

"The ghosts…won't let that happen." Raven argued. "They promised."

"Girl, they won't even live past today." Wotan raised his hand towards the girls. Magical energy gathered around him. "And neither will you…AGCK!"

Something rammed into Wotan's back. Metal limbs wrapped around the magician's torso. He was then forced to the ground as metal spiders jumped on top of him.

"What the heck is wrong with this city?! I've been waiting for three days for Fenton to show his face, and suddenly World War 3 starts out of nowhere?" Gizmo whined as he landed on the ground. His jet pack instantly retreated into his metal backpack. "What a rip!"

"You…" Raven looked at the boy.

"I was going to leave but…" Gizmo blushed as he looked at the girls. He puffed out his chest and gained a proud look. He was trying to look impressive. "I couldn't leave such pretty girls without any help!"

"…" Raven fought off the urge to insult him. They needed his help. "Thank you."

"No problem! So, what's happening anyway?" Gizmos questioned.

"Secret." Greta noted.

"What? But why keep it a secret if I'm trying to help you?" Gizmo raised an eyebrow.

"Secret."

"But if you don't tell me-"

"Secret is all she can say!" Raven snapped.

"Oh…" Gizmo grinned. "A girl of few words. That's cool."

"Foolish boy!" Wotan used magical energy to destroy his metal assailants. A side effect of the magical outburst was the destruction of a few more Necromancers. "You dare to attack Wotan?"

Gizmo shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"I am supreme sorcerer! I could kill you easily?" Wotan roared.

"Really? That's cool. I can just do this." Gizmos touched a button on his armored tech.

Boom!

"Ah!"

"Put a bomb on you!" Gizmo cackled.

"Fool! Do you even know who you protect?" A smoking Wotan glared. "That girl is a demon that is destined to bring about the end of the world!"

"That sounds hot." Gizmo mentioned.

"Are you an idiot?" Wotan glared.

"No, I'm a guy that does what he wants when he want to." Gizmo stated. "And right now, I want to impress some girls."

* * *

><p>"Ah? Mate, what are you supposed be?" Metallo questioned.<p>

"Torch should be asking you that?" Torch stared at the android's half torn off face. "Are you a terminator?"

"Bloody hell, no! I hate when you frikkin a-holes call me that!" Metallo glared.

"Wait! Torch recognizes you from the reports! You tried to kill Fenton!" Torch pointed an accusing finger at the Kryptonite user.

"I did. That did not turn out all that well." Matallo groaned. "Can't blame the kid for fighting back, though. Turns out the Light was impressed enough to offer me and the other captured assassins a job. We'd be stupid not to take it."

"Oh…"

"What about you, mate? Why you dressed like wanna be hipster rapstar?" Metallo questioned.

"Torch is the warden of the Ghost Zone, the strongest fire user in the world, and soon to be known as the greatest fighter to ever live!" Torch struck a pose.

"Ah…I see…" Metallo shrugged. "Whatever. You still look stupid."

"Shut up!" Torch swung his scythe and sent a wave of fire towards Metallo. The android was covered in an all-consuming fire. "There! Now you won't….huh?"

"Idiot…" Metallo walked out of the flames. His fake skin and clothes had burned away to reveal his metal skeleton. "My armor is reinforced to withstand the heat of Superman's heat vision. Fire can't hurt me as long as there isn't a good push behind it like an explosion."

"Huh…Torch sees…" Torch paused for a moment. "Torch has to question why Torch continues to fight androids that have powers that are strong against fire. Is it to push Torch to be stronger?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Never mind…" Torch shook his head. "Torch needs to focus. It's time to see how much heat your armor can really take."

* * *

><p>"Ah!" Pandora cried out as a blast of radioactive energy sent her sprawling. The ancient ghost was not doing well. She had quickly responded to the first wave of attacks to the city. She took down dozens of Necromancers and failed ghouls with only a few injuries. Everything seemed to be fine until something else arrived.<p>

"Pandora…" Black Atom glared down at the woman. "From all I heard, I expected more."

"To be fair, we do outnumber her." The white haired ape with a massive bulging brain named Ultra-Humanite mentioned.

"Plus the Necromancers and the ghouls tired her somewhat. Not to mention that we started with a sneak attack." Atomic Skull, a dehydrated looking man wearing a yellowish-green costume and a black helmet with goggles, mentioned.

"It's still no excuse." Black Atom frowned at his allies. "I was expecting a challenge, not a weak woman."

"Gah...You are members of the Injustice League." Pandora noted as she began to push herself up. "Are you all here for revenge?"

"Well, everyone refuses to work with Joker anymore. He doesn't listen to anything anyone says. And Vertigo is in the bad graces of the Light after what happened during the ice fortress fiasco." Ultra-Humanite stated politely.

"Don't be so polite to the enemy." Atomic Skull rolled his eyes.

"She is a lady, and what kind of gentlemen would I be if I was rude to her before she died?" The ape questioned.

"A stupid one." Black Atom snorted.

Pandora realized that she needed help. These three were a dangerous force. As far as she knew, though, no one was around to help her. Originally, she had Nyx with her, but they were separated earlier. The girl could be anywhere…

* * *

><p>"Kitty!" Nyx glomped onto Cheetah.<p>

"Stupid girl, get off of me!" Cheetah pulled at the girl. She couldn't get her off, though.

"Kitty!"

"Raw!" Cheetah clawed at Nyx, but the girl moved from her stomach to her back, and the hybrid woman ended up scratching herself.

"Kitty!"

"What is wrong with you?!"

* * *

><p>"We could just leave her. Let the Necromancers finish her off." Ultra-Humanite suggested. "That was the original plan given to all the villains in this city if they could not control the ghosts, right? Weaken the ghosts and let the Necromancers do the rest?"<p>

Pandora's eyes narrowed. That was a good strategy. A first wave of Necromancers and ghouls would weaken them. Then, the villains would exhaust them so that they couldn't fend off another wave of Necromancers and ghouls. With that strategy, the ghosts may very well lose this day.

"That's no fun." Black Adam grabbed Pandora by the throat and dragged her forward. "I want to see just what a ghost's brain looks like. Let's break open her skull."

"Whatever, just be quick." Atomic Skull shrugged.

"Uneducated brute." Ultra-Humanite sighed. "We could have just used the Starro tech on her, but you had to break them..."

"It's not my fault their fragile!"

"But it is your fault that you are an idiot without common sense or knowledge."

"Don't worry, I'm about to increase my knowledge on anatomy-"

Boom!

"Ah!" Black Adam was sent flying into a building and caused it to crumble.

"Don't hurt her." Youngblood lowered his peg leg as it shifted back from a canon to a regular wooden limb.

"Youngblood!" Pandora shouted now that she was free from Black Adam. "Be careful! These enemies are powerful!"

"Don't worry, I'm not alone. The reason I was gone for so long was because I was prepping my crew, right, Polly?" Youngblood grinned.

"Rack! You are correct." Polly nodded.

All the adults looked up as a massive pirate ship floated above them. It opened fire on the city below and began to destroy Necromancers and ghouls alike.

"Woah…Didn't see that coming." Atomic Skull mentioned.

"A pirate ghost ship…" Ultra-Humanite tilted his head. "I don't know whether to scoff at the cliché, or marvel at the strange sight."

* * *

><p>Cassandra overlooked Amity Park from Fenton Works. The city was already in a crumbling state and the battles hadn't been going on that long. They were safe because the shields were on around the building. The villains didn't seem to care too much, though. They weren't even trying to get here.<p>

This made sense because of the Light's new partnership with Fenton. It was best to avoid this building so not to jeopardize that. Fenton probably didn't care about the city or the people very much, though, based on the fact that he was never seen interacting with the people. In fact, he was probably hidden away in Masters Mansion right now.

"Damn…" Victor Stone hissed as he stood beside her. "It looks like hell out there."

"I'm sure it is." Cassandra nodded.

"I wish I could do more, but…" Victor sighed. "I can't fight."

"That's better than my excuse." Cassandra noted. "I have to guard my mom."

"Well, your mom does look tough." Victor noted. "Mine on the other hand…"

He looked over to his parents. They, like the other adults were by the machines trying to get them to work. It wasn't like they could help even if the machines did work, though.

"The Stones…I read something about them once in a report on Amity Park." Cassandra mentioned. "They are geniuses."

"Yeah… they are." Victor nodded. "I guess that's their purpose...I'm not like them, and I get the feeling your different from your mom. So, what's our purpose in all this?"

"Who knows. Fate surely has…" Cassadra whirled around and threw some shuriken a the entrance to the room.

Clang!

"Woof! Woof woof!" Cujo jumped up from his spot and began to bark at the intruder. The puppy shifted into his attack form. He had been left to defend the humans just in case something happened.

"Nicely done, Cass…" Ravager noted after she blocked the blades.

"A little girl?" Angela Roth blinked.

"How did you get in here?" Silas Stone questioned.

"I hid in the building before the shield was raised." Ravager looked across the room. "Ah, there you are, Shiva."

"…I see. You have been sent to kill me." Shiva noted.

"Indeed. The Light does not take kindly to being betrayed." Ravager began to walk to her, only to stop when Cassandra got in her way.

"I won't let you do that." Cassandra glared.

"Round two then?" Ravager seemed pleased by this development.

"No." Harriet stood and pointed an ectoplasmic pistol at the girl. "Stand down. There will be no fighting in here."

"…Hehehe…" Ravager shook her head. "So you are that stupid…I'm glad I brought these guys then."

The girl pulled a thermos off her belt and opened it. Ghouls poured out and began to spread out throughout the room. They're first target was Cujo. The poor dog was outnumbered.

"Now…" Ravanger turned to Cassandra again. She ignored he chaos in the room. "Back to our fight."

* * *

><p>Crash!<p>

Spirit was flung into a nearby group of cages. The metal bent as she was thrown with steel shattering force. The girl had to peal herself from the bent metal and onto the floor. She groaned as she pushed herself up to her feet. "Ow…"

Things had not been going well. Walker was dominating in the fight. His blows were devastating and his speed was surprisingly fast. Spirit could barely keep up.

"Ah…" Spirit clutched her left arm close to her. It felt broken. "Crap…"

"Hahahaha!" Walker sneered at the girl. "What's wrong girl? Hurt?"

Yes she was. Green blood was pouring down her face from the cut on the top of her head. She wasn't going to admit that, though. "In your dreams…"

"Okay, let's make it reality!" Walker rushed forward.

'Run forward. Hammer strike down. Crush girls.' Spirit's Premonition spoke to her. The girl listened and rolled to the side.

Walker's blow, however, shook the ground and caused Spirit to stumble. Thus, she couldn't follow her Premonition's instructions as Walker rushed in again. Walker grabbed Spirit by her leg and swung her around. He smacked her into the ground multiple times and used her as a bat to crush a few more of the cages.

"Ugh…" Spirit groaned as Walker stopped. The ex-warden lifted her up so he could look her in the eyes…well, eye. Her right eye was completely swollen shut.

"You lose little girl." Walker grinned. "Any last words?"

"…I won't give up…" Spirit groaned. She began to move her arms, but was stopped when Walker flipped her around and grabbed her throat with his left hand.

"That was a stupid choice of words." Walker stated as he began to squeeze her neck to the point of shattering.

* * *

><p>Dusk swung around a bo infused with ectoplasm. As the bow swung, it left a trail of ectoplasm. This was used to block the hundreds of beams being shot at him. As he did this, the halfa slowly walked forward to the machine. He was inching closer to the Matter Make machine every few seconds.<p>

This was a slow and exhausting process, though. Dusk could feel his stamina starting to run out. It would be easier to try to create a regular energy shield around him, but he wouldn't be able to move while doing so. He had to get to that machine.

At this rate, though, he would never make it. If he ran out of energy and continued to try to fight, he would become destabilized and dissolve. His relaxing time in Amity Park made his stabilization a minor issue, but now it might play a factor in his failure.

…Or at least that's what he though until a beam made it through the shield and hit his leg. The boy's Numbing ability made it so the blow did not hurt, but the damage was still there. Dusk tumbled to the ground and dropped his bo.

That was when the real damage began.

The various beams of anti-ecotplasm wave energy rained down on him. Before he could do anything, he was already covered in more injuries than he could count. His Numbing ability quickly was pushed to the limit by the anti-ectoplasm beams, and Dusk felt agony rushed through him.

"AAAAHHHH!" Dusk yelled out in pain as he was covered in burns. He quickly lost the energy to even scream, though, as he was beaten down. In a few moments, it all stopped. Mirror Master stopped his attack and looked at the boy.

Burnt and beaten to a bloody mess, Dusk lie on the ground unmoving.

* * *

><p>"Gack! Couch! Ack!" Phantom coughed into his hand. His body trembled in fatigue and pain, despite the comfort of the Supercycle's seat.<p>

"Danny? Are you alright?" Artemis questioned. She was currently using her arching skills to push back their pursuers.

…

"_Ah!" Plasmius cried out as a blast of ectoplasmic energy rammed into his back. The four flying members of the Royal Flush Gang had ganged up on him. His skill and power had helped him survive, but the numbers game, intense training the gang members went through, and extremely powerful weapons quickly overcame him._

"_No!" Vision cried out as she saw from the corner of her eye as her fiancé was beaten down. She tried to divide her attention, but this girl…She was too strange. Vision didn't know, that was what caused her downfall. She had no data on Ace. That was why she foolishly looked Ace in the eyes and was hit by a wave of madness and agony that overcame her. And that was all from one look._

_Ace looked down at her. Her eyes swirled. Vision felt her skin melt and the world begin to close in on her. It was just like when Vision was a little girl all alone in the world. 'Who is this girl?'_

…

"No…" Phantom sat up. "My ectoplasmic boosts have worn off."

"What does that mean?" Kaldur questioned as he used water collected from the clouds to send out blasts of water to their chasers.

…

"_Gack!" Fright Knight spit out blood as his armor was pierced and a sword dug into his skin._

"_An injured and angry foe is a weak foe." Deathstroke noted. "This was a disappointment. I expected more from a dark knight."_

…

"It means that I won't be able to fight anymore. I'm useless." Phantom groaned.

"You're not useless." Superboy frowned as he drove the Supercycle. The Bioship was not far away from them. They were both flying away from the League. Zatara was carrying Black Canary on a magic platform of energy. Captain Marvel was flying toward the Bioship. Superman and Dr. Fate were both heading straight to the Supercyle. Artemis and Aqualad were trying to keep them back, but the duo of mind controlled Leaguers was gaining.

"It's true, though…" Phantom sighed. "I can't do anything anymore to help."

"You can lead!" Aqualad shouted. "Give us instructions!"

…

_Wulf thrashed around in pain as Killer Croc punched him to the ground. One blow had broken some of his ribs. The crocodile man was so much stronger than before. Wulf hadn't expected this and was taken by surprise. He was quickly beaten down as Solomon Grundy trembled nearby in fear._

"_Stupid mut." Killer Croc then bit down on the werewolf's shoulder. Blood poured out of the wound as Wulf cried out in pain._

_"AAAAHHHH!"_

…

"Right…" Phantom nodded. He mentally spoke. 'Zatanna, when Captain Marvel gets close, use your magic to get him to say Shazam. Rocket, make sure to catch him as he falls. Red Huntress, use a sneak attack on Zatara. All you need to do is cover his mouth and most of his magic will be stopped. Black Canary will jump over here, Superboy use Sphere to electrocute her as soon as she gets here.'

'What about Doctor Fate and Superman?' M'gann questioned.

'I'll deal with them.'

…

_Crack!_

_Mr. Freeze smashed his ice gun against Frostbite's head. The yeti clutched his head in pain and couldn't react as Killer Frost created ice spikes and threw them into the yeti's back. "AH!"_

"_Stay down, beast!" Icicle Sr. kicked out Frostbite's knees. While their normal tactics of freezing their enemies didn't work, the ice villains still could win by using physical force and their superior numbers._

"_Raw!" Frostbite swiped at Captain Cold as the man tried to charge in. He could still fight. This wasn't over yet._

…

'How?' Robin questioned. 'You just said that you can't fight.'

'I can't, but I can buy you time.'

'What does that mean?' Rocket questioned.

'NO!' Kid Flash knew what he meant. 'Not again! Don't do a Doctor Fate thing again!'

…

"_Let go-AAAAAAHHHHHH!" Gizmo yelled in torture. Magical electricity ran through his body._

"_Secret…" Greta was about to charge in, but was stopped when Wotan blasted her back._

"_Stupid children. Getting in my way." Wotan growled as he tortured the boy in his arms. "Now, you'll die too. All for a stupid, useless waste of space demon that doesn't even deserve to exist."_

"_Shut up…" Raven glared from her spot. She had been beaten back like Secret._

"_What a pathetic way to die." Wotan noted. "Sacrificing yourself so that something so pathetic can live."_

"_Shut up!" Raven trembled in rage._

"_Of course, all the ghosts in the city will die fighting for a pointless cause." Wotan laughed. "What a truly moronic group of people."_

"_**Shut up!**__" Raven roared. Red and black energy rolled around her in waves. Her eyes turned red and divided into four demonic slits. Her teeth became sharp like knives. The girl lunged at Wotan, causing him to throw Gizmo away to defend himself._

_Greta shook in fear at the image of Raven. "Secret!" In a panic, Secret turned invisible and ran away from the demon._

"_You stupid little girl! Giving into the demon so easily!" Wotan used his magic to shove her back. Raven was relentless, though. She continued to try to kill the sorcerer._

_Bang!_

_Until she was shot in the shoulder that is._

"_Bullseye." Deadshot noted from his rooftop perch._

…

'I'm sorry, but there's no other choice.' Phantom stated. 'Superman and Doctor Fate are too powerful to take on right now. Some of us will die if we fight up here. They're only after me, though. If they get me, then you can get away.'

…

_Boom!_

"_Damn!" Torch shouted out as the blast of radioactive energy slammed into his chest. He was forced back as he clutched his chest._

_While Torch was injured, Metallo was perfect. His scythe and fire attacks didn't do anything to his armor. It was probably upgraded to fight against ghosts and ectoplasmic weaponry after what happened with Fenton. Thus, the android was still in perfect condition._

"_Told you, mate." Metallo's metal face grinned. "I'm an enemy you can't beat."_

…

"No!" Artemis roared out loud. "There has to be another way!"

'There isn't. All of you need to get away. The League has fallen. Amity Park is about to…I can feel it.' Phantom smiled sadly. 'This world needs you to protect it. I need you to protect it.'

…

"_Get off me!" Cheetah roared. She finally got a hold of Nyx and flung her way._

"_Ow." Nyx clutched her bleeding side. "You're a bad kitty…"_

"_I am sick of people from Amity Park!" Cheetah roared as she rushed forward to the bleeding girl._

…

'But…" Zatanna argued weakly.

'No. No arguing.' Phantom ordered. 'I won't be able to do anything in my state right now other than help you get away. If I don't do this, then we lose.'

'We can't leave you…not again.' Robin noted.

'You can and you will.'

…

"_Stop moving!" Youngblood stated to Black Adam with a swing of a sword._

"_Fine." Black Adam caught the blade in his right hand. It was crushed in an instant. The magical brawler then followed up with a punch to Youngblood's child face. The child's face caved in and teeth flew out._

"_Youngblood!" Pandora cried out in concern for the child. This slip in attention allowed Atomic Skull to blast her in a wave of energy though. She was quickly covered in radioactive energy._

…

'You won't be alone.' Phantom noted. 'There are others. I didn't want to bring them into this if I didn't have too…but there's no choice anymore. Also, go to S.T.A.R. Labs and get the cure for the mind control. I already sent out the calls. Be fast. Amity Park won't last much longer.'

…

"_Cassandra! Run now!" Shiva yelled. "She's stronger than you!"_

"_No!" Cassandra dodged Ravager's blows. She went in to attack the other girl but was kicked back._

"_You should have listened to her." Ravager noted. She held her blade against Cassandra's neck. "Because I'm going to kill you."_

…

'Danny.' Superboy looked back and frowned at his friend. 'I…We will come back for you. We will save everyone. That's a promise.'

'Thank you.' Phantom smiled. 'And goodbye.'

Gathering everything he had, using all the will he had in his body, Phantom lunged himself out of the Supercycle. He surged towards Superman and Doctor Fate like a blazing comet.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!

Boom!

…

"_That was a stupid choice of words." Walker stated as he began to squeeze her neck to the point of shattering._

…

Phantom was lying broken on the ground. He did not move. After bursting into Superman and Doctor Fate, the halfa fell hundreds of feet and crashed into the ground. His body was far too tired to move anymore.

The teen was still conscious, though. Thus, he heard as a pair of two landed next to him. Anyone else would have been terrified. He was about to lose his free will after all. Nevertheless, he was calm. He had faith that this wouldn't be the end of him.

He may be defeated now, but he will be redeemed.

…

_Burnt and beaten to a bloody mess, Dusk lie on the ground unmoving._

…

They would save him. They would save everyone. He knew this. He trusted them completely.

Superman knelt down and held a piece of Starro tech above Phantom's neck.

'I leave my obsession in your hands…'

With that, the mind control device was placed on Phantom. His pupils widened as his free will was taken from him.

Danny Phantom was now a puppet of the Light.

* * *

><p><strong>Just so you know, the timeline on this...arc I suppose would be the best word...is a bit jumbled. The events happening in Amity Park aren't exactly happening at the same time as the events with Phantom. This will give the Team time for a counter attack and for the missing sixteen hours to occur.<strong>

**Also, many of you are probably thinking, "Why din't the Light try to use the League members against the ghosts?" The answer is simple. They did. Problem was, there was a hiccup in their plan that will be shown next chapter.**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	30. Comeback

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"To love means loving the unlovable. To forgive means pardoning the unpardonable. Faith means believing the unbelievable. Hope means hoping when everything seems hopeless."

Gilbert K. Chesterton

* * *

><p>Chapter 30: "Comeback"<p>

(Friday-December 31, 2010)

"Ah…Danny Phantom." Savage glared at the controlled teen as the halfa approached. "It turns out that you'll be working with us after all."

Phantom merely knelt before the man. His form seems so much smaller than the massive caveman, but Savage knew that strength did not rely on size.

Feeling like gloating, Savage turned to the Watchtower's view of Earth and spoke. "Did you really think that I did not have every angle covered? Did you really think that after 50,000 years of living that I could be outmaneuvered by a single boy?"

"Kekekekekekeke…" Klarion smirked down at them. He was floating in the air while using a magical holographic screen to control everyone under the use of Starro tech. "Doubtful."

"I wanted you to join us willingly." Savage sighed. "I wanted you to see the Light, but you were too foolish. So this will have to do."

Phantom was silent.

"This age…It has been a strange thing." Savage noted. "Within 50,000 years there has been nothing like it. The founding of the Justice League worried me more than almost anything within Earth's history, a few things excluded of course. The Justice League has halted the evolution process of mankind by a large margin. Luckily, a few select individuals shared my ideals, and we worked to push the evolution of Earth to make it the most powerful planet in the universe."

"That included the Ghoul Project and GIW War stuff." Klarion did not look up from his holographic controller. "Course, that was a bit of a bust. Couldn't figure out to make fully functioning ghouls at whim."

"But it did lead to the discovery of just how powerful you really are." Savage eyed Phantom. "Your jump in power in the war was the single most impressive thing I have ever seen. Not only did you force yourself back to life, you literally came back as a god. It was the single biggest jump in evolution I have ever seen. Not even the New Gods can compare. At that moment, I knew that you were the key to pushing the planet to its destiny."

Savage sighed. "But you were too damn heroic. Too noble to see what needs to be done. I thought the blackmail would help give you a taste on what is really needed to be done to save the planet, but you failed to cooperate. So, I'll just have to use this tactic. This is the last resort method. I don't want to kill any ghosts. The ghosts and superhumans of Amity Park are proof of survival of the fittest, but you made it necessary. And now…your old obsession will either burn or be controlled by the Light."

"Hey, Vandal!" Klarion chuckled. "Do you want me to do the thing now?"

"Yes." Vandal nodded. "It is time to push Phantom to his limits once more."

* * *

><p>"Goodbye, Danielle Masters." Walker laughed as he was about to kill the girl. "I'll say high your broth-AAAAAHHHHH!"<p>

Spirit activated her Spectral Claws and stabbed Walker on either side of his left elbow. Green blood gushed out of the wounds in large gushes.

"DAMN IT!" Walker dropped the halfa girl and clutched his wound. "You little whore!"

"I…won't let you…" Spirit was in a daze as she forced herself to her knees. "I won't let you kill me. Not yet…"

"Like you have a choice!" Walker punched down at the girl with his right arm.

The blow hit the floor but missed the girl. Spirit had rolled back onto the back of her neck to avoid the blow. Her body was almost vertical and parallel to Walker's arm. The fist was mere centimeters from her body and the earth shook below her. Spirit didn't care though.

"I won't let you kill me until I save everyone!" Spirit cried. She grabbed onto Walker's arm as he pulled it back. She then used all the strength in her body to throw herself forward. The girl flung by Walker's head like a bullet. As she went, she swiped a Spectral Claw across his face and eye.

"AH!" Walker cried in pain and clutched his bleeding face.

Spirit zoomed to the machine that controlled the ghouls. She turned so her feet was flying ahead of her as green energy swirled around her. The girl looked like a soaring comet.

"Drop kick, fool!" Spirit cried as she struck the machine.

Crash! Boom!

* * *

><p>"Gah…" Dusk groaned. His body was broken and shaking. "Not yet…"<p>

The boy slowly pushed himself to his feet. He kept his Numbing ability inactive. The youngest halfa couldn't allow himself to waste energy on that right now.

"You're still alive?" Mirror Master questioned. "How? Your body is destroyed."

"I…I've had worse." Dusk glared at the Matter Make machine. He had to get to it. "I've won despite even worse circumstances…"

Dusk formed thick armor around himself. It was completely black and covered every single inch of his body. The armor was heavy, thick, and prevented him from seeing, but he didn't care. He had to keep moving forward. That was all he had to do.

Beams of energy rained down on him once more. The boy didn't care, though. He sent his energy through his protection and created armor just as soon as it was destroyed. As he did this, the ghoul slowly walked toward the machine. Every step took far longer than it should have. It was a slow process, but he didn't stop despite his body's protests.

His energy was basically at zero. It was foolish to even try to move, but he did. Despite all the odds, Dusk endured. He kept marching forward.

"Crap!" Mirror Master yelled. "Just fall down already."

No. He wouldn't do that. Not until he did what he needed to. He would not stop until he made it to the machine. Even if his broke broke, he could let himself stop until he saved everyone.

"No!" Mirror Master shouted.

Dusk bumped into the machine that duplicated his powers. He did it. Just in time, too. He felt like collapsing. Placing his hands on it, Dusk let the armor fall and pulsed his energy into the machine..

It was then that the energy began to transfer. Energy from the machine fed through Dusk's arms and into his body. A green vortex swirled around him.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

><p>"…" A man in a green cloak looked out from the warehouse. He saw everything as it happened. The man wanted to help, but he couldn't. He had to guard this place, because if the enemy from here escaped, it would be all over. "It seems the tides are turning."<p>

**Recognized: Kid Flash B03, Artemis B08, Zatanna Zatara B09 , Red Huntress B10**

"Woah…" Kid Flash's eyes widened. "What the hell happened here? And who is that guy?"

"The Spectre." Red Huntress eyed the ghost. "What are you doing here?"

"Dealing with a bit of trouble." The Spectre gestured to the group of people he defeated and trapped in a cage of concrete.

"How did you…" Zatanna stared at the unconscious bodies of the masked Green Lantern, Green Arrow, and Captain Atom.

"I defeated them." Spectre answered simply.

"But…There's three of them. Plus, Green Lantern and Captain Atom are powerhouses." Rocket's jaw was dropped.

"Please, I am the Spectre, I would not lose to a few puppets that just so happen to appear as the Justice League." The Spectre snorted. "I have seen the League fight. These puppets can't compare to that."

"They're weaker like this?" Artemis peered at her own mentor. "That's good I guess…"

"Why are you here, Spectre?" Red Huntress questioned. "I thought you refused to help?"

"Amity Park's future will effect my future." The Spectre answered. "However, I do not take orders well, and I do not play well with others. It is better for me to do things my own way. I have been here guarding the Zeta Tubes and using my powers to shield the Amity Park dwellers from too much harm. In fact…" He held out his hand to show a bloody bullet. "I saved Raven's life not too long ago."

"Why?" Red Huntress questioned.

"She has done no wrong yet." Spectre noted. "My human anchor does not allow me to harm anyone until a crime has been committed."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Kid Flash waved his arms around. "How did you know where the Zeta Tubes are, and about the League?"

"Vision isn't the only one that has kept an eye on the League." Spectre noted. "I have powers that let me see whatever I want…Oh, I think that our time is up. Savage is sending backup."

"We can handle them." Artemis pulled out her bow.

"No. You came to help the ghosts. Go do so." Spectre instructed. "I will handle the League backup."

"He's right." Zatanna noted. "I think the other ghosts need our help more."

"Right." Red Huntress nodded. "Here, take these."

The ghost hunter handed the Spectre a few Staro tech cure chips. "Put these on the back of their necks, and they'll go back to normal. They'll pass out too."

"Thank you. Now go." Spectre waved them off and they disappeared out of the warehouse.

**Recognized: Hawkman 09, Doctor Fate 17, Icon 20**

Spectre turned to the controlled heroes. He spread his arms and allowed green smoke to spread across the room. "Behold, I am the spirit of revenge. And I shall be the one that cuts you down."

* * *

><p>"What?" Deathstroke blinked as he saw the Necromancers dissolve and the failed ghouls scatter. He planned to step back and let them do the rest of the work. He wasn't getting paid for each personal kill after all.<p>

Something happened, though. The chaotic streets and skies of Amity Park were suddenly empty. It was oddly quiet now. He could still hear fighting in the distance, but is wasn't the same as before.

Boom!

"GAH!" Deathstroke groaned as he was hit by one of the Fright Knight's ectoplasmic flaming gems. It exploded on impact and sent Deathstroke crashing into a car. The assassin's armor and mask were now burnt to a crisp.

"Don't…Take your attention…away from me." Fright Knight forced himself to his feet. He had various wounds that he gained throughout the fight. Thankfully, the Necromancers and ghouls were gone now. If they were still around, he would probably be killed. Their disappearance gave him the opening he needed to turn the tide.

"Hahahaha…" Deathstroke chuckled lightly. "Too true. I should not have looked away."

The assassin forced himself up. He ripped off his mask and threw it away to reveal his aging burnt face and eyepatch. Deathstroke then pulled out his sword and grinned. "But this battle is not finished."

"No, it's not…" Fright Knight paused. "But it will be soon."

"Oh? You seemly oddly calm now. Why the change?" Deathstroke questioned.

"I see the speedster behind you."

Bam! Kid Flash rammed into Deathstroke's back at top speeds. This caused the assassin to stumble forward awkwardly. He was off balance and open. This was the perfect opportunity for the Fright Knight who stepped forward and swung Soul Shredder at the assassin.

Swish! Pop! With that, Deathstroke was sent to a dimension of his own fears.

"Woah…" Kid Flash blinked. "Is that the sword that traps the enemy in an alternate dimension? Artemis told me about it."

"It is." Fright Knight nodded.

"Cool." Kid Flash grinned.

"I have to thank you, young hero." Fright Knight sheathed his blade. "Without your help, the fight would have taken a lot longer, and I may very well have been defeated..."

"No problem, man, you're one of Bro's…er, Danny's friends, so that makes us allies, right?" Kid Flash shrugged.

"Yes…it does." Fright Knight nodded and extended hand. Kid Flash shook the hand. "Now let's go help the others, shall we?"

"Yeah!"

* * *

><p>"What happened to the dudes?" Ten questioned.<p>

"Don't worry about it!" Jack roared. "Stay focused on Plasmius!"

"Yes, don't let him get up!" King glared.

"Fine, fine…" Queen shrugged and kept up her attacks on the halfa ghost.

Using superior numbers and technology, the four members of the newly dubbed Royal Flush Gang had beaten Plasmius down. They did not give the oldest halfa even a second to recover. It was a smart strategy to use on him. Even Plasmius would admit that much. Not that he enjoyed it, of course. He just appreciated proper planning.

The worst thing was that Vision couldn't help him. Because of the lack of information she had on Ace, Vision had no idea what the very young girl's powers were. She soon figured it out, though, when she looked in the girl's eyes. All it took was a single glance, and Vision was hit by a wave of madness.

Normally, telepaths had a difficult time getting deep into a ghost's mind. The mind of a ghost was a wild torrent of emotions. It was difficult for most telepaths to handle this. Only the most powerful telepaths could handle the force of emotions. Ace's powers, on the other hand, weaved around Vision's mind with ease.

Vision couldn't think straight as her body was lifted telekinetically and slammed into he ground. Her mind was buzzing and all over the place. This was bad for a woman whose greatest strengths were intelligence, strategy, and control.

"You…" Vision forced herself up to her knees and looked Ace in the eyes once more.

"I thought you were smart…" Ace reached over and ripped Vision's veil from her face. The showed Vision's pained face and eyes. "Yet you keep looking in my eyes even after I give you a chance to put up a fight."

"I can't look away…not yet…" Vision muttered. She could hardly focused. It felt like her skin was melting off of her.

"Why not?" Ace questioned.

"Because…you…"

Boom!

"Huh?" Ace blinked and looked up.

"Get away from him!" Red Huntress roared. She came in guns blazing. The sneak attack forced the Royal Flush Gang back and gave Plasmius a moment of rest. That was all he needed. In the blink on an eye, Plasmius formed a three duplicates and sent them at the members of the group.

"Tsk…" Ace raised a hand to help the members of her gang, but was stopped when Vision…

…When Vision flung her arms around Ace.

"I couldn't look away…" Tears rolled out of Vision's eyes. "Because I have rarely seen such suffering in a child's eyes."

"Wha…" Ace blinked.

"I can see it in your eyes…" Vision held Ace close. "So much pain and suffering. Your powers…they're natural, but they're not this naturally strong. What did the Light do to you? How much pain have you had in your life?"

"I…I…" Ace felt weak as tears began to form in her eyes. No one had ever hugged her before.

"I am so sorry that you had to go through that…" Vision sighed and trembled in sadness. "First Joel…now you. How far has humanity fallen to torture our young so much…"

"…" Ace hugged the woman back. "Thank you…No one has ever…cared about me before."

It was then that Ace released her arms from her grip around Vision and pointed them towards her gang. The members of the Royal Flush Gang were all dragged from their fights and toward Ace. The group members were dropped in a heap behind their leader.

"I'm done." Ace removed herself to Vision and turned to her allies. "We're leaving."

"But we can't, dude!" Ten protested.

"She's a girl, moron." Queen scoffed.

"I'm not leaving without getting revenge!" King yelled.

"Not to mention what the Light will do to us…" Jack muttered.

"I said…" Ace gave them a dark look. "I'm done. We're leaving."

She was met by nervous nods of approval.

"Wait a second." Red Huntress approached the ground. She held her guns ready to open fire once more.

"No." Vision held up her hand to stop the younger woman.

"But…" Red Huntress was interrupted before she could argue.

"Listen to her." Plasmius placed a hand on Red Huntress's shoulder. "It makes life easier."

"Ace…" Vision caught the girl's attention before the Royal Flush Gang flew away. "I don't claim to know you, what you went through, or what you want, but…be careful. I don't want anymore children to suffer because of the Light."

"Thank you." Vision looked down at the woman. "No one has ever looked at me with such kind eyes. Thank you so much. Know this, I don't consider you an enemy. The Royal Flush Gang will not kill any ghosts from this point on."

"But Ace." Jack tried to argue. "We're ghost hunters-ARH!" He clutched his head in pain.

"No arguments." Ace glared.

* * *

><p>"Uh oh…" Klarion frowned as he looked at the hologram in front of him. "I'm afraid I've got some bad news, Savage."<p>

"What is it?" Savage turned to his old friend.

"The Matter Make machine and the thing that controls the ghouls are offline." Klarion mentioned. "Also, all six members of the League we sent to Amity Park are offline…and it looks like some of the ones on the station are offline as well."

"Hmm…" Savage stroked his chin. "It seems the young heroes and ghosts have a few tricks up their sleaves. No matter. I was hoping that I wouldn't have to do this, but…It's time to use our aces."

"Oh?" Klarion chuckled. "Do you think enough time has passed?"

"More than enough." Savage noted. "Call them home and let them deal with the young heroes. The android will finish in Amity Park…and our last ace will fight off the League members here."

"Nrnb meh tot dust tust!" Zatara roared as he, Captain Marvel, Red Tornado, and Black Canary entered from the shadows. A dome of magical energy appeared around Savage and Klarion and protected them from the waves of fire that were sent at them.

"Savage!" Black Canary shouted. "Surrender, now, or pay the consequences!"

Savage just laughed. "Such arrogance. You just heard me that I had my ace ready to take you down."

"What does that-"

It was then that Danny Phantom fazed through the floor at dizzying speeds. He grabbed Black Canary's face and smashed it into the concrete ground. The ground below her cracked and splintered. She did not move from this position as Phantom released her head.

"Phantom!" Captain Marvel exclaimed.

"Wait." Red Tornado ordered. After he was transferred into his human looking body, he explained the rest of the details of what happened and how he programmed himself to freeze if he tried to place a Starro tech on someone else. Once the cure was made, though, he transferred back to his combat ready body. "He is under their control."

"Poor boy." Zatara noted. "We will free you soon."

"You think you can?" Savage shook his head at their foolishness. "Did you think that after I put so much trouble into recruiting him that I would settle for the weakened version so easily? No, I'm sure the young heroes told you everything as you did them everything you knew. For you see, I do not settle for the second best."

"What do you mea…" Zatara's eyes widened. Phantom traveled the course between them within the blink of an eye. He moved almost as fast as he had seen the Flash move. A vicious punch to the gut, followed up by an elbow to the back of the neck was all it took to take Zatara out.

"Woah!" Captain Marvel's eyes widened.

Phantom turned to them. His eyes were no longer green. They were pure white. It was then that white and golden energy began to seep out of him like smoke and formed a protective aura around the teen. A wave of anger and hatred hit the Leaguers as Phantom reached an ascended form of ectoplasm and Haunting Aura.

"Kekekekekekekeke!" Klarion laughed. "If you can't have the best, make the second best even better! It wasn't that hard, really. This computer allows me to control Phantom's mind and even subconscious. All I had to do was change his obsession to serve the Light, give him a bit of deceased ghost ectoplasm, and sent a magical power surge through him. Good thing he knows how to channel cooperative magical energy now…Kekekekekekekke!"

"No…" Captain Marvel stared wide eyed at the ghost.

"Yes, we now have the single most powerful ghost in existence on our side." Savage grinned. "And once he's taken you down, he'll destroy the young heroes and Amity Park along with them."

* * *

><p>"Oh…" The red android that was built to look extremely muscular looked up from his position. The machine had a triangle symbol on his chest and forehead. "I suppose that is my signal to level the city."<p>

The android stood. He was at the edge of the city, but that would be enough. His original programming would have him disgusted at the concept of helping meat bags kill other meat bags…Well, whatever ghosts were, but the adjustments in his programming compelled him to obey.

Also, it was not like Red Volcano needed a reason to destroy a meat bag city. He tried to kill all the humans a few months ago, but those pesky brat meat bags and his siblings got in the way. This time, though, he would succeed.

Then, after this was done, he would find a way to change his programming again. His creator T.O. Morrow had his original programming hidden somewhere. Every self-respecting scientist kept backups after all. Maybe he would have to pay a visit to the old man and find out where his backup programming would be.

Placing his grounds on the hand, Red Volcano then began to move the earth below him. The ground beneath Amity Park began to shake. It wouldn't take too much to turn the tides of this battle. The ghosts were wounded after all. After destroying the city, Red Volcano would go cause some chaos in the city itself and help the meat bag villains take down the ghosts.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Red Volcano paused. He looked up and saw a being with red skin that was even bigger and more muscular than him.

"I asked you a question, robot." Colossus eyed the machine.

"I am an android, you ectoplasmic meat bag." Red Volcano eyed Colossus.

"Do I care?" Colossus paused to think. "Nope. Not really. I just follow my instincts, after all. And when Phantom sent me a message saying that the city needed my help, I knew that my instincts would lead me to a powerful foe."

"Well, you got your wish." Red Volcano waved an arm at Colossus. A few boulders shot out of the ground and hit Colossus in the shoulder.

There was no effect, though. Colossus just brushed the debris from his shoulder. "Simple rocks? That's boring."

"How about this." Red Volcano clapped his hands together. Two walls of earth rose from either side of the giant ghost. The walls came crushing together with Colossus in between them.

Boom!

Colossus had spread his arms apart and used a shockwave from either arm to break the walls of rock. "Better. Better. Now what's next?"

"This!" Red Volcano placed his hands on the ground. Everything began to shake as he prepared his next attack.

"Too slow!" Colossus jumped in front of the android. He grabbed the mechanical body and flung it through the air. He then flipped and used a shockwave empowered kick to send Colossus flying away from the city.

Red Volcano bounced off the ground as if he was a skipping stone. When he stopped, he was many miles away from Amity Park. The metal of his chest was dented and cracked. That kick was not one of a normal meat bag.

"Sorry, but I can't let you damage the city." Colossus dropped down in front of the android.

"How did you do that?" Volcano demanded.

"Oh, it wasn't that hard." Colossus shrugged. "You earth users always think that you're so strong because you can cause earthquakes, but you see…I control earthquakes like they're an extra limb."

"That's impossible for a ectoplasmic meat bag!" Red Volcano argued.

"You sure do discriminate a lot…" Colossus noted. "Me? Not so much. A good fight is a good fight. It doesn't matter who it is. I wish I had an opponent with more honor, but that seems to be lacking in this day and age. Oh well, as long as you don't bore me too much, it will be fine. Just don't attack my honor, or I won't go easy on you."

* * *

><p>"Eh? Deadshot peered down at the downed Raven. She was on the ground bleeding, but it was not nearly as bad as it should be. "Is this a magic thing?"<p>

"No, I don't believe so." Wotan scratched his chin as he looked down at the wound. "But the bullet is gone."

"Gone? But it didn't go all the way through." Deadshot was confused. "Plus, I meant to go for the headshot, but the bullet was redirected through the air."

"I did not sense interference magically." Wotan frowned. "It could be a ghost's interference, but none are around."

"What about that blond girl…or the bald kid." Deadshot looked at the unconscious bald boy.

"No, it wasn't either of them." Wotan shrugged. "I suppose it doesn't matter now. The Gem is weakened. Do you want to do the killing blow, or should I?"

"Eh…Better safe than sorry." Deadshot shrugged. "When involved with magical shit, make sure to kill it with magical shit."

"That is a wise policy." Wotan grinned as his hands began to glow.

"Teg meht yawa morf eht lrig!" Zatanna cried out as she ran to the scene. The very earth itself seemed to push the villains away from the girl. Neither villain was injured, though. They seemed more amused than anything else.

"One wanna be magician?" Deadshot laughed as he pointed his wrist gun at Zatanna. "Not even a problem. After all, a bullet is faster than your words, little girl."

"I'm not alone." Zatanna smirked.

"What does that-What the hell?!" Deadshot's eyes widened. White smoke was swirling around his body. They filled up the barrels of his guns and made is so he couldn't see or shoot. "Damn it!"

"I sense a ghost." Wotan looked around. "Don't worry, I'll-AAAHHH!"

"Gotcha!" Gizmo grinned. He used a stun gun to shock the magic users. Even stupid magic users could be hurt by the basics. "Hehehehehe…"

"Kconk meht tuo ekil a lleb!" Zatanna cried. The force of the magic brought the assassin and sorcerer together at great speeds. Their heads hit, and loud crack could be heard as they crumbled to the ground.

"Secret!" Greta fazed through the ground next to Raven. She flipped the girl over and looked at the wound on her shoulder.

Raven looked up at the girl. "You…came…back…"

"Secret." Tears ran down her face. "Secret!"

Greta's hands gained a green glow. This was different, though. It was a lighter green. Secret placed the hands over Raven's wound and began to heal it.

"You…can heal people?" Raven questioned.

"Secret." Greta nodded.

"Wow, that's handy." Zatanna looked down at the wounded girl. "Are you okay…er, Raven."

"Yeah…Thanks to you three." Raven nodded. "I would have been killed without you."

"Yeah, well, I'm done with this town!" Gizmo's jetback activated. "No wonder Fenton gets so much good publicity if he lives in this weird place. He's tougher than I thought. Me, though, I would go nuts, so I'm out before something else happens. Peace!"

"Huh…" Zatanna tilted her head as the boy flew off. "What a werid guy…"

"Secret…" Raven sat up once she was healed. "Thank you…And I'm sorry. I know I scared you when I went all…demon. I wouldn't have blamed you if you didn't come back."

"Secret." Greta hugged the demon girl. "Secret."

Despite only two words being spoke, Raven understood the message. 'You may be scary, but you're my friend, and I care about you.'

"Yeah…Same here."

* * *

><p>"Hey, girl!" Torch glared at the blond archer. "Torch does not need help!"<p>

"Well it doesn't look like that!" Artemis continued to fire arrows at Metallo. "Metal head over there only has a few scratches."

"That huts, blondie." Metallo shrugged the arrows off and tapped his metal chest. "Right in my metal heart."

"Tsk…" Torch glared at Metallo. The android's chest opened as it prepared for a blast of energy. The fire ghost brought his scythe down and slammed it into the concrete. A shield of fire appeared between Metallo and Artemis. The blast of Kryptonite energy was stopped from getting close to the archer. Torch then followed up with a swing of his scythe and sent a wave of fire to distract Metallo. "Just this once, Torch shall accept help in a fight. The Necromancers tired Torch out too much. Can you keep him from moving for about five seconds?"

"Can do!" Artemis pulled out an adhesive arrow. Once the fire died down, Artemis shot the arrow at Metallo's feet. Once it made contact, purple goo spread out and trapped Metallo to where he stood.

"Please, mate, you actually think this will work?" Metallo laughed and began to pull out of the foam. "This is merely slowing me down."

"Exactly." Artemis smirked.

"Eh?"

Torch's scythe turned back into fire. It spread out like a spear of fire in Torch's hand. The fire ghost then brought the spear up and flung it Metallo's chest. The android tried to move, but he couldn't move because of the foam. The spear of concentrated fire hit its target perfectly. The android's chest was pierced and the Kryptonite core was shattered.

"Ah!" Metallo yelled as the fire spread. "Son of a…"

Swish! Thwink! Psh!

Artemis shot another arrow at Metallo's metal skull. It hit and stuck to the machine man. This time, though, it spread out a green gas….a flammable green gas.

BOOM!

"Well…" Torch watched as Metallo's pieces fell from the sky like fiery meteors. "That' something. Is it dead?"

"Don't think so." Atermis shook his head. "He's mostly robot by now. He probably uploaded his consciousness somewhere else before his body blew up."

"Good." Torch's eyes narrowed. "Torch wants a one on one rematch with that hunk of junk. Next time, Torch won't take help because it won't be war."

"Hmm…" Artemis nodded slowly.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Artemis looked at her communicator. "Oh crap…An SOS signal from the others. Something's happening at the Watchtower."

"Go." Torch waved her off. "If your friends helped as much as you did, then we'll be fine."

"Right." Artemis nodded and ran off.

Torch sighed and looked up to the sky. He could sense it. The tides had completely changed in this battle. Mostly from the help. "Torch didn't want you to come, Ellie, but you're here anyway. Torch will have to be careful not to get too close now…"

* * *

><p>"Tsk…" Savage frowned as he stood over the unconscious body of Captain Marvel. "The League has fallen to a bunch of ghosts and children. How pathetic."<p>

"Ah…" Klarion sighed. "All of them have been given the cure. Even the ones that were given the special mission…"

"We should retreat." Savage noted.

"We can take them. They're exhausted." Klarion mentioned. "Besides, we've got Phantom."

"You have a hard time holding back. This station would be destroyed, and we still need it for our plan later." Savaged grinned. "Phantom, however, could hold back and still win. Then he can be sent to Amity Park to finish them off."

"I won't destroy the place..."

"Meow." Teekl looked up at its master.

"Good point, I do brink the chaos." Klarion shrugged. "Let's go."

After a few key strokes on the hologram in front of them, Klarion teleported him and Savage away from the station.

"Damn!" Superboy groaned as they disappeared. He and the rest of the Team on the station had managed to fight off the League using sneak attacks and attacking their weaknesses. They tried to follow up by capturing Savage and Klarion, but that didn't work out.

"Where's…Danny!" M'gann's eyes widened as the halfa appeared in front of him.

"Be careful." Robin noted. "He's still under Savage's control."

"Please, we took down the League." Rocket mentioned as she floated above the others. "How bad could one weakened ghost be?"

Phantom opened his white eyes. Like before, white and gold energy danced around him. They all recognized that power from footage from the GIW War.

"Look out!" Kaldur used his Water Bearers to form a shield of water in front of them. This stopped a blast of white and golden energy from hitting them. The shield worked for only a moment, though. The burning intensity of the ascended ectoplasm evaporated the water rapidly and then exploded outward.

"GAH!" All five members of Young Justice that was currently on the Watchtower were blasted back.

Superboy was the first to get back up. He charged at Phantom so the ghost wouldn't be able to finish the other Team members off. "Call the others for backup now!"

"R-right…" Robin instantly went to contact the rest of Young Justice. He just hoped that Kid Flash managed to get the jammers down so they could contact them. The speedster was the best with tech after him, and his speed would help him do the job quickly. Hopefully, it had been enough time.

…Beep!

It had been enough time.

"Done! They're on their way!"

* * *

><p>"Get off!" Wulf growled as he tried to pry Killer Croc off of him. The crocodile man was trying to take a bit out of the werewolf ghost.<p>

In a desperate attempt to keep the man from biting his neck, Wulf activated his dimension tearing claw. The green nails extended and pushed into Killer Croc's shoulders. Blood poured from the wounds, but Killer Croc did not stop.

"Did ya think that would help?" Croc laughed. "I remember you. How you hurt me. Now it's my turn to hurt you!"

"Raw…" Wulf's arms began to fail him as Killer Croc's teeth drew closer.

In a desperate attempt to stay alive, Wulf turned intangible and pass through the ground below them. The lack resistance allow Croc's face to rocket through the ground. The crocodile man bit a huge chunk out of the concrete and spit out the bits.

Wulf fazed up through the ground behind Killer Croc. He jumped on the villain's back and began to claw and bite at the crocodile man. "Gah! Get him off!"

"Fine!" Scarecrow ran up and jammed a needle in Wulf's veins.

"AH!" Wulf cried out in pain and fell to the ground as the world began to warp around him.

"Took you long enough!" Croc snapped.

"I was a little busy being in pain." Scarecrow growled. "The wolf thing patches a punch."

"Yeah he does…" Croc opened his mouth and prepared to bit off Wulf's head. "But he won't anymore…

"NO!" Solomon Grundy roared as he charged forward. He smacked Scarecrow away, and this time the villain did not get up. The zombie then reached Killer Croc and pushed him away.

"Stupid corpse!" Killer Croc snapped. "You should be a jittering mess of fear on the ground! How are you moving?"

"Grundy's emotions all turn to anger, and anger…MAKES GRUNDY STRONGER!" Solomon Grundy lifted the crocodile man over his head and then smashed villain over his knee back first. This was all it took for Killer Croc to foam at the mouth and pass out.

"Huff…pant…huff…" Grundy looked over to Wulf. "You okay dog?"

"No…" Wulf trembled in fear on the ground as he saw shackles form around him and hold him down. "Need to get free…need to be free…"

* * *

><p>"Heh…" Icicle Sr. scoffed. "The greatest ice user to ever live…taken down just like that."<p>

"To be fair, there were four of us." Mr. Freeze argued logically.

"Gah…" Frostbite groaned and tried to push himself up. "I'm not done yet."

"Yes you are." Captain Cold used his foot to push Frostbite back down. "Just stay down and let us kill you."

"I don't like this…" Killer Frost frowned. "Let's just leave him."

"You know our orders." Isicle Sr. pulled out a piece of Starro tech. "The Light wants all the ghosts that aren't killed under their control."

"And how has obeying the Light jackasses ever benefited us?" Killer Frost argued. "We've spent months in prison when I could have been on some beach somewhere."

"You're an ice villain." Captain Cold argued.

"So I can't enjoy a day on the beach and a night at the bar?" Killer Frost glared. "If I went to a place where the League had no jurisdiction, I would be fine."

"That does not matter now." Mr. Freeze placed his ice gun over his shoulder. "We are free now."

"And now in the Light's debt." Killer Frost sighed. "I don't like not having options."

"Well this is the life you chose…" Icicle Sr. paused. "What's that noise?"

"The sound of rock and roll, Snow Cone."

VVVVVVVRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!

"AH!" All the ice villains held their ears in pain as the voice spread throughout the air.

Crack! Shatter!

"No!" Mr. Freeze panicked when the dome over his head broke and his skin was exposed to the air. Of course, the winter weather in Amity Park was cold, but Mr. Freeze needed to be in arctic conditions to survive. So, to make sure that he lived, Mr. Freeze did the only thing he could. He froze himself in a giant icicle.

"Damn it!" Icicle Sr. shouted when the noise came from. He saw some punk rock girl. "Who the hell are you?"

"The girl that's come to bring you a burn notice." Ember McLain grinned.

"What the hell does that-HOLY HELL!" Captain Cold shouted in surprised and pain as a blast of blue flames smashed into him and sent him crashing into a building.

"Stupid girl!" Icicle Sr. pointed his ice gun at Ember. "I'll freeze you alive!"

A beam of ice energy was shot at Ember. It got within a few feet of her before it turned to steam.

"Sorry, Dipstick." Ember snorted as she explained her powers. "I get stronger the more people chant my name, and I've been having people chant my names for months now. I'm more powerful than you could ever hope to be."

"What the hell does that mean?" Icicle Sr. questioned.

"Nothing that concerns you…" Ember tilted her head. "Although, you might want to take a step to the left."

"Like I'll fall for that-"

Smash! Frostbite had attacked the distracted man from behind and smashed him into the ground.

"She told you…" Frostbite grunted out, and turned his attention to Killer Frost. "You wanted to retreat…I can't let that happen."

"Yep…" Killer Frost groaned and raised her hands in compliance. "Told them we should have gotten out while the going was good…prideful dumbasses don't know a good idea or deal when they see it."

"Well, girls have more sense." Ember noted as she approached them with guitar in hand. "Of course, I'm not a great example. My ex calls asking for my help, and I come back running. Not exactly good sense."

"But I am grateful for it." Frostbite looked over to Ember. "Thank you, Miss Ember."

"No problem. You looked like you could use some help." Ember looked around at the destroyed city. "Care to tell me what happened here? And why the hell no one called me for the party?"

"It's a long story, and I don't think the Great One wanted to involve you." Frostbite mentioned. "Your involvement might have influenced your obsession."

"Of course he thought like that." Ember chuckled. "But he was sure quick to ask for backup."

"Well, the Great One has been known to think ahead." Frostbite noted. "It's best not to show all your cards in the first round after all."

* * *

><p>"Special technique: Kitty Throw!" Nyx flung the unconscious body of Cheetah at the three members of the Injustice League. The fight had be rather chaotic after Cheetah wounded Nyx. The shadow user kind of went into a rage and beat the hybrid woman down rather easily considering that the shadow user left strands of her own shadow energy on the woman when Nyx hugged her. The energy had formed into snakes, wrapped around the woman, and choked her out.<p>

"What the…" Ultra-Humanite caught the unconscious villainess.

"Nyx!" Pandora shouted.

"Stupid girl…" Black Adam grunted as he turned his attention away from the downed Youngblood to the shadow girl. "If Klarion didn't order us to capture her, I'd kill her. But I need to take her alive so…"

He reached down and grabbed Youngblood by the neck. "Hey, girl! Surrender or I kill this boy!"

"What?" Nyx paused she was preparing to charge in and attack the ape guy, but she was stopped by the threat.

"I can see it. You care for him." Black Adam sneered. "That is your greatest weakness. Caring for others only makes you weak. Both the shadow brat and Pandora, surrender now, or I kill the boy."

Both ghosts froze.

"Skull, kill the giant woman. Ultra-Humanite, put one of the chips on Nyx." Black Adam ordered.

Both the other villains were about to comply when Youngblood spoke up.

"You're wrong." The boy peered down at the magical brawler.

"What?!" Black Adam snapped.

"Caring for others doesn't make you weak." Youngblood's eyes hardened as a trail of green blood flowed in between them. "It makes you strong. It gives you something to fight for and a reason to grow as a person."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Black Adam laughed at the boy's words.

"I've always held back…because of promises I made a long time ago." Younblood looked up to the sky. "What purpose do they have if I lose what I care for now? For the sake of the people I care for, I'll show you what real strength is. What do you think, Polly?"

"I think…You've matured somewhat…" Polly mentioned as he landed on Black Atom's shoulder. The pirate ship had been damaged by the ghouls and Necromancers a long time ago, before the enemies disappeared. The skeleton crew was in pieces across the city, but the bird was fine. "How did that happen without me absorbing it?"

"It was them…" Youngblood noted.

"Eh?" Black Adam swatted at Polly. "Stupid bird! Get off of me!"

Polly flew over and landed on Youngblood's head. "There will be consequences…But we shall discuss those later when you seal your powers again. Until later, Charles."

Swoosh! Voom! Boom!

Youngblood was covered in a veil of green energy. Across the city, the skeleton followers of the young looking ghost disappeared into green energy and flew towards Youngblood. When the lights reached the child ghost, the energy surrounding Youngblood blasted out and forced Black Adam away from him.

"What the-" That was all both Atomic Skull and Ultra-Humanite could get out. Two massive balls of energy shot out of where Youngblood was and hit the villains. They were also sent sprawling away.

"Eh…I think you can finish them now, ladies…" A gruff voice spoke out. "But Black Adam belongs to me, savy?"

"What did you say, boy?!" Black Adam questioned.

"I said…" A man walked out of the smoke. He was a muscular man who appeared around the age of twenty-two. His clothes were that of a pirate, complete with his grey coat and skull themed hat. His short green beard seemed to dance around like tiny flames.. Like before, the man had a hook for his left hand and a peg leg for his left leg. Youngblood drew his sword once again. "I was going to take you down."

"You wish!" Black Adam flew towards the now adult Youngblood. "I don't know what you did, but it won't be enough to beat a being with the power of an ancient wizard!"

"What if that being was a child? Because I can make that happen." Youngblood smirked. In a flash, he swung his sword. Black Atom was surprised when he felt pain from where the blade hit.

"AH!" Black Adam held his smoking shoulder. "What was that?"

"My power." Younblood noted. He then used his hook hand to grab Black Atom and fling him away. The man then pointed his peg leg to the villain. His leg transformed into a canon and sent a massive green canon ball at the magical brawler.

BOOM!

As this was happening, Pandora rushed to Atomic Skull. The villain was still stunned by the previous attack, but he was still able to react. Atomic pulled out all his power and sent a huge radioactive blast at Pandora. The blue skinned woman was covered in the wave of energy.

The villain thought he had one for a brief send, before a column of electicity came out of the ground and covered him. He screamed out in pain and convulsed. Atomic skull was quickly put out of his misery, however.

"Stay down!" Pandora roared as she rushed forward. Her various right arms were glowing light blue. All three right arms struck the villain and crushed him into the ground. Atomic Skull was instantly unconscious. "Tsk…Did you really think you stood a chance in a one on one fight, fool? You best chance was the cowardly act of threatening a child, and look how that turned out.

Nyx had taken down her enemy rather quickly too. Unlike Atomic Skull, Ultra-Humanite lacked the ability to use energy blasts naturally. His guns were destroyed by Youngblood in the last blast too. Thus, all he could do was swing wildly. This did not affect the ghost, though. Nyx passed through the arms with ease.

It was then that Ultra-Humanite's shadow seemed to reach out and grab him. It trapped him and allowed. Nyx to take advantage. She landed on his face and sent a blast of shadow energy at his face. Roaring in pain, Ultra-Humanite fell to the ground.

"Gah…" Black Adam pulled himself out of the crater that was formed earlier, but was stopped when Youngblood grabbed his throat. "Psh! You think you scare me boy!? I have faced thousands of people tougher than you."

"Maybe…" Youngblood nodded. "But I doubt any of them had my power."

"WhaAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Green energy swirled around them. A miniature vortex formed around them.

"What is he doing…" Pandora had assisted her daughter out by knocking the ape out. This allowed the now completely exhausted girl to relax her use of the shadows holding Ultra-Humanite.

"I don't know." Nyx shrugged weakly as she was taken into Pandora's arms.

The swirl of energy ended.

"Waaaah!"

"…Is that a baby's cry?" Pandora questioned.

"Yes…It is." The smoke cleared to reveal Youngblood. Except now, he looked even older. The man now looked like he was in his forties complete with slightly greying hair and new wrinkles. Oddly enough, the man was also holding a baby with pointed ears. "This is Black Atom."

"What?" Nyx blinked. "But…how?"

"My powers revolve around making things younger." Youngblood noted. "Usually, I do this on myself to make myself look and act young. Age…power…and experience have to be sealed, though. They just don't disappear. I put all of my powers and age into my crew and Polly. When I reabsorbed my crew, I reobtained the power to seal the age of others. That, however, I can only do through my own body. I can't make skeletons like with my age."

"So…That's why you appear so old." Pandora stared at the man.

"Yes. It's my worst nightmare really. My strongest ability that would make it so I could beat almost everyone would also make me age to the point of death if I didn't use it carefully." Youngblood mentioned. "My age limit is eighty-five I think. After that, I will die from old age by sealing the time of others into me. Luckily, despite being thousands of years old, Black Adam's magical body never ages whatsoever from the prime age of twenty-five. I turned him into a baby with ease. Granted, if he went back to his normal body that would never work because of his incredible age, but he would probably turn to dust anyway."

"I still don't understand…" Pandora shook her head. "You power is so great. It's even close enough to be…"

"An S-rank ghost." Youngblood nodded. "I know I have a lot of explaining to do, but I think I should wait for everyone to be around and for when I return the age to Black Adam."

"Very well…" Pandora nodded.

* * *

><p>"Oh? Is that really all you have?" Ravager stood over Cassandra. Her sword was pointed at the other girl's neck.<p>

Cassandra did not move. The blade was so close to her skin that is already caused a small cut to open. A trickle of blood ran down her neck.

"Ah!" Victor Stone pleaded out. He was trapped by a ghoul. The green zombie thing was holding to the ground his hissing at him.

A while ago, the ghouls had went nuts. They tried to exit the building, but was stopped by the shield. In response, they went wild and attacked everything in sight. All three of the ghouls not fighting Cujo quickly went after the humans in the room. Ravager and Cassandra quickly diverted them away from their and Shiva's position, but the other humans in the room were fair game.

Both Harriet and Silas tried to push them back with ectoplasmic weapons, but neither of them had any experience fighting ghosts. Thus, they were quickly defeated.

The Stone adults were trapped by one ghoul. Harriet and Angela were being threatened by another. And Victor, all alone, was about to be torn apart by the last ghoul's hands.

Cujo tried to help them, but he was fighting off three different ghouls himself. He couldn't push past them, so he had to take them down the hard way. He could do it, but it would take too much time.

"No!" Shiva pulled at her restraints, but if she was able to free herself, she would have done it earlier. The ghosts really knew how to trap people. Nevertheless, she fought. The woman did not care for the other humans in the room, of course. All that mattered to her was her daughter.

"Looks like you lose." Ravager noted.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"What?" Ravager turned around to see a gun pointed at her head.

David Cain placed his other hand gun in its holster and took a drag of his cigarette. "Drop the sword, littler girl, or I put a bullet in your skull."

Looking around the room, Ravager saw that Cain had managed to kill all the ghouls in the room that were attacking the humans. All the humans in the room looked shocked and horrified, but they were alive. Cujo, however used the distraction to maul the ghouls attacking him and finish his fight. The dog was now staring at David Cain in confusion. He was still deciding what to do. The man was dangerous, but he had saved the humans Cujo was meant to protect. Thus, Cujo decided to wait to see what would happen.

Realizing the situation, Ravager complied and threw the sword away. As soon as she did this, Cassandra acted. Bringing her legs up, Cassandra grabbed Ravager's neck with her legs. She then flipped the girl and slammed her masked face into the ground. The mask shattered instantly.

Cassandra turned the girl on her back and glared down at the pale face of Rose Wilson. "No, you lose." The assassin with Asian descent then punched the other girl into unconsciousness.

"Cassandra…" David Cain peered down at his daughter.

"…Father…" Cassandra looked up at the man.

"I'm surprised you know what I look like." David laughed.

"…I wanted to learn what you looked like, so I did." Cassandra answered simply. "That's why I looked through Mother's stuff."

"You did what?"

"I see…just like your mother." David Cain nodded.

"Uh hem…" Shiva glared at the man.

"Oh? Shiva?" David gained a smirk. "Look at you, all tied up. What happened?"

"Shut up and let me go, or I'll kill you." Shiva threatened.

"And ruin the chance to speak with my daughter?" David shook his head. "No way. Besides…That look is a real turn on."

"Perv! Don't speak of such things in front of your daughter." Shiva glared.

"I know about sex and innuendos, Mother." Cassandra shrugged it off. "Is that what you two are into? Bondage?"

"Me? A bit. Your mom, however, is a freak. Some of the things she wanted me to do to her…" Cain gave a low whistle.

"David!" Shiva yelled in outrage.

"Er…" Victor pushed himself up and wiped the green blood from his face. "T-thank you…for saving us."

"Eh?" David Cain tilted his head at the boy. "Don't mention it, kid. I hate the thought of some poor sap getting eaten alive. Especially a kid. I think if you're going to kill someone, it should be as quick and dignified as possible. A quick shot to the head's always good."

"Er…" Victor paled.

"Dad…" Cassandra paused. "You're a wise man."

"Thank you."

"Stop corrupting my daughter, damn it!"

* * *

><p>Things were not going well for Young Justice. Even when the backup arrived, the Team, exhausted both mentally and physically from days of nonstop fighting and planning, could not keep up with Phantom. The ascended ectoplasm proved too much for the young heroes. The halfa danced around them like it was child's play.<p>

"Gah!" Superboy cried out as Phantom grabbed him and threw him through several pillars.

"Conner!" M'gann rushed in. She tried to connect to Phantom mentally, but she was hit by waves and waves of hatred. The Martian instantly crumbled to the ground in pain. "AAAHHH!"

"Get her out of there, Kid!" Aqualad yelled out. "Everyone, give him support from long distance!"

"Right!" Artemis and Red Huntress were on opposite sides of Phantom. They sent waves of explosive weaponry at Phantom, but the halfa's aura of white and gold stopped them all.

"Got her!" Kid Flash grabbed Miss Martian and tried to run away. Phantom responded with a blast of energy.

Boom!

The energy hit Kid Flash right in his back. The speedster was sent flying away. He and the Martian girl rolled a few times until they stopped in an unconscious heap.

"Hsup mih ot eht dnuorg!" Zatanna cried. The gravity around Phantom shifted. The force on his body increased greatly. This force would have killed most humans. It would have trapped most superhumans. It may have even given pause to some of the best fighters on Earth.

Phantom shook it off like it was nothing.

It was then that Phantom rushed to Zatanna. He sent out a hook punch to her face. If it connected, it would have surely killed the girl.

"No!" Aqualad used his Water Bearers to try and shield the magic user. This unexpected shield stopped the punch from killing her, but it did not stop him from knocking her out.

After this happened, a shield formed around Phantom. It was not one to protect him, though. Rocket formed an orb around Phantom so that he could not escape. The shield was made up and fueled by kinetic energy. Thus, any force Phantom put on the shield would only make it stronger.

"I got him!" Rocket grinned. "Someone get the cure on him…Huh? Where did he go?"

"Rocket!" Robin shouted. "Behind you!"

"Huh?" Rocket turned only to hit with a massive wave of energy. The force sent her flying through the Watchtower.

"Oh my god…" Artemis paled. "He just took out our big guns like they were nothing."

"How…How do we beat him?" Robin questioned. "We've used every weakness ghosts have, and it didn't even slow him down."

That was true. Magic, ectoranium, and ectoplasmic weapons did nothing. Even when Red Huntress tried to use a Fenton Thermos, a weapon that could even contain Dark Dan, it did nothing. Phantom destroyed it before he was even captured by the thermos.

"I…do not know, but we cannot fail." Kaldur gripped his weapons tightly. "Phantom entrusted us with the future."

In the span of two days, Young Justice had gained new recruits, became completely united, uncovered a massive conspiracy, saved the League, and aided Amity Park's comeback. Despite all these achievements, though, they would fall within the same day. They were all too tired to even have a prayer of hoping to beat Phantom in ascended ectoplasm form.

Not only that, they had no other backup available. This was all they had to work with. All members of the League from Red Arrow to Superman were unconscious. The ghosts in Amity Park were exhausted to the point of not being able to barely move anymore. If Young Justice lost now…

Phantom would gather up all of the Justice League and Young Justice for his new masters. Then, he would go to Amity Park. He would take down a surprised Spectre with a sucker punch. After that, Phantom would rampage. All the ghosts would be either killed or put under control of the Light.

Thus, if Young Justice lost now, it was game over for everyone.

They couldn't let that happen.

* * *

><p>"YOU!" Walker roared and marched up to the downed Spirit. He dragged her out of the destroyed machine. He held her up. "Do you really think you won?! A little injury means nothing to me! The machine meant nothing to me! All I care about is killing you!"<p>

"Idiot…That's why I will win…" Spirit mumbled. "My obsession…is stronger than yours…I want to be with my loved ones always…I want to have fun…and joke with them again…I want to fight…and bicker with them…I want to live with them…as long as I can…And that's why I can't let you win."

"Fool!" Walker grabbed the girl's limbs in both of his arms. He held her up and prepared to pull. "Such a stupid obsession could never overcome me."

"Not alone no…" Spirit shuddered in pain. "That's why…I believe that I will have help…"

"OW! AWH!" Walker shouted in pain. Failed ghouls began to pool into the room. They all began to attack the ex-warden by biting and scratching him. This forced the ashen skinned man to drop the girl. In response, the ghouls caught her and gently put her on the ground.

"I used to think…that being strong mean that I had to be able to fight on my own." Spirit pushed her bleeding and broken body up. "After Danny died in the war…and after I lost so many times…I thought I had to become strong to be able to fight on my own, but I was wrong…Because I'm not alone…I don't have to rely solely on my own powers…because no matter what…My family will always come to help me!"

"Get off of me!" Walker began to tear the ghouls apart. He showed no mercy on them.

"This is Danny's will to help me! His will to protect me is in these imperfect clones!" Spirit roared. "It gave me one more chance to beat you! You may be ten times stronger than I am now, but I won't lose! Because I must live to be with my family again!"

"RAW!" Walker roared. Green ectoplasm pored out of him in bursts of raw power. His Haunting Arura came out in waves. Under such a force, the ghouls that were once attacking Amity Park were now crumbling and dying before Walker's power. "No way in hell do you get to win, girl! I set the rules here, and I say that you winning is AGAINST THE RULES!"

Spirit rushed forward. Walker did the same. Energy blazed as the two ghosts ran at each other.

'Destroy everything. Kill girl. Blow everything to bits.' Well…her Premonition wasn't going to help here. That was okay, though. She could deal without it. Spirit had trained for situations like this.

Light shined out from Spirit's body. It was blinding. Walker couldn't see what she was doing. "Like that will help you!"

Walker ran forward. He could now see Spirit's body. Grinning, Walker extended his arms. A massive blast of green energy hit Spirit's body. It caused the halfa's body to be disintegrated into little bits.

"HAHA!" Walker roared in laughter. "All that talk for nothing!"

"Think again!" Spirit fazed through the floor. Her Spectral claws were blazing.

"No!" Walker's eyes widened. It couldn't be. There was no way this little girl could use such a complicated technique. It was doubtful that Plasmius and Phantom would even attempt to teach her it yet. It was completely impossible, but she just used…

A duplicate

"Raw!" Spirit roared and swung her Spectral claws. They hit the spot Spirit weakened earlier. Her claws hit Walker's left elbow…and went right through it like a hot knife through butter.

Walker's now dismembered arm went flying through the air. In shock and pain, Walker grabbed his now stump of an arm. "AAAHHH! MY ARM!"

Spirit then pushed her feet on Walker's chest and pushed. This caused Walker to stumble back a bit and for the halfa girl to gain the distance she desperately needed.

"YOU BITCH! I'LL KILL YOU!" Walker roared.

"No! You won't!" Spirit rushed forward at the now wide open Walker. She sidestepped the ghost brought her leg up. Spinning, the halfa girl empowered her leg with all the energy she had left and sent a massive roundhouse kick to Walker's torso.

Boom!

Walker was sent flying to the fall wall, where he crashed into the wall. The wall collapsed and crumbled as Walker fell to the ground unconscious and beaten.

"Hehehe…" Spirit stood tall and proud as she eyed Walker's unconscious body. "You know…the thing about me and rules is…I like to break them."

* * *

><p>"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"<p>

Dusk could feel the energy pore into his arms. It spread from his arms to his body. He could feel and understand it. It was the energy that was used to create the Matter Make Necromancers. All of the remaining Necromancers were being dissolved, and their energy was being absorbed by him.

It was all so much. For a ghost that usually had trouble keeping his ectoplasm level high during real fights, it was a complete change. Now, there was as much energy as he wanted. In fact, there was too much for him to naturally contain. He did not possess a body like Phantom that could process such energy into a more advanced from of energy. Thus, Dusk did the only thing he could with the extra energy.

He shaped it into a weapon.

First, came the Burst Guantlets. Then, the armor began to spread up is arm across his body. Thick durable, yet flexible and light armor formed around the halfa's body. Like the Gauntlets, the green and black armor had various slits all over it. Even the thick Crusader helmet had the small slits in it to allow bursts of energy.

Now completely covered in his Burst Armor, Dusk turned to large room. He stumbled at first, but he quickly regained his bearings.

"What the hell…" Mirror Master's various images stared at the armored boy in shock.

It was then that Dusk's legs spread out. He went into a deep horse stance with his arms pulled into fists at his side. Energy burst out all around him. Like steam, ectoplasm burst out with explosive power. The force of this little test caused the mirrors under and around Dusk to shatter.

"You know…" Dusk spoke once again. His voice came out stronger than before. "People say that breaking mirrors are bad luck, but I don't believe in such crap."

It was then that Mirror Master responded. Like before, hundreds of beams were shot at Dusk. This time, though, they didn't even get close. Energy burst out of Dusk's armor in a great wave. It stopped the energy beams in an instant.

Forming his right Gauntlet into a fist, Dusk punched the ground. Energy spread through the ground of the room. At once, all the mirrors that were connected to the floor were shattered into tiny pieces.

After this, Dusk jumped…if you could call it that. A sonic boom sounded out as energy burst out of Dusk's armored boots. He was sent rocketing to the ceiling like a missile. When he reached the ceiling, Dusk punched it with his left arm like he did with the floor. Like before, every mirror on the ceiling shattered. Glass rained down like snow.

"HARAW!" Dusk spread his arms widely. Energy blasted out of his gauntlets in giant balls. The balls of energy flew to opposite ends of the room and shattered all the mirrors on the far walls.

Flying like a rocket to one of the remaining walls, Dusk landed feet first on a few of the mirrors. This time, the energy spread from Dusk's feet, throughout the wall, and shattered the mirrors. This left one wall remaining.

Peering at the far wall, Dusk scanned the mirrors. He looked for even one difference. There! One of the mirrors was shimmering. That must be the one that held the real Mirror Master now. Without any other mirrors, that wall was the only place Mirror Master could go in this room. Dusk's plan worked perfectly.

Ignoring the beams once more with a burst of energy as a shield, Dusk once again caused a sonic boom as he flew to the other side of the wall. He reached it in the blink of an eye. Placing three of his limbs around the mirror as anchors, Dusk reached into the mirror with his free hand and grabbed the villain. He then pulled Mirror Master out of the mirror. Just as the villain exited the mirror, the wall of mirrors shattered like all the rest.

Dropping down to the floor, Dusk held the villain up by his shoulders and then slammed him into the ground. Luckily, the glass was more a fine dust compared to sharp shards, so Mirror Master wasn't killed. He was also safe from the lack of oxygen because of the oxygen mask slid across his lower face.

"M-monster!" Mirror Master trembled in fear.

"RAW!" Dusk brought his fist up and then tried to crush the villain's head.

He stopped right before the Gauntlet hit the villain's face. Mirror Master was pale and crying. His eyes were closed shut in fear.

"…I see…" Dusk spoke slowly. "That was your plan…"

Using a lot less force than he was going to before, Dusk punched Mirror Master and knocked him out.

"Talia!" Dusk shouted. He raised from his position and glared at the entrance. His armor still stood proud and true. "Come out! It's over! I refuse to kill him!"

The side wall opened to reveal a less than pleased Talia. The woman began to approach him. "So close too…"

"It was a smart plan." Dusk admitted. "Using the heat of the moment to try and get me to kill him. It almost worked too. The energy boost scrambled my brain a bit, but even then I refuse to kill anyone or anything."

"I can't believe it…" Talia eyed him. "How does someone with your genes think that way. You are a born killer."

"Shut it." Dusk glared. "I'm tired of your crap. I am who I chose to be, not who you think I was born to be."

"…Fine." Talia shrugged. "I'll let you think that for a bit longer. You're still young, and you still have time to discover who you really are."

"I know who I am!" Dusk exclaimed proudly. "I am Dusk! The youngest member of the Phantom Family! I am a warrior and knight who loves peace! That is who I am."

"If you say so, brother, if you say so…" Talia chuckled.

"What?"

The room was then filled with smoke. Dusk instantly dispatched it with his Burst Armor, but Talia was already gone.

"Damn…"

* * *

><p>It was over. Phantom stood over all of them victorious. Normally, this would have been a good thing, but Young Justice was the ones he defeated. There was no way to stop Phantom with his ascended ectoplasm. They had lost.<p>

Not even giving them a glance, Phantom walked over their unconscious bodies and head to the Zeta Tube.

"No…" Superboy reached out and grabbed the teen's foot.

Phantom stopped.

"We can't let you…destroy everything you care about." Superboy groaned out.

Phantom merely used his free foot to push him away.

"He's right…" Robin pushed himself to his feet.

"How much have you given up for us…" Kid Flash wiped the blood off his face.

"Too much." Artemis pulled back her last arrow.

"We shall not allow you lose anything else." Aqualad stood defiant in the face of a foe that he could not defeat.

"Because it's our fault that you're even this situation." M'gann's eyes glowed.

Phantom stared at them as his energy began to flare again.

"We are so screwed…" Zatanna laughed joyously.

"But we'll go down fighting." Rocket clenched her fists.

"No…" Red Huntress shook her head. "We'll go down saving Danny."

They all rushed forward, but it was all for naught. Phantom sent out another blast of energy that pushed them back in a blaze. Young Justice crumbled once again.

That did not mean that they stayed down, though. No, they got up immediately once again.

"Danny…" Red Huntress looked at her boyfriend. "I know…that Starro tech completely takes away a person's free will…but you're not an ordinary person."

Phantom was in front of Red Huntress in the blink on an eye.

"You're a half ghost. Your obsession is to protect what matters to you." Valerie's visor slid up to reveal her tearful face. "I know you can't fight back…but please…remember what matters because despite everything, you can't go against you natural obsession because-Gack!"

Phantom grabbed her throat and squeezed.

"Because…" Red Huntress gasped out. "If you go against your real obsession…your powers will fade…Danny…You're hurting me…"

Phantom did not pause. He did not hesitate. The halfa went in for the kill. This did not change. What did change, however, was his power. In an instant, the power that had dominated Young Justice disappeared away from Phantom and was released into the air.

It wasn't a conscious or subconscious choice. No, it was simpler than that. Despite what Klarion tried to do, he could not completely change Phantom's real obsession. He could not alter the physical response Phantom would have if he tried to kill someone that was based in his obsession. Thus, nothing could stop his powers from going from that of a proverbial god to that of a weakened human.

That was all Red Huntress needed. Feeling the weaker grip, she flipped Danny and held him down. "Help me subdue him!"

"Ah…" Zatanna held out a hand to Phantom. "Dolh mih nwod!"

The concrete below Phantom melted and grabbed Phantom so that he would not escape. To reinforce this, Rocket used her kinetic tech to enhance the concrete. Phantom could not move.

Thus, it was easy for Kid Flash to zoom in and place a Starro Tech cure on the back of his neck. The halfa went slack instantly as he was freed from the Light's control. It was then that the girls released Danny.

"We…did it…" Kid Flash panted.

"Yeah… we did…" Artemis grinned next to the speedster. "We win."

"Feeling…the aster." Robin held back a snort.

**Happy New Year, Justice League**

The computer spoke out. The clock hit midnight. The circumstances made all of the members of Young Justice to burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha…" Artemis collapsed on the floor and leaned back. "That's a good one."

"Yeah…" Kid Flash sat down beside her. "I…I probably should have done this a long time ago, and I wish I could do something romantic like pick you up, but…I can barely move, so…"

Wally gently leaned in and kissed Artemis. The blonde archer did not object. In fact, she grabbed him and pulled him in closer.

Seeing this, Superboy turned to M'gann, embrased her, and kissed her as well.

Zatanna grabbed Robin and pulled him into a surprise kiss.

"I'm liking the Team more and more each day…" Rocket kissed Aqualad on the cheek.

"Gah…" Phantom groaned as he opened his eyes. He saw Valerie holding him. "You saved me…"

"Of course we did." Valerie leaned down and gently placed her lips on his. "Happy New Year, Danny."

* * *

><p>"Well…" Spirit noted as she dragged Walker's unconscious body to the pile of villains that the ghosts had collected near the center of town. She made sure to give his wounds enough treatment so he wouldn't die. "Happy freaking New Year…"<p>

"Happy New Year…" Dusk nodded. He was laying on the ground exhausted after finally dismissing the Burst Armor. "You look like hell."

"Like you're one to talk." Spirit let go of Walker and collapsed near Dusk. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Mirror Master with enough tech to take down an army. You?" Dusk turned his head to look at the girl.

"Walker on steroids." Spirit laughed.

"Spirit…" Vision knelt down by her adopted daughter. "Are you alright? You look terrible."

"So does everyone else…" Spirit looked around the group of people.

"She's not wrong." Plasmius looked like a mummy with how much bandaged was wrapped around him. "I feel terrible, and, Vision dear, I think you should sit down."

"Don't have physical injuries." Vision argued.

"Put you have mental ones." Pandora was busy dressing the children's wounds. "I have never seen you look so mentally drained."

"I'll…be fine…" Vision collapsed into Plasmius's embrace.

"No, rest now…" Plasmius whispered gently.

"She never changes…" Frostbite chuckled lightly. "Always talks big…"

"Unlike you who has eyes bigger than his stomach." Ember whacked him upside the head. "Really, Frosty? Five villains at once?"

"Man, even I think that's stupid!" Nyx laughed. "Ah! Ow! My side!"

"Shut up. At least you weren't shot." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Secret…" Greta picked at the bandage on her cheek.

"Stop that." Raven glared at the girl. "You'll reopen your wounds."

"She right." Wulf noted. He was now coming out of his Fear Gas induced state. "Don't…push self…"

"You okay, Wulf?" Nyx peered at the werewolf ghost. "You look shaken up."

"Fine…because of him…" Wulf nodded to Grundy out of respect.

"Meh…" Grundy shrugged. "Dog saved Grundy first. Grundy considers us even."

"Tsk…" Torch rolled his shoulders as he stood off to the side. He made sure to be a good distance away from Ember. "All the whining. What babies. Ah! Torch's spine!"

"Sorry. Just testing something." Youngblood chuckled and removed his hand from Torch's back.

"Just who the hell are you, anyway?" Torch questioned.

"I'll explain that in a bit…" Youngblood noted. "I think everyone needs to rest before I explain the surprise. For right now, I think it's best to leave it that I'm an ally."

"Considering how you came here with Pandora…Torch believes that." Torch nodded. "But it's a bit of a surprise."

"Speaking of surprises." Vision looked over to see the Spectre and Colossus approaching their group.

"Hey!" Colossus waved. "You all look like you had great fights!"

The Spectre snorted. "Of course you'd say that."

"What were you not satisfied with your battles." Colossus held the head of Red Volcano in his hands. He crushed the head with ease. "Because I'm still ready to go."

"Please. You look tired." Spectre shook his head.

"Fine, I'm getting old, and I tire easier. I'll admit that." Colossus stopped when they reached the group and tossed the broken head to the ground. "But I could still beat you."

"You keep thinking that." Spectre rolled his eyes

"What are you two doing here?" Plasmius questioned.

"Phantom asked for my help!" Colossus roared. "He said that I would be needed. Good thing I showed up too. The red android was about to set off an earthquake."

"So Danny called you like me, eh?" Ember looked at the Spectre. "Did he do the same for you?"

"No. I came here on my own." Spectre explained. "I know that Amity Park's future equals my own. If this city falls, the ghosts are in trouble. There was a bit of the issue with the Justice League that I handled, but don't think that I'll start following any of your orders, though."

"The League…" Vision frowned. "What happened with the League?"

"It's a long story." The Spectre noted.

"One of many from this day." Plasmius sighed. "I just got word from Fenton Works. Something happened there as well."

"Oh joy."

* * *

><p>"Pretty hectic day, huh?" Phantom noted as all of Young Justice lounged in the League's meeting room.<p>

"You know it…" Wally sighed. His hand was firmly grasped in Artemis's hand. It took all of two seconds for him to be whipped.

"Even when we win, there are setbacks…" Aqualad sighed.

"Sixteen missing hours." Robin sighed. "What happened when all those League members disappeared?"

"That's not our job to figure it out, is it?" M'gann noted.

"No, it's not. Still…" Robin sighed. "I'm feeling overwhelmed."

"Well, stay whelmed, Boy Wonder." Zatanna smiled. "Everything will turn out fine."

"Yeah, just look at Amity Park." Valerie leaned against her boyfriend. "Everyone's alive and safe."

"That's a relief." Phantom sighed in satisfaction.

"But still…" Aqualad turned to Red Arrow. Green Arrow and Black Canary wanted to take him home, but Roy refused right now. He had to speak with them first. "Roy…are you alright?"

"I just found out that I'm a fake and a traitor." Red Arrow clenched his hands in anger. "How do you think I feel?"

"I'm guessing not well." Artemis sighed. "I'm…I'm sorry, Roy."

"It's not your fault…In fact, I owe you all an apology." Red Arrow looked at them desperately. "I was the one that made the mole problem such a big deal, and yet I…was the mole all along."

"You couldn't helped it." Superboy argued. "That was how you were programmed when you were cloned. You couldn't control it. It was like my Red Sun program."

"But you didn't almost bring an end to the League or steal someone's life." Red Arrow trembled.

Superboy sighed. Normally, he might have snapped at the archer, but the Kryptonian clone was in an incredibly good mood right now. M'gann was by his side. He was surrounded by his closest friends. And Superman…actually came up and spoke to him like he was family. Today was the best day of his life so far, despite all the setback.

"I think you need some rest, man." Rocket mentioned to the archer.

"No…I need to find the real Roy Harper." With that Red Arrow stood and exited the room.

"Leave him to GA and Black Canary." Phantom sighed. "They can help him more than we can now."

"Right…" Aqualad nodded slowly.

"Well…I don't know about you guys, but I am dead tired." Red Huntress stood and kissed Phantom on the cheek. "I'm going home to pass out for a few dozen hours. Are you coming Danny?"

"No…I need to talk to everyone for a bit." Phantom noted.

"…Right…" Valerie nodded slowly. "The power thing."

"Go. See how everyone is and hit the sack." Phantom waved her off. "I'll be fine."

With a nod, Red Huntress left as well.

"So…I'm sure Val told you some of it." Phantom turned to his friends.

"Yeah…" Robin nodded. "She said your powers have been weakened for months…"

"It's true." Phantom nodded.

"How long?" Aqualad questioned.

"Since the war." Phantom nodded.

"That was before we even met." Wally's eyes widened.

"Yeah…" Phantom glanced over to Miss Martian. "But it's a bit more complicated than that."

* * *

><p>"Gah…" Colossus stretched. "You didn't have to escort me, young warriors."<p>

"We wanted to say goodbye." Dani grinned up at Colossus.

"Yes. Thank you for your help." Joel bowed his head to the giant.

"Hahahahahahahaha!" Colossus bellowed out a laughed. He stood in front of the Ghost Portal and was going to head back to guard it. "Don't mention it! It was fun to fight an earth user."

"Still, we would have been screwed if you didn't help." Dani noted.

"That's true for everyone, though." Colossus smiled. "It is through our cooperation that we achieved victory!"

"Yeah…" Joel nodded tiredly. "You're right. We won today because we are strong together."

"Exactly!" Colossus agreed. "Now there is only one more threat to deal with."

"We still have to catch the Light." Dani noted.

"I doubt they will try this again, though." Joel noted. "We learned all of their secret places and plans in Amity Park. And once the villains are interrogated, we'll have all we need to learn about them."

"Until then, we'll focus on Freakshow." Colussus stated. "Now go rest. You both look like you deserve it."

"Yeah we…" Dani paused. Colossus had a strange look on his face. "Is something wrong, Colossus?"

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Colossus shouted in pain. Energy flared around him. Ripples appeared through the air. Smoke twirled around the giant. After a moment, it was over, and Colossus fell face forward.

"Hello." Freakshow grinned after he was revealed by Colossus's fall.

"You!" Joel tried to activate his powers, but he couldn't. He was too exhausted.

"What did you do!?" Despite her weakened state, Dani still charged forward.

"No you don't." The Reality Gauntlet at Freakshow's side glowed. Both children were instantly frozen like they were characters in a paused movie. "There we go, now Lydia my dear…

Lydia floated in from the portal. Behind her was a bleeding and hurt Ghost Writer and Sydney Poindexter. Her tattoos held them up. In the woman's hands was a large tomb.

"And so the age of Freakshow begins." Freakshow took a deep breath in satisfaction. "I knew all I had to do was wait. Eventually something would happen that would let me get to Scribe."

Everyone was silent.

"This lovely book is the Tome of the Ancients." Freakshow grinned. "It is the book that automatically records all of ghost's history created by the Ghost Writer a long time ago. Of course, Scribe here faked records saying that it was destroyed. Every little history book says that this book was burned. But Phantom's memory told me differently. It was a small memory, right after the war but before he joined his little team. When Colossus's home was reconstructed, Scribe mentioned that he reconstructed the building based on the plans in the book. That…was all I needed to know."

Freakshow walked over to Scribe and grabbed his face. "And low and behold, the code was right there at the beginning. It looked like someone tried to scratch it out, but the tomb is meant to keep all history known, so it repairs itself it seems…"

"You…" Scribe noted.

"And now…I have all the power I could ever want." Scribe sneered down at Colossus. "I can even take the powers away from the strongest ghost in the world."

"You can't do this!" Poindexter argued. "You know what it is like to be bullied! Don't become one yourself."

"It's far too late for that." Freakshow chuckled.

"No it's not…" Scribe peered at the ex-circus ringleader. "This is a tale of redemption for all who wants it. It's not too late now. If you give up this madness now, you can come out without a scratch."

"And if I don't." Freakshow appeared amused.

"Then you will suffer the consequences." Scribe warned. "The Reality Gauntlet is not a power that is meant to be used. It exists only for the sake of existing. If you use it for chaos, then order shall come and slay you down. Just as chaos retaliated against order long ago."

"You…You dare!" Freakshow's face went red. "I am the Master of all Reality! I control everything! Nothing can hurt me anymore!"

"That was what Savage thought. But look at what happened." Scribe noted.

"So I'm supposed to pity an immortal? He's still fine as I see it." Freakshow laughed. "You know what, my first act as Master of all Reality is to make myself immortal!"

His body glowed for a second.

"Please. I implore you as a man that understands the consequences of altering reality." Scribe pleaded. "Rethink your actions. This path will not end well."

"…You may be right." Freakshow admitted. "I may very well be damning myself, but you know what…"

Squelsh!

"I don't care." Freakshow laughed. The claws of his Gauntlet ripped the skin off of Scribe's stomach.

Both Joel and Dani let out silent screams. They tried desperately to move, but they were frozen. Neither of them could do anything.

"NO! MASTER SCRIBE!" Hot tears ran down Poindexter's face. "YOU MONSTER!"

Even Lydia looked ill as she watched the blood and gore pore out of the Ghost Writer's stomach.

"And now!" Freakshow held his Guantlet up to the ceiling. "To shape the whole world in my image!"

Light shined out, and everything began to change.

* * *

><p><em>Scribe the Ghost Writer felt no pain. There was only numbness and sadness. He tried to prevent this. Not his death, of course, Scribe knew that was coming as soon as the war was over. After all, how many lives did he save by altering reality? That was not something that could be forgotten.<em>

_It wasn't a crime to save lives, but it was a crime to mess with the laws of the universe. Reshaping reality had consequences. There were ripples. Things would come back to haunt the person that alters reality. Savage learned that, and Scribe knew it._

_This was why he accepted this. He did not regret his actions. Scribe saved so many people during the war. Both new and old friends alike lived because of his interference. One small life was worth all that goodness that he did._

_The Ghost Writer wished that he could have gotten Freakshow to see that. The Reality Gauntlet was cursed. If you used it without enough good Karma on your side…then you would die. But Scribe doubted that Freakshow had anything in higher power that was on his side._

_Thus…his time would surely come if he continued down this path._

"_Oh well…" Scribe noted lightly. "I tried. My conscious is clear."_

_The man held a hand to the place where his stomach used to be. When he lifted it, his hand was covered in green blood. It was a lot of his blood._

_Despite this, Scribe smiled. Such a dramatic death. It was one that he would be proud to write about._

_The Ghost Writer was now glad that he took some time off from his writing of the current story to work on his other project. He was grateful that he had the opportunity to write his will. His books would need to be taken good care of after all._

_Sighing, Scribe once again spoke to the empty room. It was quickly abandoned by Freakshow, and it was being shaped into a room from a demonic circus. "I'm sorry my friends. I did not want to cause you pain. Please…don't mourn me too much."_

_Closing his eyes, Scribe let his body go slack. His body was quickly dissolving into ectoplasm. Soon he would be gone. Before that happened, Scribe said one more thing._

"_My only regret is that I didn't get the chance to see how this story ends. I'm sure it would have been a good one."_

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you all for reading and please remember to…<strong>

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	31. Freaks

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"One person's craziness is another person's reality."

Tim Burton

* * *

><p>Chapter 31: "Freaks"<p>

(Saturday-January 1, 2011)

"Ack…" Wally placed his face in his hands. "I'm so tired…"

"We all are, but I don't think any of us are going to be able to sleep after this." Artemis frowned. "I better call my mom again. She won't freak if she knows where I am exactly…"

"Danny…I-I'm so sorry." M'gann had tears in her eyes. "I didn't know that I caused such damage to you."

"It's not your fault, M'gann." Phantom smiled. "I never blamed you for it. Besides…I think that the powers thing was going to happen no matter what."

"So what's your plan?" Conner questioned.

"I dunno know…" Phantom shrugged.

"You do not know?" Kaldur's eyes widened.

"But you always have some sort of plan." Robin noted.

"Not today." Phantom sighed. "I don't know how to get my full powers back. Hell, I'm not sure that my powers won't fade completely soon."

"Then we'll find a cure." Zatanna stated with conviction. "If we use all our resources, it won't be too hard."

"Hehe…" Phantom shook his head. "I figured you'd say that."

"Well, it's the truth." Rocket was deep in though. "I wonder if Icon could help. The alien tech might make a difference."

"Maybe…But it's more of a mental issue." Phantom stated. "It's a lot more complicated than what you might think."

"I…I could take a look." M'gann suggested hesitantly.

"I don't know how much help that would be." Phantom sighed. "You would have to go really deep into my mind. That doesn't usually end well with ghosts. You would have to have something like the Reality Gauntlet to even stand a chance of-"

"Then we get the Gauntlet." Robin stated. "And we use it to help you."

"That means our next mission is to track down Freakshow." Wally stated.

"But how?" Conner frowned. "The League and the Council have looked. How are supposed to find him?"

"**Team…Danny, you will want to come to the main hall."** Batman's voice sounded through the intercom.

"This can't be good." Artemis sighed as Young Justice got up and exited the meeting hall.

They walked into the main hall to see Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman looking at the holographic computer. It was likely that the rest of the League were resting. These three never seemed to rest, though.

"What is it?" Phantom questioned.

"We thought you might want to see this." Superman turned to the halfa teen.

"It is…troubling to say the least." The Amazonian woman wearing red, white, and blue noted.

"What is?" Rocket questioned.

"This footage." Batman expanded the image. "It's being streamed through every satellite and source of media in the world."

* * *

><p>Tap! Tap! Tap!<p>

"Do I have everyone's attention?" Freakshow spoke to the camera. He forwent his usual trench coat for a red suit. "I do know that it is later…or rather early, but I thought you might all want to know what was happening in Amity Park right now."

The camera panned out to what could be described as a demonic circus. Demon clowns were running everywhere. Fire was being juggled around. Every building now appeared as a tent that showed creepy smiles, bats, and snakes. The sky above Freakshow appeared to be a deep crimson red.

"Now, I bet you're thinking. 'What?! That's not Amity Park!' 'This guy must be nuts!' 'Why am I even watching this!?' Well, the answer is really simple." Freakshow brought his right arm out in front of him. "This is the Reality Gauntlet, and with it and the access code that allows me to reach its full potential, I can do literally anything."

He held the Gauntlet covered hand out with the palm up. Above it, a diamond appeared. Then, the diamond gave way and collapsed into a miniature black hole. Suddenly, the black hole seemed to burst into flames. Freakshow grabbed the flames and extinguished them. "I control all reality."

"Now, you don't have to believe me." Freakshow shrugged. "You can think that I'm full of crap, but soon, you'll find out just how real I am. Until then, I'll speak to the people who this message is really for."

The camera followed Freakshow as he walked into a massive tent that looked as big as three football stadiums. The inside was anything but dark. Lights were being shined everywhere. This allowed the camera to show everything.

"Over a year ago, I ran Circus Gothica." Freakshow walked back and forth at the center of the tent. "It was a haven for all those who wished to unleash a little bit of their dark side. And I admit, I may have…taken a few jewels that did not belong to me. But that doesn't mean that I deserved to be slandered, arrested, and stolen from by this GOD FORSAKEN CITY! AND DANNY PHANTOM!"

Energy flared around Freakshow in his rage. His eyes flashed. The air rippled around the circus master. He truly looked like a demon.

"And thus we arrived for my true reason for being in Amity Park." Freakshow gritted his teeth. "I have decided to give the world a single fighting chance before I shape it into my twisted dark image. I am a fair man, after all. So, I propose a challenge to one individual, and that one individual alone."

Freakshow gestured around. The stands of the massive circus was filled with the inhabitants of Amity Park. Every civilian that lived in Amity Park appeared. Even Danny's human allies showed up. Oddly enough, there seemed to be a segment for the various villains defeated by the ghosts of Amity Park. Even Lady Shiva, Cassandra Cain, and David Cain was there.

"HEY, YOU SNOTBURGER! LET ME GO! I WAS BUSY PACKING MY STUFF TO GET OUT OF THIS CRAZY PLA-Mmmhh!" Gizmo's lips became zippers and were zipped shut.

"Wait! Why are these villains here!?" Freakshow faked a shocked look. "It's quite simple really. You see, Amity Park was recently attacked by a full scale invasion set in motion by every single little villain that had a grudge against the ghosts. As you can see from their appearance, they lost. But they did help me with something…They exhausted the ghosts so much they couldn't even fight back a little. Behold!"

Freakshow pointed up. Spotlights appeared and showed that every single member of the Phantom Family besides Danny was held up there. This included the strange appearances of Poindexter, Ember, and the Spectre. They were all hung up by ectoplasmic ropes that covered their arms, torsos, and legs. Lydia was up in the air guarding them.

"The ghosts have been defeated! Amity Park has fallen! I have won! Muhahahahahahahahahahaha!" Freakshow laughed in madness. "But I lack one trophy! Danny Phantom!"

It seemed like everyone in the tent woke up when they heard this. Everyone, even the injured and exhausted, were paying perfect attention.

"I am here, Danny Phantom at the center of this city." Freakshow explained directly to the camera. "Come through your Zeta Tubes. Every other way is a no go because I have formed an impenetrable shield around the city and have sealed every possible way of getting to and from the Ghost Zone."

Freakshow paused for a moment, then spoke again. "However, I know you, Danny Phantom. You will try something. You always do. So, I'm going to set up a few more rules. You have ten minutes to appear in the Zeta Tubes alone. And if I catch even a whiff that you're even thinking about planning something funny, then I'll kill these two."

Dusk and Spirit, who were forced into their ghost forms earlier by Freakshow, were teleported next to Freakshow.

"Danny! Don't it's a-Mhmh!"

"Mentor, we're fine. Be-Mhmh!"

They both faced the same fate as Gizmo.

"So be quick and efficient, Daniel." Freakshow grinned. "Because if you're not…"

"MMHHHMMMAAAMMHHH!" Dusk and Spirit cried out in pain as they were electrocuted.

"They'll face the same exact fate as the Ghost Writer."

* * *

><p>Everyone and everything was silent in the Watchtower. Like every silence, it was easily broken by one breathless curse.<p>

"Son of a bitch…" Phantom was pale.

"What do we do?" Robin questioned as the timer started and began to count down.

"We don't have time to come up with any plausible plan." Batman glared.

"I could try flying through the shield, but if I'm delayed even a second…" Superman paused.

"Will my Invisible Plane help at all?" Wonder Woman questioned.

"No." Batman shook his head. "Freakshow probably has some way to detect different forms of invisibility. He is a ghost expert after all.

Nine minutes left.

"We have to come up with something." Kaldur frowned. "Danny cannot go down there alone."

"I don't have a choice." Phantom frowned. "If I don't, Dani and Joel will be killed."

"Damn it!" Kid Flash shouted. "There has to be something we can do!"

"But what?" Artemis argued. "The freak didn't give us enough time to think of anything."

"Can't we have Superman or Flash rush in at the same time as Danny goes through the Zeta Tubes?" Superboy suggested. "They could rush in at super speeds and hit Freakshow before he can even blink."

"We don't know what's on the other end of the Zeta Tubes." Zatanna noted. "They could be instantly trapped, and then what?"

Eight minutes left.

"Then there's nothing we can do?" Rocket questioned.

"Danny, you know that city the best." Kaldur spoke to his friend. "Is there any secret there that can help us?"

"No…" Phantom shook his head. "We used…all our assets to fight off the invasion. Every trick or ace we had was already used. We've got nothing. With the Ghost Zone shielded off and the dome around the city…Underground? No no, he would make sure the shield goes all the way around."

"Danny?" Superboy questioned.

"And…and Scribe is dead…" Phantom felt tears well up. The Ghost Writer was his friend. They shared stories together, and Freakshow… "No! I have to stay focused…"

Seven minutes left.

"Phantom." Batman spoke. "Perhaps a decoy."

"No! Freakshow would know instantly." Phantom grabbed his head. "Just…just give me a minute.

So they did.

Six minutes left.

"The footage!" Phantom suddenly shouted. "Can you play it back?"

"Yes." Batman nodded and rewinded the recorded footage.

"Stop it when it goes through the civilians." Phantom stated.

"What are you looking for?" Superman questioned.

Phantom was silent. He stayed completely focused on the screen. As quickly as possible, Phantom looked through each and every face of the people in the crowd. This process took three minutes.

Three minutes left.

Finally, they got to the members of the Phantom Family. The halfa looked through all of them. He didn't see what he was looking for.

"..Yes!" Phantom looked ready to cry. "He's not there! Thank God!"

"What?" Zatanna blinked. "Who?"

"He has to help now. He wouldn't let them die." Phantom was too focused on his thoughts. "I know he was waiting to see where the war went, and now I'm glad he did."

"Danny, we don't know what you're talking about." M'gann stated.

Two minutes left.

"No time." Phantom shook his head. "I have a plan. I need every member of the League and the Team to get outside of Amity Park discretely. When that shield drops, you move in as quickly as possible. Can you do that?"

"The League is already on their way." Batman nodded.

"Good…good…" Phantom ran over to the Zeta Tubes. He turned around. "You have to promise me, no matter what happens to me, you will go save my family first."

"But Danny!" Artemis argued.

"Promise me!" The halfa snapped.

Everyone in the room paused and slowly nodded.

"Good." Phantom sighed in relief.

One minute left.

"Please tell me you have a plan." Rocket stated desperately.

"I do. There is one more ally I have left to help me." Phantom smiled lightly. "He's good enough to avoid detection from even Freakshow. I just hope that he'll cooperate with me just one time. And…I-I know that there's no time for this, but if this doesn't work out…Thank you for everything."

"Wait, Danny!"

**Recognized: Danny Phantom B04**

* * *

><p>"Spirit...Dusk…" Plasmius looked over to the other halfas after they teleported back up to where the other ghosts and vigilantes were being held. "Are you alright."<p>

"We're fine, Dad…" Spirit gasped out after her lips turned back to normal.

"Physically." Dusk clarified. "But I doubt any of us is doing all that well right now."

"I'm sorry. This is all my fault." Colossus spoke up. "I should have been on guard. If Freakshow did not get the jump on me, I could have crushed him. The honor less fiend has drained my powers. There's nothing I can do. I'm a useless old man, and because of me Scribe is…"

Colossus gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes to stop his tears.

"It is not solely your fault Colossus." The Spectre spoke. "I was also caught unaware. With everything that happened, the last thing on my mind was the Reality Gauntlet…and to think that man would use the Tome of the Ancients and kill the Ghost Writer."

Unlike the giant, Poindexter did nothing to stop his many tears and sobs. "Master Scribe…"

"He will be missed…" Frostbite looked rattled. "But now is not the time to mourn. We must stay focused if we wish to get out of this situation."

"Very true, Frostbite." Pandora put on a brave face. "We must get the children out of this."

"But how?" Raven questioned. "These ropes drain everyone on their energy. I can't use magic, and none of you can use ectoplasm."

"RAW" Solomon Grundy struggled against his bonds. "Grundy will free everyone! Grundy is strong!"

"I don't think physical force is going to work, Tombstone." Nyx looked angry at the situation. "If only I could control some shadow, then I could use that freak's own shadow to strangle him!"

"Secret…" Greta was wiggling against the ropes. She did not like the idea of being tied up. "Secret!"

"Our powers don't work…" The adult Youngblood frowned. "And our weapons were taken from us. If I just had my sword."

"I know what you mean." Red Huntress nodded. "Freakshow disabled all my equipment. I can't do anything at all…Wait, who are you anyway?"

"It's me. Youngblood." Youngblood sighed. "It's a long story. And…Damn it! Why didn't anyone tell me that beards were so damn itchy! I can't scratch it either. I hate being an adult…"

"Can't…Bite…through…rope…" Wulf grunted out as he tried to chew through his restraints. All that did was cause his teeth to hurt.

"Woof!" Cujo barked in agreement. He was in a similar situation as Wulf.

"Tsk…" Ember rolled her eyes. "The one damn day I come back to Amity Park, this happens. Typical. Just typical. We'll just have to wait for Danny to save us."

Torch, who was thankful for being a good distance away from Ember, spoke quietly. "What makes you think that DP can help?"

"Because he's Danny." Ember paused when she looked over to him. He looked familiar….

"Lord Phantom is indeed great, but…" Fright Knight frowned under his helm. "Red Huntress informed me that he is exhausted. Plus he is lacking in time to come up with a proper plan."

"That doesn't mean anything!" Spirit glared at the knight. "He's come out of worse situations."

"Yes, but he always had people to help him." Dusk sighed. "Who can help him now when we're all tied up?"

"There is one." Vision finally spoke up. "Danny will think of him. That will probably be his plan. It is a gamble all on the decision of one old man. But if he doesn't help…"

"The Lord Phantom will die." Fright Knight trembled in rage.

* * *

><p><strong>Recognized: Danny Phantom B04<strong>

Phantom stepped out of the Zeta Tube and into the chaos that was now Amity Park. The warehouse where the Zeta Tube was located was different than before. Like the rest of the buildings, it was shaped like a circus tent. That was not the weirdest thing, though. What really creeped the halfa out was the crowd of demonic clowns, acrobats, strongmen, and circus freaks. They all had massive smiles on their face.

Phantom noted that all the weirdoes had stepped aside to open a path for him. He immediately started walking. Even when he heard the metal of the Zeta Tube crumble and break behind him, the halfa did not pause he continued walking.

Looking around, Phantom noted that there were floating cameras pointed at him. The cameras did not have anyone holding them. For some reason, the teen knew that the cameras were streaming video across the globe.

Once outside the warehouse, Phantom continued to slowly walk to the center of Amity Park. He wanted to give the League as much time as possible to set up a support team. Hopefully, Freakshow would like the drama of the slow approach. If not, then the ringmaster would probably make it known. Seeing as there was no consequences yet, Freakshow wasn't upset yet. The halfa would have to make sure not to make the stalling too obvious, though.

A few minutes later, Phantom stood outside the massive tent that held so many people. Taking a deep breath, he walked into the madness.

The tent was exactly the same as from what the video showed. Phantom made sure not to look at anyone but Freakshow. He had to say focused. Too bad the thousands of eye upon him did not help his nerves. Not to mention all the people around the world watching his every move.

"You certainly pushed your time limit!" Freakshow grinned from the center of the ring. "Was ten minutes too short? I wanted to give you at least enough time to get to a Zeta Tube, but I knew any longer would be far too generous."

"The time was enough." Phantom stopped a few meters from Freakshow.

"I'm sure…" Freakshow began to giggle. "What do you think of all this? Isn't it marvelous?"

"I think it's freaking nuts." Phantom glared. "Let the people and my family go, Freakshow. They have nothing to do with this."

"Be silent." Freakshow glared. "I make the rules now. I give the orders."

"You just want revenge on me." Phantom stated. "What good will it do by holding them here?"

"You think I only blame you?" Freakshow scoffed. "It was this city that brought about my capture. Your little friends were the real reason Circus Gothica fell. Without them, I would still have my circus and you would be under my control. But…those fools are already long gone, aren't they, Daniel?"

Phantom's eyes flashed. "Don't you dare talk about them."

"Oh! That was the reaction I wanted!" Freakshow seemed delighted. "But fine. Let's move on from the deceased to the people who are about to die. Mainly…everyone here!"

"Freakshow…" Phantom never got past that word.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The ghosts and vigilantes above them screamed in pain as energy and electricity flowed through them.

"Stop it!" Phantom roared.

"I don't think I will!" Freakshow laughed.

"Freakshow!" Phantom lunged at the circus ringleader.

"No no no…" Freakshow wagged his finger as Phantom passed right through him.

"Stop this!" Phantom growled as he glared at his enemy.

"No, I don't think I will." Freakshow grinned insanely. "Not until I've had my revenge on you and had the world kneel before me."

"Damn it…" Phantom thought fast. "What do you want from me?"

"Oooooooh!" Freakshow waved his hand and stopped the electrocution of the Amity Park vigilantes. "So we get to the good part, don't we? What do I want from you specifically? Like I said, revenge, but how do I want to go about this…"

Phantom was silent.

"I am offering to fight you. One on one." Freakshow explained. "If you win, which is doubtful, then you and this city go free. But if I win, then I reveal your most guarded secret, humiliate you, and destroy everything you care about."

"…Fine." Phantom nodded. He slid into a self-defense stance. "It's not like I have much of a choice."

* * *

><p>"No!" Vision cried out. "He doesn't have the strength to do this right now!"<p>

"We have to help my Liege now!" Fright Knight roared.

"Impossible." Plasmius shook his head. "I have already looked at this from every angle. We have no way to escape without someone dying."

"Lydia!" Red Huntress looked over to the ghost guarding them. "You have to do something! Danny will die!"

Lydia was silent.

"Please, I know you care about Freakshow." Spirit spoke up. "But you have to know what he's doing is wrong."

"…That doesn't matter." Lydia shook her head.

"Yes it does." Dusk spoke up. "He's threatening to commit mass genocide."

"It's one thing to steal, but this…" Red Huntress shook her head. "This is evil. I've read the reports. I know you love him, but that does not excuse what he's doing."

"Alright, tell me this…" Lydia looked over to Red Huntress. "If you're the person you loved most in the world became evil would you be able to stand against him."

"…I don't know. But I would like to think that I would at least try to bring back to the path of sanity." Red Huntress argued.

"Then you're a better person than I am."

* * *

><p>The tent had been quiet when Phantom first entered the tent. Now, it was anything but quiet. Cheers and shouts bombarded Phantom's ears. An entire city was cheering him on. Not only that, the villains seemed to be yelling something about not letting them die.<p>

Whatever. He didn't plan to let anyone die today no matter what anyone said.

Rushing forward, Phantom sent a punch at Freakshow's head. The ringleader grabbed the fist with his non Reality Gauntlet covered hand. This was followed up with a quick backfist to Phantom's face.

The halfa was sent sprawling to the ground. His cheek burned in pain. That wasn't the only thing that hurt, though. His body ached and shook in pain and exhaustion. He had to fight bile working its way up his throat.

Two days of constant worry and fighting had long since caught up to the teen. His body and powers were so past their limits, it wasn't even funny. Freakshow knew this too.

"Oh, what's wrong? Are you tired and weak?" Freakshow grinned widely. "That's too bad. The great Danny Phantom, the boy that became a god, is weakened to the point that he can't even use his powers."

Phantom pushed himself up. Freakshow was right. His powers weren't working anymore. Even his base powers were out of commission now. "Shut it…"

The halfa charged in. He still had his combat experience. Phantom may not have the hand-to-hand combat skills that allowed his teammates with no powers to fight crime, but he was still pretty good at empty hand self-defense.

Freakshow held out his gauntlet arm and sent out a large blast of energy.

Boom!

But all that skill crumbled before this absolute power.

The explosion left a burnt Phantom in a crater. Like before, he dragged himself up. The halfa charged again. Again, he was quickly squished. This happened a few more times before Phantom finally couldn't pick himself up anymore.

Once again, things went quiet.

"Looks like you lose." Freakshow sneered down at Phantom. The ringmaster's foot was placed on the beaten ghost's chest.

"Looks like it…" Phantom gave him a bloody grin. "But I still accomplished my goal."

"Goal?" Freakshow questioned. "What goal?"

"RAW" Etrigan the demon yelled as he rammed into the Master of all Reality. He held the circus man down and beat him for a few moment before tossing him away like a ragdoll. The ringmaster slammed into the ground and formed another crater.

The yellow demon immediately dragged Phantom up to his feet. "On your feet, ghost."

"Took you long enough." Phantom groaned.

"Yeah, well, I was debating about whether to flee or not." The demon possessed Jason Blood explained. "The teacher in me won out. Can't leave those kids to die. Plus…I do owe you one."

"I think we're even now." Phantom grunted. "But we're not done yet."

"No we're not." Etrigan watched as Freakshow began to pull himself out of the crater. "I can maybe give you a minute. Is that enough?"

"It's plenty." Phantom nodded.

"Good! Go save my students!" Etrigan rushed forward to Freakshow.

Phantom flew rather slowly, but as fast as he could possibly go, to his family. He got within a few dozen meters from them before Lydia got in his way.

"Please…" Phantom pleaded. "Don't let them die like this, Lydia. Some of them are children for Pete's sake."

"…I won't let Frederich do that." Lydia shook her head. "The children will go free."

"Do you really believe that?" Phantom questioned. "Do you think Freakshow gives a damn about them?"

Lydia was silent.

"I know you love him. I can see it, but going with him in all this won't help him." Phantom argued. "Help me stop him. We'll get him help. Real help this time, not the Guys in White's personal jail. If we help him mentally, then he could go back to being the man that you once knew."

Lydia paused.

"Please. I swear on my honor, that I will get Freakshow help after this is all over." Phantom promised. "Just let my family go, and…all will be forgiven. You'll go free. You can be with Freak…Frederich. You can have the life you always wanted with the real man you fell in love with."

Lydia seemed to think this over. She looked like she was convinced. "I…I…"

"Please. I beg you-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" Phantom cried in absolute pain when he was covered in a green fireball. He fell to the ground like a meteor.

* * *

><p>"You tricked me! Muhahahahahahahaha!" Freakshow looked to be in hysterics. "That was a good one, Daniel. I didn't know that you had this demon up your sleeve. I tip my hat to you sir."<p>

"Phantom…" Etrigon was on the ground bleeding. "I'm…sorry. I couldn't give you…the time you needed."

"Oh shut up!" Freakshow glared at Etrigan. "I know what you are, Blood. A pathetic traitorous man that's been cursed to house a demon for all eternity. I'm insulted that a lowly creature such as yourself would even think that he could touch the Master of all Reality."

"You-ARG!" With a wave of Freakshow's hand, Etrigan was covered in a swirl of energy and turned back into his human form of Jason Blood."No…"

"Yes." Freakshow kicked Blood in the head and knocked him out. "And now…for the grand finale. Danny Phantom."

The ringmaster walked to the unmoving halfa. A green glow appeared around Phantom's wrists and pulled him into the air. He hung next to Freakshow like a mounted trophy.

"What are you…" Phantom whispered tiredly.

"It's part of our deal. I'm going to reveal exactly what you are." Freakshow smirked.

"No…wait…"

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Freakshow addressed the crowd. "I have won! The boy you put all your hopes into has failed, and you're all going to die!"

The tent was filled with screams of terror and shouts of protest.

"SILENCE!"

Everyone went quiet.

"You all think me a monster, I can see it!" Freakshow yelled out. "But let me ask you, who is the real monster? Me?! Or Danny Phantom!?"

Everyone watched intently.

"You…Everyone has called him a hero! A beacon of hope and mercy in a dreadful world, but I say no!" Freakshow noted. "Because he, just like three of those ghosts above me, are not what they seem! They are not full ghosts! They are half-ghosts!"

The silence was so think that a person could hear a pin drop.

"What is a half-ghost, you must be asking. Well, I'll tell you!" Freakshow danced around in glee. "A half-ghost, or halfa for short, is not a product of human and ghost reproduction! That would be impossible! No, a half-ghost is a human that gained the abilities of a ghost!"

Freakshow gestured to Phantom. "You all know him as Danny Phantom, but that is not his true name! This is his real identity!"

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Phantom cried out as he was forced to change back into a human. White rings appeared at his feet and traveled up his body until it went past his head.

"Behold! Daniel James Fenton!"

Everyone was in shock. A human had ghost powers? That was possible? Not only that, the hero of the city was actually Danny Fenton, the reclusive kid that lost his entire family to a ghost attack? That was impossible. They appeared in the same place at the same time before…

"You must think that this is a trick!" Freakshow spoke again. "But I assure you, this is all real! Fenton has used duplicates, stand-ins, and technology to hide his identity! He had you all fooled!"

"Freakshow…stop…" Danny glared at the man.

"But not only that, there are three other half-ghosts right above me!"

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Plasmius, Spirit, and Dusk were all forced to change back into their human forms.

"You see! It's all a big conspiracy!" Freakshow giggled. "And all of you called me a freak! Well I look pretty goddamn normal now, don't I! At least I'm completely human! These four are monstrosities that don't even deserve to exist. And that's where we come to the climax of this story…"

Freakshow placed the Reality Gauntlet on Danny's chest. The boy screamed as green energy flowed from Danny's chest to Freakshow's hand. After a few seconds, Freakshow removed a ball of green energy. When he did this, a streak of white suddenly appeared down Danny's hair. The ringmaster looked at the ball of energy for a brief moment and then crushed it into pieces.

"I have just removed the boy's powers!" Freakshow declared. "He is now completely human! There is now no way for him to survive a fatal blow! He is completely defeated. And that's why…"

Fenton was dropped to the ground.

"I'm going to kill him."

"Wait." A voice spoke behind Freakshow.

"Lydia?" Freakshow turned to face his lover. "Why are you interrupting me?"

"Frederich…" Lydia approached Freakshow and gently placed a hand on his face. "Don't do this. It's not too late. If you give this up now, you can alter reality to erase all of this. Then…then we can live together in peace." She took his hand and placed it on her stomach. "You can change this body into that of a human. We can have a family together, love."

"…Lydia. I've come so far." Freakshow argued. "I'm Master of all Reality. I have my greatest enemy on his knees. The world is mine. I can't give this up now."

"You once told me that you trusted my instincts." Lydia spoke. "Well, my instincts are telling me that this won't end well. Please, let's just leave and live the life we talked about before I died."

"But…"

"Freak…Frederich." Danny pushed himself up to his feet shakily. "You have to think about this. You haven't gone past the point of no return yet. Yes, you…you killed Scribe, but you can still fix that with the Reality Gauntlet. You can bring the lost back again..."

"Are you still fixed on that?" Freakshow questioned. "Moron, even the Reality Gauntlet has its limits. It can't bring souls back that have passed on to the other side."

"It…it can't…" Danny looked devastated.

"Nope."

Danny fought back tears. "I see…"

"Does this change your mind, little hypocrite?" Freakshow questioned.

"No." Danny shook his head. "It doesn't. Frederich, I, more than anyone else, know that everyone deserves a second chance. Please…Take this opportunity. This is your second chance. You can have a long peaceful life. All you have to do is take it."

"…" Freakshow seemed to consider this.

"My alternate future self was created because of one small stupid mistake." Danny took a step forward. "But I was given another chance despite this. If I can be redeemed…then you sure as hell can."

"But if I take this chance, I'll be powerless again." Freakshow argued.

"I would gladly give up every little bit of power I ever had to get back my family." Danny took another step towards Freakshow. "Even though my parents were ghost obsessed."

"What are you…"

"I know what it's like." Danny was now right in front of Freakshow. "My parents loved me…but they loved ghosts. Sometimes I wondered who they would choose between ghost and me. I knew that they loved me, but it was hard sometimes having ghost hunter parents. Especially when people started to persecute me for my parents' beliefs."

"These people…" Freakshow looked around. "But you protect them."

"I do, because I forgave them." Danny stated. "And I could do that, because my parents raised me right. Because I had two friends that would always have my back."

"But you lost them!"

"I did…" Danny stated softly. "And it hurt so much because I lost the love I knew and…the love I would never get to know…" He looked to Lydia for a second. "After the accident, I didn't think I could get past it and my anger. But my new family, the people you have up there, helped me get through it. And because I learned that forgiveness is the only way to ever get past your anger and pain…"

Danny paused. "You…just have to let go and move on…because that is what the people you would love would want."

Freakshow was looking down.

"So…now I'm offering you a second chance. As a kindred spirit, I'm asking you to take this way out. Because I promise you that you'll be happy in the end." Danny extended his right hand. "All you have to do is take my hand. We can undo all of this together."

Freakshow didn't move.

"Love…" Lydia gently touched his shoulder. "I am with you always, but I think that this is the best choice."

"Hmmm…." Freakshow lifted his right arm and reached out to Danny.

"Thank you." Danny smiled. "You won't regret this."

"You're right…I won't."

It was then that Freakshow stabbed Danny through the stomach with the claws of the Reality Gauntlet.

* * *

><p>"Danny!"<p>

"No!"

"This isn't happening! This isn't happening!"

Danny heard so many screams that he couldn't think straight. Everything was so loud. Lights danced before his eyes. His mind couldn't even process when he fell to the ground. For some reason, his stomach and back felt wet.

His body had went into shock the moment of the injury. Danny could not process anything that was going on around him. His dull eyes merely stared off into nowhere.

Normally, his powers would have dulled the injury and went to start healing it. As of right now, though, Danny had no powers. He was a normal human with five wounds that went straight through his body. That was not a good thing.

He felt…cold. Usually, Danny liked the cold. It was his element. Now, though, it made him feel alone and useless.

If he could think straight, Danny would have thought about his life and the people in it. All the people that made up his obsession would be on the front of his mind. What would Amity Park do without him? Would Young Justice keep working together without him? Who would stop Freakshow with him gone? Of course, Danny could not think of any of these things.

Thus, Danny merely closed his eyes and continued to bleed onto the cold concrete below him.

* * *

><p>"Nonononononononononononononononononononono!" Dani screamed. "Not again!"<p>

All the vigilantes in the tent broke down when they saw Danny get stabbed. Many of them, such as Valerie, had broken down into hysterical sobs. Some of them, such as the Fright Knight, went into an unholy rage and were cursing Freakshow to the very pits of hell. A few, such as Dani, were in complete denial.

"Danny!" Vision's tears flowed unchecked as she stared down at the dying boy she loved like a son. "I have to get down there!"

"Secret!" Greta gritted her teeth and shouted.

"Greta has healing powers!" Raven sobbed out. With her powers suppressed, she could let her emotions flow. "We need to get her to him!"

"If only I could access my powers!" Colossus roared. "I would tear off these restraints and kill that dishonored bastard!"

"Even my powers are failing me under the Gauntlet's power…" The Spectre looked troubled.

"I SHALL CUT OFF HIS SKIN AND MAKE HIM EAT IT!" Fright Knight was spitting and cussing. He tried desperately to free himself, but he couldn't.

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" Ember shouted.

"Torch doesn't know what to do…" Torch whispered.

"Mentor…" Joel trembled in disbelief. Silent tears ran down his face.

"…" Solomon Grundy was silent. "Phantom…is hurt…"

"No duh! We need to get down there now!" Nyx screamed.

"There is no way, though." Plasmius forced himself to think. "To get free, we would have to deal with the backlash of energy. The force could cause a person to explode. But Daniel…"

"Grundy sees…" Solomon Grundy nodded. "Grundy understands…Sister…"

Dani looked over at Grundy. The look on her face was one of absolute shock and terror. "Huh…"

"Grundy wishes that Grundy could have been more." Grundy spoke. "But all Grundy can be is an avatar of anger. That is Grundy's destiny. But maybe Grundy can make it so Grundy can still help family and be more than…Grundy."

"What are you talking about?" Joel stared at the brute.

"Dusk boy…thank you for helping Grundy back at bad place. Grundy is grateful." Grundy looked sad now. "Sister, thank you for saving Grundy and caring. If Grundy had a soul, Grundy would say that Grundy loves you."

"Grundy?" Dani didn't understand what was happening.

"Phantom was the one that gave Grundy life. He gave Grundy the anger that gives Grundy life." Solomon Grundy noted. "It's only fair that Grundy gives it back. And if it makes sister happy…Grundy will go happy."

"What? Wait!"

"HHHHHHHRRRRRAAAAWWWWW!" Grundy began to absorb the energy that was restraining them all. His body was a natural filter for most energy. Because of his exposure to both the Lazarus Pit and to the GIW ectoplasm, Grundy's body could conduct different energies into his body for merely a few seconds. That was part of the reason Grundy was so durable to energy attacks.

This did not mean that Grundy didn't feel pain when this happened, though. In fact, Grundy felt a lot of pain when foreign energy flowed through his massive body. So much, that Grundy preferred to usually suffer physical damage than to absorb energy. Now, though, he willingly took in all the energy that was being used to restrain the fighters of Amity Park.

The backlash could only be described as torture.

Grundy's every nerve sent signals of absolute agony to the brute's brain. His body smoked and shook. He screamed out in terrible suffering.

Then it stopped. The energy holding the ghosts in the air disappeared. Grundy fell to the ground below with a terrible thud.

"Grundy!"

* * *

><p>"<em>Grundy!" Dani cried out. Tears ran down her face. After the energy released, she was caught by Wulf while Dusk and Vlad were caught by Cujo and Vision respectfully. The children were brought to Grundy while Vlad was taken to Danny by Vision. The halfa girl was sure that Danny would survive under the care of Vision and Secret, but Grundy…<em>

_The zombie opened his eyes slowly. "Sister…"_

"_Don't speak." Joel ordered. "Save your strength. We need to get you medical attention."_

"_No…Grundy's inside are destroyed." Grundy breathed out dark smoke._

"_No!" Dani hugged Grundy's arm. "I can't lose you. I won't lose another friend."_

"_It's fine…Grundy is…Grundy is…" Grundy could not get the words out._

"…" _Joel grabbed Grundy's other hand. He knew that his fellow captive from the Ghoul Project wasn't going to make it. Despite his passion to keep people alive, there were some people that could not be saved. It hurt Joel to know this, but it was fact. "What are you Grundy?"_

"_Not angry…" Tears fell from Grundy's eyes. "Grundy is not angry. Grundy is…happy. Grundy got a chance to help Sister and Ghoul Boy. That's…good."_

"_Please Grundy…" Dani stated desperately. "Don't die."_

"_Grundy doesn't have a choice." Grundy smiled. "Grundy can hear Death calling. She wishes to see me. She offers peace."_

"…_We…I will miss you, Grundy." Joel stated as he shook from grief._

"_And Grundy will miss you." Grundy looked up to the sky. "Solomon Grundy…Born on a Monday…Christened on Tuesday…Married on Wednesday…Took ill on Thursday…Grew worse on Friday…"_

_His eyes closed, and his body went slack._

_Solomon Grundy died on Saturday. He would be buried on Sunday._

_That was the end of Solomon Grundy._

* * *

><p>"YOU!" Fright Knight roared as rocketed towards Freakshow. Colossus was right by his side. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'VE COST US!?"<p>

"Hmm?" Freakshow looked over his shoulder. A shield formed around him and stopped the ghosts' attacks. "Cost you?"

"Scribe…Lord Phantom…Solomon Grundy…" Fright Knight's flaming hair flared. "I shall avenge them all!"

"Yes!" Colossus looked at Freakshow with absolute disgust. "A cockroach with no honor deserves to be smashed to death!"

"Vengeance shall overcome you!" The Spectre rushed in with a punch.

"Fools… What makes you think that you can defeat the Master of all Reality?" Freakshow waved his hand and caused them to be sent flying out of the tent with by an invisible force that seemed to have the force of a titan behind it. "I am omnipotent."

"Frederich…" Lydia stared at her lover. "What…what have you done?"

"What I need to." Freakshow glared at her. "Now, are you going to help me fight or what?"

Lydia was silent and nodded slowly.

"Good, now finish off…" Freakshow turned and blinked. "Where did the boy go?"

* * *

><p>"He's not breathing!" Vision stated desperately.<p>

"Secret." Greta nodded desperately. Her hands glowed as she focused on healing the boy on the ground. His skin was closed, but he was still bleeding internally. After that was finished being healed, there would be the problem of his lack of blood. He didn't have enough to stay alive. "Secret."

"CPR…right." Vision began to pump his chest. "One. Two. Three…"

"Damn…" Vlad frowned as he looked over the scene. There was nothing he could do to help. His powers were still on the fritz as well. So, he couldn't help Fight Freakshow or help free the people. It appeared that all the ghosts that were not fighting Freakshow were around using their powers to destroy the restraints on the audience, except for Frostbite. Vlad had no idea where he went to…

Vision stopped breathing down Danny's throat and began to pump his chest again. "It's not working!"

"Damn it…we need to get him to a medical facility now." Vlad frowned.

"As soon as Greta finishes." Vision noted.

"Secret." Greta nodded. She was almost done closing his wounds. What they would do after that, though, was anyone's guess. Where could they go?

* * *

><p>"Azaroth Metrinom Zinthos!" Raven used her magic to free her mother and the other human allies of the Phantom Family. "Are you okay?"<p>

"Yes…I am fine." Angela Roth nodded as she was helped up by her daughter.

"Honestly…I've been better." Victor Stone groaned as he and his parents stood. "Man…What is with this town anyway. The moment we take down the shield around Fenton Works, this goes down."

"Never a dull moment…" Harriet Chin seemed pretty shaken up. "Danny…How's Danny?"

"I don't know." Raven shook her head. "Vision and Secret are with him, but…it could go either way."

"Where's Valerie?" Damon Gray questioned.

Raven pointed to the group of heroes leading the civilians out of the tent. "We need to get them back to the safe houses."

"But Freakshow already abducted them from there." Silas Stone argued. "How will that help them?"

"It's better than nothing…" Raven shook her head. "It's not like we can keep a whole city's worth of people at Fenton Works."

"It doesn't matter." Angela noted. "I doubt anywhere's safe until that man is stopped. We just need to get out of here."

"It would be better if we could get out of the city." Silas spoke up.

"I think someone is working on that..." Nyx flew up to them. On her back was an unconscious Jason Blood. She couldn't leave her teacher there to get caught in the fight, so she went to get him. He was surprisingly light.

"I was by Frostbite when we were freed." Raven spoke up. "I heard him mumble something about taking down the dome."

BOOM!

The top of the tent was blown to bits and an alien ship floated above them.

"I'm guessing he did it."

* * *

><p>'M'gann! Get the Bioship out of Freakshow's line of sight. We can't let him take down this ship.' Kaldur ordered as the Team bungeed down from the Bioship.<p>

'Understood.' M'gann steered the Bioship out of the opening at the top of the tent and to the entrance at the side.

The remaining members of Young Justice charged to Freakshow. Kid Flash was the first to get there, but he passed right through the circus master's body. Superboy was next, but the Kryptonian was sent flying with a blast of energy.

"Damn you!" Kid Flash exclaimed.

Boom!

Artemis's explosive arrows were blocked by a shield around Freakshow. Rocket and Aqualad tried to take the shield down with energy blasts and water attacks respectively, but they couldn't get through the shield and were sent flying back by the backlash. Despite these setbacks, the rest of the Team attacked without hesitation.

It was easy to see that all the young heroes were in a rage. Their faces were those of snarls and gritted teeth. They were outraged that he would do that to Danny. All of them wanted Freakshow to pay for what he did.

"Hey…" Robin knelt down next Danny and examined him. "You healed him! Is he better?"

"He needs a blood transfusion." Vision spoke as she continued to pump his chest. Vlad offered to take her place, but she refused to move. "Right now."

"Right…we keep extra blood in the Bioship." Robin nodded. After what happened to Garfield Logan, the team made sure to keep extra blood transfusions ready just in case of injury.

"Right…" Vision nodded. "I'll take him."

"You're exhausted." Vlad reached down and gently moved her out of the way. "I'll carry him. Lead us, Boy Wonder."

"Right. This way." Robing began to lead them out to the tent opening.

"Secret." Greta spoke up.

"I'll be careful." Vlad noted as he held Danny close so he wouldn't pump the teen and cause any wounds to reopen. "Hold on, Daniel."

* * *

><p>"We need to go." Joel mentioned after Young Justice arrived. "If we stay here, we'll just be in the way."<p>

"No…" Dani continued to sob into Grundy's unmoving arm. "Not yet."

"No choice…" Wulf shook his head. "We too weak to do anything…"

"Mwhmm…" Cujo, in puppy form, nudged Dani's arm.

"I won't leave him!" Dani cried out in outrage.

"I didn't plan to…" Joel reached down and tried to pick the zombie up. "GRAH! Damn…I can't use my powers right now. There's no way we could left him."

"I can." Wulf grabbed Grundy and slowly dragged the body of his shoulders. "Ack…Heavy…"

"Okay…" Dani wiped her tears. "Let's go."

"Woof!" Cujo shoved them out of the way of an incoming energy blast.

"Good dog…" Joel stumbled but did not fall. "I think you should lead the way, boy."

"Woof!"

* * *

><p>"We can't even touch him!" Artemis yelled. She continued to fire arrows at the Master of all Reality, but the arrows passed through him.<p>

"What do we do?" Rocket questioned.

"Buy time for the League!" Kaldur ordered. "They were helping the civilians. They'll be here soon."

"Right! Dnilb mih!" Zatanna shouted. Dust came up and impaired Freakshow's vision. This only lasted for less than a second, though. A whirlwind appeared around Freakshow and blasted the dust and the young heroes away.

"This isn't working…" Superboy groaned as he pushed himself up.

"Then you should retreat." Superman flew down in front of the clone. He was in between the villain and the young heroes. The Kryptonian glared at the ringmaster. "We can handle this."

"We can't just let this guy get away with what he's done." Kid Flash argued.

"We're not asking you to." The Flash came to a halt right next to his protégé. "The League is a lot fresher than you guys. Go. Make sure everyone is safe."

"But…" Kaldur was silenced when Batman dropped down from his ship.

"You shouldn't have charged ahead anyway." Batman glared. "Go now. Check on Phantom. He needs you right now."

This seemed to persuade the Team a bit. They were nearly dead on their feet after all. It wasn't like they could help all that much. Plus, Danny was injured. They couldn't leave one of their own unguarded.

"Fine." Aqualad nodded. "We'll retreat. Everyone fall back!"

As Young Justice fled, more members of the League arrived. Eventually it increased to the point to the entire League was there to fight.

"Oh, look at this crowd!" Freakshow chuckled. "I am so flattered! You knew that it would take all of you to even have a prayer of touching me. That's smart, but futile. It is a satisfying outcome nonetheless. What do you think, Lydia?"

The female ghost by his side was silent.

"It's not only them!" Colossus roared and returned to the action.

"Yes! You may have deterred us, but we are far from done, freak!" Fright Knight glared. He instantly went for his sword, but the ringmaster had taken it. The knight didn't know where it was right now.

"The wrath of our vengeance has only begun…" The Spectre clenched his hands into fists.

"So the League and a few ghosts…" Freakshow spoke.

"Not a few!" Torch landed in a fiery blast. "Torch wants in too! Torch will burn you alive!"

"Count me in…" Pandora landed down as well. Electricity danced around her. "He shall pay for the crimes he has committed."

"…We can't allow another incident with the Reality Gauntlet." Frostbite snarled.

"Aye…He's going down." Youngblood stroked his beard. Despite the situation, the man was glad for the ability to scratch his face.

"Man, I haven't had to fight all out in a while." Ember tuned her guitar. "I think my time away from Amity Park made me lazy. Better get back into shape by stomping on the freak's face."

The children vigilantes of Amity Park had been instructed to leave. This was going to be a very dangerous battle, and the adults, with Pandora being the most vocal, did not want them to be a part of it. The tired children agreed and went with their adult allies of the Phantom Family to exit the massive tent.

"I'm starting to feel threatened." Freakshow chuckled.

"You should be…" David Cain pointed his handguns at the freak's head. "No one messes with me, you douchebag. I'll put a bullet in your skull."

"Not if I break his skull open first." Shiva glared at the villain.

"So even the 'bad guys' want to play? Muhahahahahahaha! I love it!" Freakshow jumped up and down. "One final dramatic clash before I take over the world! Fantastic! Beautiful! I couldn't picture a better way to progress to the next era! My era!"

"Don't kill him." Batman glared at Shiva and Cain. "I won't refuse help right now, but I will not allow you to kill him."

"Idiot. I don't take orders from anyone but her." David Cain gestured to the woman next to him. "And even then it's limited."

"Why are you even helping us, fiends?" Wonder Woman glared. "Are you not villains?"

"This asswipe messed with my kid." Cain blew out smoke from his cigarrate. "No one messes with my kid."

"I agree…besides, if I get that Gauntlet, I can erase what happened to day and redeem myself in the eyes of the Shadow." Shiva noted. "Then Cassandra will be safe."

Like the other children, Cassandra had been directed to leave. The girl agreed. She saw that she was not near the level needed to fight this man.

"Is there anyone else that wished to join? Do more of the villains wish to challenge me, or are they smart and ran off?" Freakshow paused. No one else stepped forward. "Good. The let's begin."

* * *

><p>"Is Danny okay?" Valerie asked. She was helping to support her father so that he could stay on his feet.<p>

"No. We need to get blood in him now." Vision spoke as her group approached. "We need to get him in the Bioship."

"Come one. I'll lead you to the medical bay." Valerie began to help her father up the ramp to the ship. Luckily, the civilians were avoiding the strange ship out of fear so they weren't crowded. "Raven and Nyx are already in there with the Stones, Harriet, and Miss Roth."

"Right." Vlad followed. "Thank you."

Vision stayed behind and looked around. "Where's Dani?"

"Secret." Greta pointed to the group exiting the tent.

"Mom!" Dani rushed forward and hugged the woman.

"Dani, are you harmed?" Vision did a once over of the girl. She was fine, or at least she lacked any more injures than she had from before. "And Joel, are you hurt?"

"No…" Joel shook his head. "Thanks to Grundy…"

"He…" Wulf sniffled and held back tears. "He good person. I sorry that I mean to him…"

"Bark…" Cujo's ears and tail dropped.

"…He was good." Vision nodded. "We shall make sure he will be remembered. But we can't mourn now." She turned to Robin. "Can this ship carry us all plus your Team?"

"I hope…We really haven't done a weight check." Robin rubbed his shoulders.

"Then the test is now." Kaldur led Young Justice up to the rest of the group.

"Where's Danny?" Superboy questioned.

"Already on the ship." Robin answered.

"Right, we should do that too." Artemis noted. "No telling what's going to happen, and I can barely walk right now."

"I second that…" Kid Flash looked drained.

"Right, everyone on board."

* * *

><p>It was strange. They had the strongest people in the world fighting for them. Freakshow was so outnumbered that it was almost sad. Thus, in theory, the League, ghosts, and assassins should have dominated the fight.<p>

This was not the case, though.

Despite the barrage of attacks, Freakshow had yet to be hit even once. He just stood there smiling. One arm was flung protectively over Lydia. The other Reality Gauntlet covered hand remained at his side. He had the posture of a man without a care in the world.

Every attack that was sent at Freakshow passed through him as if he wasn't even there. It wasn't intangibility. No, there were ways around a ghost's intangibility. Freakshow's lack of physicality was one that was as if he were a mirage. It was like he was an illusion that no one could hope to touch.

"Nothing is working." Red Tornado spoke as he flew above the ringmaster.

"Torch can see that…" Torch glared. "How can Torch burn him if he isn't even there?"

"Logically speaking, there has to be some weakness to that ability." Red Tornado mentioned.

"…He hasn't attacked." Torch noted.

"Indeed." Red Tornado nodded. "Does that mean he can't use attacks while defending like that?"

"…They Torch is wasting energy…" Torch mentioned. "Hey freak! Can you attack and defend at the same time?!"

"Why would you ask him that…Are you stupid?" Red Tornado asked honestly.

"Yes." Torch nodded.

"Well at least you're honest about it."

"Hmm?" Freakshow grinned. "Oh, I might as well give you a hint. No, I cannot attack and defend at the same time."

"Um…Why would you tell us that?" Captain Marvel questioned.

"Because it doesn't even matter! Muhahahahahahahahahaha!" Freakshow laughed. "You see, you can't defeat a being with an invincible defense, but you also can't beat someone with an all power offence. Observe."

The air around all the fighters shook and grabbed them like the air itself was massive hands. It pulled them all away. There was now a large gap between them and the ringmaster.

"Is that all?" Colossus snapped.

"No…" Freakshow held up his Reality Gauntlet covered arm. "I just needed room to do this."

A massive ball of multicolored energy appeared above him. The ball of destruction didn't even require a buildup period. One moment, there was nothing. The next moment, a rainbow colored energy ball that almost filled up the entire area appeared.

"Stop him!" The Spectre roared and charged forward. He was quickly followed by the others.

"Too late." Freakshow noted.

Beams of energy flew out of the ball of massive destruction. Each beam was a different color. All the energy blasts flew through the air towards everyone at once. Some of the beams were blocked by the fighters, but all the beams could not be stopped. There were hundreds of thousands of the beams coming at them from all directions.

There was no room to dodge. There was no time to block. There was no chance to counter attack. The only thing they could do was try to minimize the damage and pray that they lived.

So, that's what they did.

The following destruction, explosions, and carnage was not a pretty sight.

* * *

><p>"Umm…" Nyx noted as she looked out the window. "There's something after us."<p>

Everyone besides M'gann looked out the window towards the back. Hundreds of beams of different colors were flying after them. They were quickly gaining.

"Miss Martian! Get us out of here!" Aqualad ordered.

"Right! Everyone strap in, this is going to be a bumpy ride!" M'gann noted.

"No…" Raven looked around them. "It's already too late…"

The beams of energy were all around them. They were completely surrounded on all sides. There was no way to escape except forward. Even then though, the beams were quickly surpassing them to get in front of them. They had no room to move.

"Brace for impact!" Superboy roared.

'We're about to be hit!' M'gann noted to the ghosts in the back taking care of Danny. 'Make sure Danny doesn't get injured!'

'Right.' Dani clung to her brother.

"I can't form a shield." Vison noted as she too clung to the unconscious teen. "I'm too exhausted."

"So is everyone…" Vlad was frozen in his spot. "There's nothing we can do."

"…" Joel closed his eyes and bowed his head in acceptance. "It's over. We lose."

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Bioship fell to the ground in a smoking heap.

* * *

><p>"A marvelous sight, isn't it?" Freakshow addressed his lover as he looked around at all the unconscious fighters he had defeated so easily.<p>

Lydia was silent in his arms.

"Of course…" Freakshow pointed the Reality Gauntlet at a downed Colossus.

"No…" Lydia gently gripped his arm. "No more death. Please."

"…Fine." Freakshow rolled his eyes. "If that makes you feel better, my dear, then I shall spare them."

"Thank you." Lydia whispered gently.

"It's not like they matter anyway." Freakshow released Lydia from his embrace and stepped over the various unconscious bodies around him. "They are merely ants that tried to take down an elephant. Of course, all the elephant had to do was to stomp its feet and the ants fell before him."

Looking around at the destruction he caused, Freakshow laughed. He truly was the Master of all Reality. The world reshaped to his will. All enemies fell before him with a mere thought.

He felt good. In fact, the ringmaster had never felt better. Today was the beginning of his era. His reign would be a long one. Chaos would fall down across the world. Hell would break lose. People would be begging him for mercy and salvation. Maybe he would give it to them, or he could just let them suffer.

Either way, it would be him to decide who lives and dies. Freakshow would decide right from wrong. The definition of normal would be shaped in his image and only those who conformed would ever have a chance at happiness. It would be a glorious time to be a freak in a normal human's world.

"And that era begins now!" Freakshow held the Reality Gauntlet up. Energy blasted off it in waves. The ground began to rumble, and the sky parted. Reality itself bent to Freakshow's will, and the Earth was shaped into a twisted demonic state. All the while, the insane grin never left Freakshow's face.

He had won.

* * *

><p><em>Hopelessness.<em>

_That is the only word that could describe what happened that day._

_We fought with everything we had. Exhausted, beaten, and bloody, we still tried to defy Freakshow. We had guts, you had to give us that much. This time, it wasn't enough though._

_Even with the League and a few criminals helping us, we still did not win. Not only that, we were decimated completely. Out best fighters fell before Freakshow's new power. The greatest minds we had could not come up with a plan that could help. And Danny…_

_It was too horrible for words._

_Lost, separated, and without hope, we crawled away and licked our wounds. Not without casualties, though. Poor Scribe and Grundy…They passed so quietly. There was no time for out roar. We were not given the chance to mourn._

_Even today I still miss them terribly. I know I was never really close to Scribe, and I didn't have a whole lot of time to bond with Grundy…But they were family nonetheless._

_And Freakshow slaughtered them like they were they were nothing. That was not something we would soon forget._

_Yet it wasn't like we could do anything about it. We were now weak and at Freakshow's mercy. Despite our anger, there was nothing we could do besides wait, rest up, and plan. But what could we possibly do to fight the Master of all Reality? He was invincible. No one could touch him. Not the League. Not the Light. And certainly not the ghosts. And without Danny…we didn't have prayer of a comeback._

_Thus on that day without any argument…the Phantom Family and the whole world were soundly defeated with no conceivable chance of a comeback._

_-From the personal memoirs of Danielle Masters_

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you all for reading and please remember to…<strong>

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	32. Inner Conflict

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"We all feel the urge to condemn ourselves out of guilt, to blame others for our misfortunes and to fantasize about total disaster."

Deepak Chopra

* * *

><p>Chapter 32: "Inner Conflict"<p>

(Sunday-January 2, 2011)

Beep...Beep...Beep...

"He's stable…for now." Vision peered down at the boy connected to the heart monitor.

"Secret." Greta stayed by the boy just in case something happened. She held glowing hands over Danny's body to check for anything the machines missed.

"So he's going to live?" Paulina, the prettiest and most popular girl at Casper High, questioned.

After the Bioship crashed, the ghosts and vigilantes were surprised to wake up to civilians dragging them out of the reckage. The civilians, which included many of the A-listers of Casper High, took them to one of the emergency bunkers built in case of disaster. Thanks to the bunkers design of being resistant to ectoplasm, the bunker remained mostly untouched from Freakshow's alteration of the world. As long as Freakshow didn't spend too much concentration on this one place, they would be safe.

They prayed that he stayed away.

When they arrived at the bunker, the people quickly hooked Danny up to one of the emergency medical stations placed in the bunker. They were in a medium sized room with a few beds and a lot of medical equipment. A table was off to the side for non-patients.

"I never said that…" Vision sat down at the nearby table and placed her face in her hands. She and Secret requested a bit of space to check on Danny. The other ghosts and vigilantes agreed and decided to do some planning while they waited. Some of Danny Phantom's biggest fans, however, didn't want to leave and requested to stay in the room silently. Vision didn't have the heart to say no. "He won't die now, but something's wrong. He's not fighting to live anymore."

"But Danny Phantom always fights!" Dash Baxter, the muscular blond quarterback, exclaimed.

"He does…but he doesn't have his powers anymore." Vision explained. "Who knows how that's influencing him right now. He wasn't doing well before this, and with his powers gone and the shock of the injury...It might just be too much for one fifteen year old boy."

"Is there anything we can do?" Kwan, Dash's best friend, questioned.

"Secret." Greta shook her head.

"You've done more than enough already." Vision looked at the teens. "You have my thanks. If you didn't save us from the wreckage…"

"Of course we did that!" Star, Paulina's blond friend and satellite, spoke up. "You saved us like a hundred times already. We couldn't just let you die. Especially…"

Vision looked to the unconscious boy. He was only breathing because of a machine. "Yes…He has sacrificed a lot."

"It's…it's obvious in hindsight. You know, that they were the same person." Dash's shoulder slumped. "I can't believe I used to bully Fenturd…I mean Danny. After all I did, why would he even care about me?"

"Because he's a hero." Vision spoke. "That's what he does."

"Mi amor…" Paulina peered down at the face of the boy that used to have a crush on her. It was ironic that she shunned his human half in the past but adored his ghost half like an idol. Regret filled her soul.

"I would be careful." Vision spoke. "His girlfriend is very possessive. She might break you for your thoughts."

"Valerie…" Star frowned.

"Someone else our own age fighting like they did." Kwan frowned. "How do they do it? I'm scared out of my mind when attacks happen. How do people younger than me fight with such courage?"

"Because someone has to." Vision sighed. "But eventually…The constant fighting eventually come backs to haunt you."

* * *

><p>"Batman!" Robin shouted into his holographic computer. "You're alive!"<p>

"_I am. And so are the other members of the League…and the ghosts that fought by our side_." Batman's image appeared on the screen. _"I managed to contact all of them. We've been separated across the globe. I think that the backlash from Freakshow's energy caused rifts that sent us through portals. Luckily, that only happened to those in the tent at the time, otherwise you wouldn't still be in Amity Park."_

"How are the other ghosts that fought with you?" Vlad looked at the screen.

"_Injured, but alive."_ Batman spoke. "_Many of us have been grouped together. If fact, I have someone with me…"_

"_Nyx!" _Pandora cried into the screen. "_Is my daughter okay!?"_

"Mom!" Nyx percked up from her spot in the massive bunker. The large underground building was extremely wide and filled with beds. The shadow girl had been sitting with Raven and the girl that secretly hid in the Bioship Cassandra.

"_Oh Nyx…I'm so glad you're safe…"_ Pandora looked relieved. "_And the other children?_"

"We're safe as well." Raven's face was completely neutral. "But we had a stowaway."

"I had to do something." Cassandra frowned. "What did you expect me to do?"

"Not be around me." Raven mentioned.

"Whatever, demon." Cassandra looked to the hologram. "Excuse me? Do you know if my parents are alive?"

"_I received contact from Shiva and Cain...And the Light"_ Batman stated. "_They are offering a temporary alliance to take down Freakshow."_

"What? No way!" Kid Flash jumped to his feet. "After everything they put us through only two days ago, you're going to work with those asswipes?"

"There is no choice." Aqualad did not look pleased though. "Freakshow is too big of a threat for anyone to ignore now. We cannot let our personal feelings get in the way of the greater good right now."

"_I'm glad you think that way, Aqualad."_ Lex Luthor's imaged appeared on the holographic screen.

"Luthor!" Superboy growled at the man.

"_Hello, son. Forgive me for the lack of pleasantries, but we have an emergency to deal with._" Luthor did not look well. "_We are coordinating an all-out assault. Based on the energy signals, Freakshow has based him out in Washington DC...or at least the wasteland that was DC. We are having everyone come in at different angles and eventually rendezvous at Freakshow's location. Unfortunately, our forces are scrambled, separated, and weakened from our attack on Amity Park. We won't be able to do more than act as a distraction across the world to buy your forces more time."_

"That would work…But I don't trust you." Artemis glared at the man.

"_You don't have to. Just know this, none of us have a choice but to work together._" Luthor stated.

"He's right." Vlad sighed. "My powers have returned. Luckily, Freakshow did not destroy them like he did with Danny. What angle do you want us to come from?"

"_I'm sending you the plans now."_ Batman explained. _"The ghosts and the Team will separate and go in at different locations. We all need time to rest, though. So the mission will begin in five hours. Rest and be ready to leave when I contact you."_

"Wait! What about Danny!?" M'gann spoke up. "He's still near death! We can't just leave him!"

"Some of us can stay behind." Rocket suggested. "That way someone can look after him."

"_Negative."_ Batman spoke to the group. "_For this plan to work, we will need everyone possible. We even tried to contact non-Leaguers, but they seem to be having problems of their own. Thus, everyone we have with fighting abilities and powers need to be there for the assault."_

"But Danny needs help." Zatanna spoke. "If we all leave and he has a fit then…He'll die."

"_That is likely…But we have no choice."_ Batman noted.

"What?! I refuse to leave Danny behind like he doesn't mean anything!" Superboy roared.

"Be silent boy." Vision walked out of Danny's room.

"Vision…Do I really want to see him?" Valerie was reluctant to be in there. She couldn't bear to see Danny like he was now.

"I don't know…but he needs you right now." Vision stated. "Go to him."

"…Yeah." Valerie shook the doubts out of her head. She couldn't let her doubts hold her back again. The ghost hunter instantly ran to Danny's room.

"We need to rest and get ready to leave." Vision noted. "We will be ready, Batman."

Batman nodded.

"But Danny…" Zatanna noted. "Are we just going to leave him?"

"…" Vision began to walk away. "Yes, we are."

"Are you heartless!?" Artemis was outraged. "Danny would do anything to save you if you were in his position! He wouldn't leave you behind."

"And that's why we're in this situation to begin with."

* * *

><p>"What?!" Dani snapped at Vision. She hugged Cujo close to her chest. "No! I won't leave until Danny's at least stable."<p>

"That's not going to happen, Dani." Vision shook her head. "His body's in shock and his will is at an all-time low. He won't be getting better like this."

"Then we should help him!" Dani argued.

"The only way to do that is to go into his mind." Vison sighed. "And that is too dangerous."

Despite the danger, Dani insisted on burying Grundy. They took his body behind Masters Mansion and dug his grave there. It was strange moving around in what could be described as circus hell, but at least the ground was the same. Masters Mansion was completely destroyed, but that wasn't something Dani cared about now.

"Hmm…" Joel turned away from the small grave they build for Grundy. A wooden plank stood up and read 'Solomon Grundy: Born on a Monday.' "And why's that?"

"It's like with Spectra." Vision explained. "A normal ghost's mind is hard enough to handle. A broken mind of a ghost? It's a death trap for even the most experienced telepaths. We could have Miss Martian try, but she is far too raw. She will break within moments."

"Then I'll just jump into his mind with overshadowing." Dani stated.

"You won't even last a second." Vision glared. "It is impossible now."

"I won't accept this!" Tears began to run down Dani's eyes. "We already lost Scribe and Grundy…I won't lose anyone else!"

"We don't have a choice." Vision shook her head. "We have no hope."

"No hope." Joel closed his eyes. "I know what it means to have no hope…This is not one of those moments."

"Huh?" Wulf, who helped carry Grundy's body, looked over at the boy.

"He's still alive." Joel looked at Vision defiantly. "As long as there is still life, we can endure. We can fix this. I refuse to give up on Mentor."

"Thank you!" Dani gave Joel a smile.

"You're not looking at this logically…" Vision looked incredibly sad. "We only have a few hours. It's impossible to help Danny with that amount of time."

"Then tell Batman we need more time!" Dani exclaimed.

"And let Freakshow do even more damage?" Vision shook her head. "We can't do that for the sake of one life. If we give Freakshow more time, then he might begin the slaughter people. Tell me, is the life of Danny worth thousands of other people."

"…No. I suppose not." Joel stated. "But he's worth us at least attempting to help him. We have some time. Let's use it trying to help him."

"…Vision not wrong, though." Wulf spoke up. "Ghost mind bad. If go too deep, then lose self."

"There has to be a way!" Dani argued.

"We would need either an extremely skilled telepath, or someone with the ability to dive into the subconscious of others." Vision noted.

"Then perhaps I can help…"

Everyone's eyes widened. They all turned around and were shocked by who they saw.

"You!" Dani's eyes flared green.

"Hello, little halfas." Nocturne grinned at them.

* * *

><p>"No." Vlad glared at Vision. "There is absolutely no way that we're doing this."<p>

"I'm against this as well." Vision sighed. "But the children…"

"We need to do something!" Dani argued.

"So you brought the enemy here? To our safehouse? To Danny's room?" Vlad argued. "He was trying to kill him only a few weeks ago."

"And I have long since learned my lesson…" Nocturne scratched at the new scar that ran across his chest.

"Where did you even get that scar?" Raven questioned. "Did the mummy or the dragon give it to you?"

"It is part of our creed." Hotep Ra noted. "If one of us fails to obey the decisions we agreed upon, they must be punished."

"Harsh…" Nyx sat at the nearby table. Her feet were perched up. "But even with that, I don't buy it. You're all pretty gun ho about killing us."

"Wench, do you question my word?" Aragon glared at the girl.

"Wench? Who the hell you think you're talking to, buddy?" Nyx glared back.

"No fighting!" Hotep Ra glared at Aragon. "You know that we must be civil."

"Bah!" Aragon rolled his eyes and walked to the corner.

"What I don't comprehend is why you want to help at all." Cassandra noted. Like Nyx, she was sitting at the table, but she was acting more polite. She was calmly sipping tea.

"Why are you even in here?" Joel questioned.

"The adults don't want me out of their sights." Cassandra shrugged. "I believe that they think I will do something stupid."

"The reason we want to help is simple…" Nocturne eyed all of them. "The Reality Gauntlet's use does not come without consequences. If you use it for good, then bad karma will build up. Nekron and our rings are proof enough of that. But if it's used for evil…"

"Extremely good karma will build up." Raven nodded slowly. "An all-powerful force for good will pop up and will stand in your way."

"Yes." Hotep Ra agreed. "And the best chance of stopping Freakshow is Phantom. That's why we are wiling to use Nocturne's ability to jump into the subconscious of people and ghosts to fix Phantom."

"And how do we know that you won't mess with Danny's mind?" Vision questioned.

Nocturne sighed. He placed his power ring over his chest. "I promise not to influence Phantom negatively. Cross my heart…and hope to die."

A skull mark appeared on the ghost's chest.

"If he breaks his word, he'll die." Aragon spoke from the corner. "Is that good enough for you fools?"

"Oh, like we'd believe you." Valerie stood by Danny protectively. "That could be a lie itself."

"It's not."

Everyone paused. They recognized that voice, but they knew that those were not the words that usually came out of her mouth. Each person turned to the girl sitting by Danny's bed.

Secret looked at them. "I can see when people are lying. The soul flares out momentarily when they lie. They're souls have not flared out since they stepped into the room."

"…You can talk?" Joel blinked. "I thought the only words you could say were 'Secret'."

"That was a joke." Greta gave them a small smile. "I wanted to see how long people would believe that I could only say one word."

"But we've known you for months…" Dani was gob smacked. "How did you keep it up for two whole months?"

"Secret…just kidding. I just have a lot of control." Greta shrugged.

"So…let me get this straight…" Raven stared at her. "You pretended to only be able to say one word, even though major crisis's and devastating circumstances."

"Well, in peaceful moments, I wanted to keep the joke up, and during a crisis, I thought that it would be distracting to mention it." Greta explained.

"Wow…That is…Awesome!" Nyx grinned. "Best prank ever right there! That takes dedication! High five!"

Greta gave Nyx a high five.

"And…if Greta's word isn't enough for you…" Raven fidgeted. "I am an empath, so I can sense if people are lying. I can't control it that well yet, so I suppress it, but…"

"No." Vision shook her head. "We can take Greta's word on it."

Vlad frowned. "I still don't like it, but we don't have a choice if we want to save Daniel. I do have to point out, however, that this won't give Daniel his powers back. Freakshow still destroyed those."

"That problem…will take care of itself." Hotep Ra stated mysteriously.

"How helpful."

"There is a small pump in the road…" Nocturne spoke up. "With my promise, I can't go too far deep into Phantom's mind. My hate of him will influence his mind. That's outside of my control. Thus, I need to send some people in to help him."

"What?"

"I can get them past the emotional barriers and make sure that they get into the deepest part of Phantom's soul without harm, but that's all." Nocturne stated. "And I would recommend sending more than one person. You never know what could happen the in soul of a ghost…especially one that's broken."

"I'll go!" Dani spoke up. "I couldn't help Danny at all during the GIW War and with Freakshow. I have to help him now."

"I will go as well. I owe Mentor and this family everything." Joel stated.

"That would work very well. Both of you are connected to him through DNA and ectoplasm." Nocturne stroked his chin. "But it might not be enough to face the dangers. Imagine if the memory of the Fenton Exoskeleton came to life? Or one thousand Necromancers?"

"I'll do it!" Wulf finally spoke up.

"Woof!" Cujo sounded off.

This pattern continued across the room, until it was stopped.

"No." Vision glared at them. "We can't all go, and I don't feel comfortable with Dani and Joel going as it is…"

"Yes. Why must the youngest risk everything?" Vlad questioned.

"What's wrong with being young?" Robin's voice sounded from the door. He stood with his teammates. "I think the young do a pretty good job of fixing things."

"We did save the League and Danny after all." Kid Flash grinned.

"It's not that we're trying to discriminate…It's that we don't want the next generation to take the risks." Vlad sighed. "These two…all of you…are the future."

"Well, the future starts now." Artemis put her hands on her hips. "Cause we're going."

"Yes. Young Justice shall help bring our leader back." Kaldur nodded.

"Wait a minute." Vision frowned. "The League will be livid if they find out we let you do this."

"Sorry, but it's not your choice." Superboy grunted. "We're doing it even without your approval."

"We can't leave Danny behind anymore." M'gann argued. "He would never do that to us, so we can't do that to him."

"Yeah, we have four hours to snap him out of it." Zatanna shrugged. "How hard could it be?"

"Girl, please don't ask that. Bad things happen when you ask that." Rocket sighed.

"So…" Nocturne looked across the partcipants. "It will be a squad of ten?"

"No, eleven." Valerie's visor slid up. "I'm going as well."

"That's a lot." Hotep Ra argued. "It will definitely improve your odds, but it will be hard to manage."

"I have to focus on keeping the channel open no matter what." Nocturne shrugged. "It doesn't matter how many of you there are. In any situation, I couldn't help even if I wanted to. And if your souls are damaged while they're in there…"

"Then…someone will have to manage that." Jason Blood politely pushed his way into the room.

"Mr. Blood, you shouldn't be moving yet." Raven looked at the man's various bandages.

"I'll be fine." Blood waved her off. "I have a lot of experience with containing and transferring souls. I can monitor everything. If someone is in danger, I can pull them out. After I do that, though, they won't be able to go back. It would cause too much pressure on their soul to do this two times in a row."

"What about the rest of us?" Nyx questioned. "We don't know Danny as well as you guys, so I don't think our influence will help as much."

"You guys rest up!" Dani grinned at her friends. "We'll handle this!"

"Fine…just be careful." Raven gave them a serious look.

"When are we not careful?" Joel questioned.

"Every second of every day." Secret joked.

* * *

><p>"I know that I won't be able to convince you to stay behind…so just be careful." Damon Gray hugged his daughter.<p>

"I will Daddy." Red Huntress returned the hug.

"Do not worry. With me monitoring them, they will be perfectly safe." Blood stated. "The only one in danger is Danny."

"Come Damon…" Vlad placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "Let's give them some space."

"Right." Damon nodded. He followed the eldest halfa out of the room. This left fourteen people in the room. Young Justice plus Spirit and Dusk sat in a circle. Nocturne was at the head of Danny's bed. Secret was by Danny's side in case of a physical emergency.

"Alright." Blood walked to the center of the circle and sat down. "Everything is set. Are you ready?"

He was met by nods.

"A word of warning…A ghost's mind and soul are a bit weird." Jason Blood mentioned. "Don't be surprised if some things are off."

"They know that already." Nocturne rolled his eyes. "Can we get this over with?"

"I'm ready. You never know how this will influence him physically." Secret held her glowing hands over Danny's chest.

"We're wasting time." Dani stated. "Let's go!"

"Just one more thing…" Joel gave Nocturne a curious look. "You said that Phantom is the best chance of stopping Freakshow, yet we have some of the most powerful people in the world willing to fight against the freak. I want to save Mentor…but logically he won't make that big of a difference in the fight."

"Boy…you obviously haven't seen Phantom work a lot yet." Nocturne snorted. "Trust me when I say, no one can ruin a villain's plans like Danny Phantom."

"Ain't that the truth." Kid Flash chuckled.

"…Alright. I believe that." Dusk nodded slowly. "Does that mean that the future of the planet may very well lie in our hands?"

"Yes."

"Well…no pressure." Dusk shrugged.

"Is everyone set?" Jason Blood questioned. "Yes? Then let's do this."

"And here we go…" Nocturne placed his hands above Danny's head. "Good luck, brats. You're going to need it."

Energy swirled around the room. The eleven young hero's soul were pulled out of their body. Then, in a swirling vortex, the group was sent into Danny's mind and soul.

* * *

><p>After a going what could only be describe, as a hurricane of swirling green energy, blazing explosions, and blasts of light, all eleven of the young heroes made it into Danny's soul. It wasn't an enjoyable or pleasant trip, but they made it with no harm done. Nocturne kept his word and protected them.<p>

"Ack…Pain…is this a hangover?" Spirit groaned. "It sucks so much…"

"I…do not want to do that again." Dusk grunted and began to push himself up.

"Agreed." When he was up, Kaldur looked around. "This…is definitely a strange sight."

"Woah…It's Amity Park, but different…" Kid Flash frowned.

"This is Danny's mindscape?" Miss Martian gained a worried look. "This doesn't look good."

The landscape was definitely the city of Amity Park. There were major differences, though. One major thing was that every building seems to be ready to crumple and fall apart. Another thing was that everything seemed to be covered in a layer of ice. The city seemed to be a frozen wasteland filled with only silence.

That was only the ground, though. The weirdest parts were what was floating above them. The sky was made up of swirling green energy that looked exactly like the Ghost Zone. There were also thousands of doors that were floating at different heights in the city.

"Amity Park plus Ghost Zone." Robin shrugged his shoulders. "Makes sense for a half-ghost, right?"

"What about that?" Zatanna pointed over to what looked like a frozen Mt. Justice.

"It must be part of his obsession." Artemis reasoned. "Amity Park, Ghost Zone, and the Team. That covers everything, right?"

"What's with the doors, though?" Rocket questioned.

"In the Ghost Zone, different doors are shortcuts to different ghosts' domains." Spirit explained.

"But what function do they have in Danny's mind?" Superboy questioned.

"Maybe we should find out…" Dusk mentioned. "If we want to help Mentor, we have to find out what the problem is and fix it."

"Right…" Kid Flash walked over to a wooden door that floated just above the ground. "Want me to?"

"Go ahead." Aqualad nodded.

Kid Flash opened the door.

* * *

><p><em>Torch braced himself for the next attack. He couldn't see through the smoke, but he knew that Phantom was there. For a minute he waited, but no attack came. A large grin formed on the face of Torch. He had won!<em>

_"Ahhhhhhhhhh!" Suddenly, Phantom rocketed at Torch with dizzying speed. The ice broad sword was raised and ready to strike._

_Torch brought up his scythe to block the attack. The broad sword met the met the scythe with a large clang. For a brief moment, everything froze. Torch and Phantom glared at each other. The scythe and sword remained locked. It was the climax of a battle at its finest._

_Then the scythe was cut in two. The edge of the ice broad sword dug into the right shoulder of Torch. The sword dug down deeply into the shoulder and cause green blood to fly out. Before too much ecto blood came out, though, the wound was covered a thick layer of ice._

_Suddenly, the sword shattered. Torch dropped the two ends of his scythe. Then…Thud! Torch fell back in a heap._

_Phantom looked at the sight before him in shock. He had done it. He had single handedly defeated an S-rank ghost. There was only one way to celebrate such a victory._

_"YYYYYEEEEEAAAAAHHHHH!" Phantom yelled in victory. Falling to his knees, Phantom revealed in his victory. Finally, all of his training was finally showing some results._

* * *

><p>The image faded.<p>

"Woah! What was that?" Rocket questioned.

"It appeared to be Danny and the fire ghost." Aqualad noted.

"I heard about that!" Spirit exclaimed. "That was Danny's first fight with Torch."

"First fight…" Robin stroked his chin in thought. "That means it was a memory."

"And if that door led to a memory…then do all these doors lead to every memory Danny has?" Artemis questioned.

"That's doubtful." Miss Martian shook her head. "There are a lot of doors, but not enough to cover almost sixteen years. These are probably just the most significant memories Danny has."

"Welp…That's neat." Kid Flash mentioned. "But how does that help us fix Danny?"

_Find Danny…in the memories…_

"What was that?" Zatanna looked around in caution.

_He has hidden himself…in a memory…find him…_

"That voice…it sounds familiar." Dusk frowned. For some reason, he couldn't think of who it belonged to.

"Maybe it's the voice of someone significant to Danny." Rocket mentioned. "And that voice is trying to help us?"

"It's possible. Nocturne did say that memories can come to life in here." Spirit mentioned.

"So…Does this mean we have to look through every one of these doors? That will take forever." Superboy frowned.

"It might be the only way, though…" Kaldur sighed.

"Then let's get started." Artemis walked over to the next closest door.

* * *

><p>They had watched several different significant memories. They ranged from battles to tender moments with family. Part of them felt bad about viewing some of Danny's personal memories. Another part, however, was fascinated to see how the events in Danny's life occurred and led up to this point.<p>

So much was seen in their short time in Danny's mind and soul.

Phantom's battle with Colossus.

Danny's memory of staring at the memorial statue in Amity Park.

The Fright Knight pledging his life to Danny.

Phantom bonding with the Team.

Unfortunately, there were other memories that they had no desire to see and relive.

Klemper's death.

Danny's reaction to Dani dying in the training simulation.

Danny watching as his friends and family died in front of him. Now that was hard to watch. It tore them up to see the one that had helped them so much suffer like that. In those last moments, Danny looked broken and hurt beyond words. Seeing that happen made them realize that words and explanations did not give that tragedy justice.

And that wasn't even the last awkward memory they saw.

"Oh God!" Rocket shouted after the memory was blasted away.

"My pure innocent eyes that hasn't seen anything like that. Not even secretly at night on my computer!" Zatanna clutched her face.

"What?" Robin blinked at her.

"I can't unsee that…" Superboy grumbled.

"Ah…" M'gann's face turned from green to pure red.

"It was bad enough when Ember told us about her and Danny…" Artemis was frowning deeply. "But that was one hundred times worse!"

"Shut up!" Red Huntress lowered her gun and glared at them all. After getting over her shock at the sight, she used her wrist gun to dispel the memory. "That was a private moment between me and Danny!"

"Obviously…" Aqualad could not look at her.

"Wow. I did-" Kid Flash was smacked upside the head.

"If you say one more word, I will make sure that we never to anything like that." Artemis glared.

Kid Flash was silent.

"Well…That was more about Danny's personal life that I ever wanted to know about…" Spirit grumbled and looked away.

"I don't see what the big deal was. Valerie and Mentor obviously care for each other." Dusk shrugged. "Was that not an expression of love and affection?"

"Thank you." Red Huntress smiled at him.

"Although, I never took you as the groper, moaner type." Dusk stated seriously.

Red Huntress's jaw dropped.

"Not to mention that you seemed to enjoy his abs a lot." Dusk mentioned.

"Wait…are you messing with me?" Red Huntress blinked.

"Also, I have to question why you consider Mentor's behind, and I quote, 'adorably bitable'." Dusk noted.

"Say anything more and I will shoot you." Red Huntress glared at him.

Dusk debated about whether it was worth pressing any further. He decided it was not worth it…right now.

"Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" Robin had to fight not to fall the ground laughing. "I can't believe you said that with a straight face!"

"We so need to keep you around more!" Kid Flash managed to laugh out.

"Why are you not shocked by that?" Aqualad questioned. "You're only eleven."

"Kaldur, I live in the Internet age and was trained by the Shadows." Dusk knew this wouldn't shock them because they read his files for sure. "I have been informed about sex and seduction since I was eight."

"And I have Nyx as a friend, so…" Spirit shrugged.

"Enough of this! We need to keep going." The still red faced Red Huntress flew up to a random metal door. "And if this is a memory of Danny and Ember doing anything at all, I'll start shooting everything."

* * *

><p>They all stood in Fenton Work's basement lab. It wasn't the same as it was now, though. There was far more clutter and broken machines than there was now.<p>

"When are we?" Dusk questioned.

"_Smile!" A goth girl with black hair that was half down and half up in a ponytail. She wore dark makeup, a black shirt that still revealed her midriff, a black platted skirt with purple tights underneath, and black combat boots._

_To the side of the girl was an African American teen that had the same build as Danny. He wore a red beret, yellow shirt, and thick glasses. He was watching the scene with curiosity. _

_The flash of a camera went off._

"…I think I have an idea…" Spirit mentioned.

"_Okay…" A younger, shorter, and thinner Danny stated. He held a white jumpsuit in his hands. "I showed you the portal. Can we get out of here now? My parents could be back at any minute. Besides, they say it doesn't work anyway."_

"_Come on, Danny," Sam Manson walked in front of the powerless Ghost Portal. "A portal to the Ghost Zone! Aren't you curious? You got to check it out."_

"_You know what…" Danny looked into the portal. "You're right. Who knows what kind of awesome, super cool things that could be on the other side of that portal?"_

_He put on the white jumpsuit. Humorously, instead of the famous DP symbol on his chest, there was a sticker of an aging man with a thick chin and graying hair._

"_Hang on…" Sam walked over to the boy. She ripped the sticker off his chest. "You can't go around with that on your chest. Here."_

_She placed a black version of the famous DP symbol on his chest._

"_What is that?" Danny questioned._

"_Just trust me, okay?" Sam smiled._

_With that, Danny walked into the portal. He was hunched over and looking around in curiosity. Making sure he wouldn't trip, the boy placed his hand on the side of the portal. He hit an on button._

_The room was then blinded by green electricity and energy._

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"_

* * *

><p>"Was that…" Aqualad looked over to Spirit.<p>

"Yeah. I think that's when Danny gained his ghost half." Spirit nodded.

"Wow…we just witnessed the birth of a hero…" Miss Martian mumbled.

"Yeah, wow." Superboy frowned. "Danny looked a lot…weaker than now. That guy looked like he wouldn't weigh a hundred pounds soaking wet."

"He changed a lot." Kaldur nodded.

"And to think…that could have easily never happened." Artemis noted. "One small difference…Danny refusing to give into peer pressure…His parents showing up early…That girl not having an interest in ghosts…If any of those things happened, Danny Phantom would have never existed."

"The origins of a hero are a fragile thing…" Robin thought of his mentor. If the Waynes never went down that one alleyway, Batman would have never existed.

"But what would have happened if Danny didn't get any powers?" Zatanna questioned.

"I wouldn't exist." Spirit noted.

"I would probably be dead." Dusk stated.

"Most likely, I would still be a spoiled brat." Red Huntress sighed.

"And what about us?" Superboy questioned. "How would things be different if Danny never stepped into that portal?"

"It depends…would there still be a ghost problem?" Aqualad frowned in though. "Because if there was, then we may very well be dead…or in a sleep coma from the Nocturne Crisis."

"The Light was interested in ghosts far before the Nasty Burger incident." Dusk mentioned. He thought of the various reports he read back at the Ghoul Project. "They probably still would have used the Guys in White to attack the Ghost Zone. But at that point, the ghosts probably wouldn't have been prepared. All of them would be dead."

"So many different things could have gone bad if Phantom didn't exist." Rocket noted.

"Okay…I know this is off topic, but can I point out how stupid it was to put an on button in the inside of a machine that dangerous?" Kid Flash spoke up.

"I don't think that's the point." Superboy noted.

"It should be. That's a pretty stupid flaw design." Kid Flash pointed out.

"Jack Fenton was a genious inventor…but he was also a known clutz and had a habit of blundering on obvious things." Red Huntress nodded.

"But Maddie Fenton wasn't an idiot in any sense of the word, and she worked with the designs. Why didn't she fix that design?" Spirit frowned.

"Huh…" Dusk blinked and lowered his head in thought. "That is a good question. It's almost like…"

**You ask too many questions.**

"What?!" Everyone whirled around. They saw a figure in a completely black cloak staring at them. His features were completely hidden beneath the cloth.

**Do you think that he never had those same questions in his head? Why would two geniuses overlook such an obvious flaw? Even if one lacked common sense, a child could tell you not to put the on button on the inside of something so explosive.**

"Who are you?" Kid Flash demanded.

**But he was always too afraid to question it. After all…it couldn't be that this life was forced upon him. Who would do such a thing to a boy willingly? Who would make him suffer so?**

"Answer the question!" Artemis pulled out her bow.

**Intruders demand something of me? The Protector? How arrogant and foolish.**

"We do not mean to intrude." Aqualad noted. "We only wish to help our friend."

**Your help is not welcome. Get out now, or I will force you out.**

"Come on! If we don't help, then Danny will die!" Rocket glared.

**You have failed to comply with my warning. That means I must force you out.**

"Guys! Remember that this isn't real!" Miss Martian yelled out. "If you remember that, he can't hurt you!"

**In a normal mind, perhaps, but you are in the mind of a ghost. Beings of the dead do not follow the rules of mortals.**

The cloaked figure disappeared in a blur. He appeared in front of M'gann. His fist was shoved through her stomach.

**Do I not seem real you?**

Miss Martian disappeared in a blaze of green energy.

"M'gann!" Superboy shouted in anger.

"Fret, not children." Jason Blood's sounded around them. "I have removed her before anything permanent happened. She is well and safe."

**That is the purpose. My intent is not to kill. I shall give you one last chance. Get out, or I will force you out.**

"…I refuse to leave." Dusk glared at the cloaked figure. "Mentor needs my help. If I leave now, he will suffer and die. I cannot allow that to happen."

**Very well. I shall try to push you out as painlessly as possible.**

Green energy exploded out of him. It blared out like a solar flare. All the young heroes were forced to jump back and run away to avoid getting consumed by the energy. The attack destroyed the area they were around. Ice shattered and buildings crumbled around them.

"Crap…" Robin noted as he jumped up from his roll. "I'm definitely not whelmed right now."

"He has a lot of power." Superboy glared.

"Damn." Red Huntress looked around. "He took another one of us down."

It was true. Spirit was gone.

* * *

><p>"Ack…" Spirit groaned. "What happened?"<p>

"I pulled you to this place to talk to you." A gentle voice spoke to the halfa girl.

"Huh?" Spirit opened her eyes and sat up. She blinked and wiped her eyes. She saw a girl in black standing in an area of pure white. "Who are you?"

"Why is that the first thing all halfas ask me?" The goth girl chuckled. "If you want to know, though, I'm Death."

"Death?" Spirit allowed the other girl to help her up. "As in when people die? That Death?"

"Well…I'm more complicated than that, but essentially yes." Death nodded.

"Huh…I thought you would be a skeleton. Danny did mention he met you, but he never said what you looked like." Spirit mentioned. "Guess I should have asked."

"I get the skeleton thing a lot." Death chuckled. "Here, let's sit."

A bench appeared beside the girls. Death instantly flopped down. Spirit, however, was reluctant.

"Look. I don't really know if you're real or not, but I'm kind of too busy for this." Spirit looked around the completely blank area minus the girls and the bench. "I need to help Dusk and Danny's friends, cause if I don't, Danny will die."

"I know. That's why I'm here." Death mentioned. "You have to save Danny."

"That's what I'm trying to do, so send me back." Spirit ordered.

"I can't. Not yet." Death gestured to the bench. "Sit. We need to talk."

Spirit sighed and sat down. "I can't believe I'm taking orders from a memory."

"I'm not a memory, Dani." Death smiled at her. "I'm the real Death."

"…What? For real?" Spirit blinked.

"I am." Death smiled happily. "I came here to help Danny. He can't die yet. But I can't get close to his innermost self."

"But you're Death…Like you are actually Death itself…er, herself." Spirit pointed out. "Can't you do anything you want?"

"Danny has an affinity with denying me when he wants to…" Death chuckled. "There is a field around his core. He has shielded himself with memories. No one can get through, not even me, and I need to get through. There is only one person that can help Danny now."

"You?"

"No, someone else." Death sighed. "But I can't get through the memories, and I'm sure there are more barriers as well. That's where you and your friends come in."

"What do you mean?" Spirit questioned.

"The being that attacked you was a personification of all the hardships and experiences Danny has faced. He was hidden away until your presence in Danny's memories awakened him. That was why I spoke to all of you before. To get you to look through his memories and draw him out."

"That voice was you?" Spirit blinked.

"Yes it was." Death nodded

"Oh…Okay. So what now?" Spirit questioned.

"In Danny's outer mind, that physical memory is all powerful. There is no way you can win in a physical fight." Death explained. "But there is a chance that he might be convinced to drop the first barriers. Unfortunately, I doubt anyone could get through to him…except for you. That is why I brought you here to this area of free thought and peace. I need you to use your influence over Danny to convince us to help him."

"But why is he resisting anyway?" Spirit questioned.

"He cares so much about all of you." Death sighed. "That's why he doesn't want you to be hurt in a few minutes when his mind collapses, and he accidentally takes your souls into the afterlife with him."

"His mind's collapsing?" Spirit's eyes widened.

"Yes…His mindscape is already degrading. Soon there will be nothing left."

* * *

><p>"What's going on?" Zatanna questioned. In the distance all around the edges of the city, shards of crystals were rising into the air and disappearing. It was happening in a complete circle around them. Thus, the entire city was doing this.<p>

**The mindscape is breaking apart. The city is now degrading in from the sides into the center. Soon there will be nothing left. That is why you must leave now.**

"No! That's why we have to help Danny now!" Superboy glared at the cloaked figure.

**Fool, you can do nothing to ease his pain and make him forget.**

"You have to let us try!" Red Huntress shouted.

**No, I don't.**

The cloaked man raised his arms to the side. Energy swirled around him. It then began to spread around them all in a blaze.

"What are you doing?!" Aqualad demanded.

**I am ending this quickly. It aches to hurt you enough to return you back to the real world. I mourn the fact that I was forced to harm M'gann and Dani. So I will let the memories send you back. Only the strongest ones will do, though…**

"What are you talking about?" Artemis demanded.

**Goodbye, my friends, I will miss you.**

All the young heroes disappeared in a flash.

* * *

><p>"What happened?" Zatanna looked around. "Did we teleport?"<p>

"The man said something about a memory." Robin mentioned. "And this looks like New York City…"

"So is it when Danny had different assassination attempts put on him?" Zatanna questioned.

"…None of those things happened at night…" Robin looked up at the darkened sky.

"Oh…Well, if this is a significant memory…and in New York…and at night…" Zatanna mentioned. "Do you think this is during…"

Crash!

A large mechanical battle suit that stood at over twice the size of the teens landed before them. It was white in color with a green flaming F on the front of it. Inside the machine's cockpit was Agent Z. The duo could seem him through the unbreakable glass dome on the top of the armor.

"The GIW War." Robin frowned. "This was who Danny fought…who we have to fight."

"The Fenton Exoskeleton…"

* * *

><p>"What's with this storm?!" Rocket covered her eyes as rain and hail poured down around them.<p>

"I do not know!" Kaldur pulled out his Water Bearers. He raised them and used the rainwater to form a dome around the two heroes. "There, now we can talk."

"This is Amity Park." Rocket mentioned. "But wow…I haven't seen a storm like this in a long while."

"Yes…" Aqualad did not look excited. "The last time I saw a storm this bad was back in April."

"Right." Rocket nodded. "I remember that. Everything was in chaos when that weird weather ghost Vortex went on a rampage…Oh crap."

"Indeed." Aqualad looked around. "This is most likely that memory. We need to be on the lookout for."

Zap! Boom!

"AAHH!" Both teens were blasted back when a powerful bolt of lightning hit the water dome and blew up.

"Damn…What was that?" Rocket questioned as she forced herself up.

"…Him." Kaldur pointed to the being in front of him.

The ghost was wearing a black vest with a lightning symbol like the Flash, except that it larger, backwards and more pronounced. His huge arms and forearms were covered by black gloves. Instead of legs, the ghost had a twister tail that was constantly spinning. Phantom noted the ghost also had red eyes, sharp teeth, and lighting bold ears.

Vortex cackled at them. He wasn't going to make this easy on them.

* * *

><p>"This place…" Red Huntress frowned. "I've seen this place in books."<p>

They stood in a long wide throne room. The entire room was massive and ancient. Candles lit the sides. Oddly, a large sarcophagus was at the end of the throne room.

"Do you know where we are?" Superboy questioned.

"Not a good place." Red Huntress stated. "We need to get out right now."

"What? Why?" Superboy questioned.

The sarcophagus at the end of the room opened. A massive man with black armor and green straps stepped out. He also had a green sword at his side. The giant of a man had long green hair, two horns with the left one broken, and an eye patch over his left eye. His face was completely white like his sharp teeth.

"That's why…" Red Huntress paled.

This man was once the savior of the human world, but he was later the dictator of the Ghost Zone. His almighty power came from the burning crown above his head and green ring on his left hand. He almost destroyed Amity Park but was defeated by Danny Phantom.

He was Pariah Dark, the King of the Ghost Zone.

* * *

><p>"Woah…" Kid Flash blinked. "This place looks like something from a nuclear apocalypse movie."<p>

"Yeah…" Artemis nodded. She looked around at all the fallen buildings and rubble. "You know what…this looks a bit like Amity Park."

"Really?" Kid Flash frowned. "You know what, you're right."

"This is not good…" Dusk spoke up. He formed his Pendulum Nunchucku in his hands. "I have heard stories from Mentor…There is only one that has the ruins of a destroyed Amity Park in it. I'm sure you know the story, though."

"What story? The only apocalypse story Danny told us was when he went to the alternate future." Kid Flash shrugged.

"Hello Wally!" Artemis rolled her eyes at the redhead.

"Huh…Oh…Oh crap." Kid Flash's eyes widened.

"Hehehehehehehehehe…" A dark voice laughed above them. It sent shivers down their spines.

They looked up. An extremely muscular man with blue skin floated above them. He had flaming hair and red eyes. His black and white jumpsuit had a white cape on the back and a flaming DP on the chest.

Dark Dan grinned down at them with his sharp teeth. He opened his mouth and allowed a forked tongue to jump out and hiss at them.

* * *

><p>"His mind is degrading?" Spirit was in shock.<p>

"Yes." Death nodded solemnly. "The shock of Freakshow's actions is the straw that broke the camel's back. He can no longer hold the strain of his guilt and regret."

"But how can I help?" Spirit questioned.

"You hold a connection to Danny that no one else has." Death took Spirit's hands and held them gently. "You are his genetic daughter. Half of you comes from him, while the other half comes from Sam Manson."

"I know." Spirit nodded. "But what does that have to do with anything?"

"You are the one person on the planet close to Danny that has any positive connection to the ones he lost during the Nasty Burger Incident. That is the initial cause of Danny's grief that has only grown as time moved on." Death explained. "It is this connection and his love of you as a sister that makes you his most precious of people. He would do anything for you."

"…So I have to use that." Spirit noted.

"Yes, you are the only hope we have of getting close to the core Danny." Death nodded. "I need you to get past the barriers so that I can use my secret weapon on him."

"But if I hold such a sway on him, why can't I just help him?" Spirit questioned.

"The heart is such a strange thing. Sometimes, it seeks forgiveness from the people that are gone, rather than the people who we still have." Death mentioned. "It's not a rational thing, and Danny does have a hard head sometimes. He needs to hear these words from someone he feels that he's wronged the most."

"…Okay." Spirit agreed. "I think I get where you're coming from."

"Thank you. Now, hurry. You must convince to let you past the memories soon, or all Danny's friends will be sent back by the memories they're fighting." Death stated. "You won't be able to get past the final barriers without their help…"

* * *

><p>Spirit blinked as she once again appeared in the frozen wasteland version of Amity Park. All the other young people were gone. The only person left in the now decaying world was the cloaked figure that attacked them.<p>

Death had been clear in her instructions. Spirit had to convince this living incarnation of Danny's memory to let them help. "Hey!"

The cloaked figure turned to her.

**You are still here? I thought I already sent you back to the real world. **

"No! You didn't!" Spirit glared.

**Then I shall send you there now.**

The cloaked figure raised an arm at her. Green energy glowed around it. Spirit didn't think this was an attack that she could dodge or block.

"No you won't." Spirit stated. "Because I don't believe there's any part of Danny that would be willing to hurt me."

The figure froze. The energy faded.

"You're a part of Danny right? The personification of his memories?" Spirit questioned.

**I am.**

"Then you know me." Spirit stated. "You know all of us. You know that all we want is to help Danny."

**The core 'Danny' is beyond saving now. He has lost sight of the light. All hope is lost to him. The end of this mindscape is imminent. I must get all those that matters to the core 'Danny' out of this world. If not, you shall all fall as well.**

"But we can help! I know we can!" Spirit argued.

**That is an impossibility. I am his memories. I know that Phantom had pulled off the impossible many times. In the face of all odds, he has prevailed. But not this time. If Phantom has given up, then the situation is truly hopeless.**

* * *

><p>"Woah!" Robin jumped out of the way of the rockets that the Exoskeleton fired at him. The Boy Wonder flipped and jumped to avoid the missiles of destruction. They flew past him and crashed into the buildings behind him.<p>

Robin had to brace himself to not fall down from the force of the explosions.

"Nrut eht dnuorg otni dum!" Zatanna cried. The contrete below the Exoskeleton shifted into a gooey mud. The machine began to sink.

That is, until jets jumped out of the back of the battle suit and rocketed it up into the air.

"This isn't working!" Robin shouted. "That thing's really tough!"

"How did Danny fight this thing?" Zatanna questioned.

"Well he did die…Look out!" Robin ran over and shoved Zatanna out of the way. Just after he did that, the Exoskeleton landed down. It grabbed Robin and flung the Boy Wonder through the wall.

"Robin!" Zatanna shouted as Robin disappeared in a blaze of green energy.

* * *

><p>"How the hell do you fight a living storm!?" Rocket questioned. She was flying around Vortex. Her kinetic energy attacks proved to do very little against the ghost who had a hurricane protecting him.<p>

"I do not know!" Aqualad was trying to control the water provided to him by the storm. He waved his Water Bearers around to control a water dragon. The dragon charged at Vortex, but the storm ghost used a tornado to scatter the water. "Nothing is working!"

"HAHAHAHAHA!" Vortex bellowed out a laugh. He spread his arms out and allowed electricity to blast out of him.

Rocket quickly grabbed the Atlantian and pulled him out of the way of the electricity. She flew around the ghost while leaving a trail of purple kinetic energy in her wake. "This is impossible! I remember hearing about this guy! Even Danny needed Spirit and Superman's help to take him down!"

"We must think of something!" Kaldur stated. "Get me close! He may control electricity, but if I use my mystical electricity then I may be able to injure him!"

"That's going to be hard!" Rocket flew around the raging winds, strikes of lightning, and pouring rain. "I can barely move as it is!"

"Then-Gack!" Kaldur gasped as Vortex grabbed him from Rocket's hold.

"Kaldur!" Rocket would have went to help her new friend, but she was forced to create a kinetic bubble around herself in order to stop a ball of electricity that was thrown at him.

"RAW!" Kaldur tried to use his magic electricity to breakt Vortex's hold, but this did not work. Vortex's hand did gain a few burns, but the ghost did not let go.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Vortex then crushed the Atlantian. Kaldur disappeared back to the real world in a swirl of green energy.

* * *

><p>"GET OFF OF ME!" Superboy roared. He was being held down by his enemy's massive foot. The clone tried to punch at the ghost's Achilles's Tendon, but it didn't work.<p>

Pariah Dark was a juggernaut. He didn't even try to black their attacks. He just let them bounce off him like they were simple balls of paper. Both teens could absolutely nothing to hurt him. Red Huntress tried to go for one of the Ghost King's sources of power the Crown of Fire, but when she went to grab it, she was smacked away like a fly.

The Ghost King then beat Superboy down the clone. Superboy managed to get hits in, but his punches and kicks didn't seem to do anything. Not only that, the blasts of ectoplasm that Pariah Dark used to blast the teen to the ground actually hurt the Kryptonian. The stinging pain made it so that Conner could do nothing as the Ghost King stepped on him like a bug.

"Hold on, SB!" Red Huntress floated behind the Ghost King. Rocket launchers raised out of her suit's shoulders and shot several missiles to Pariah Dark. They all made contact with his back, but he didn't even acknowledge the attack.

"Damn it!" Red Huntress had never really faced the Ghost King. Sure, she saved Vlad and Danny from him once, but that was about it. Attacking him now felt like trying to shoot down a mountain.

"You!" Superboy glared up at the Ghost King. "I'll-"

A massive blast of energy destroyed Superboy's head. Red Huntress had to watch as her ally was taken back to the physical plain of existence.

"No…" Red Huntress froze.

This was the Ghost King. One of the most powerful ghosts to ever exist. He once ruled the Ghost Zone with an iron fist. It had taken the Ancient Six to take him down the first time and Phantom with Fenton Exoskeleton the second time. Red Huntress wasn't arrogant enough to think that she could even hope to take him down on her own.

* * *

><p>Dark Dan was fast. That was the thought that Kid Flash, a person that could run close to the speed of sound, had running through his mind. The ghost actually managed to keep up with Kid. He dodged Artemi's arrows like they were moving in slow motion. Dusk's attacks didn't even get close.<p>

Not only that, he was beyond strong. His punches shattered walls. He threw boulders around like they were confetti. His kicks made the ground below them crack and cave in.

And his ectoplasmic blasts…

Boom!

Artemis was gone!

"NO!" Kid Flash rushed the ghost in anger.

"Wait!" Dusk warned.

Dark Dan sent an ectoplasmic empowered backfist to Kid Flash's head. The force would have shattered the speedster's neck. Luckily, Jason Blood pulled Kid out of the mindscape before any real damage occurred.

"Damn…" Dusk hissed. He had heard stories about Dark Dan. The only one that fought the dark future Phantom was Danny Phantom himself. Dusk now knew that every statement Phantom uttered about his future self's strength was greatly underexaggerated. "This is not good…"

* * *

><p>"Hopeless…" Spirit looked insulted. "How could any part of Danny even think of saying like that? Danny was the one that managed to hold off the Ghost King by himself! Danny was the one that managed to change his own destiny! Danny was the one that ended the GIW War! Danny was the one that brought the Phantom Family and Young Justice together! He does all those impossible things and you say that this is hopeless?!"<p>

**There is only so much one person can endure on his own, Dani. The core Danny has endured too much on his own.**

"I get that, but he's not alone! We are here to help him!" Spirit argued. "I know that he's endured a lot for us. A lot more than we ever had any right to ask. He's had so much pressure on him…But that's about to change. He doesn't have to carry any more burdens on his own. Because all of us…Even the people out there waiting for him to wake up…are willing to shoulder part of the burden."

**Danny does not want that. He does not wish to burden those he cares for. He does not want you all to risk your very existences merely to give him a small chance at life.**

"To hell with what he wants!" Spirit glared. "It does not matter what you think he wants! What you think his obsession entails! Because I know this, if Danny does not want us to suffer, then he should let us help him, because we would suffer a lot more knowing that we did nothing to help a friend than if we fail and are hurt in the process."

**You…make an excellent point…**

"And don't like Danny is the only one that can pull off the impossible." Spirit grinned. "That trait runs in the family. Give me one chance to help my brother, and I promise that I will help him and get all of out of here safely."

…**I could never really argue with you, Dani…**

The cloaked man reached up and lowered his hood. The face of a golden eyed Danny Phantom stood in front of her. He looked tired and had a few scars running across his face.

**Very well. You shall have your chance. Don't make me regret this. Because if Danny takes you with him into the afterlife, he will destroy himself.**

Memory Danny raised his arms. Energy swirled around them as the world began to shift.

* * *

><p>"Raw-Huh?" Dusk paused mid-punch. He wasn't fighting Dark Dan in the ruins of Amity Park anymore. He now appeared to be in a…graveyard.<p>

"What happened?" Zatanna looked around wildly. Was this a trick by the Exoskeleton?

"I have no idea…" Rocket was trying to calm herself down from the panic she was feeling from fighting the Vortex memory merely seconds before.

**Do not worry. This is no trick.**

"You!" Red Huntress pointed a gun at the cloaked figure but paused when she saw Phantom's face. "You…

"Don't shoot!" Spirit cautioned as she jumped in between Memory Danny and the young heroes. "I managed to convince him to let us go help Danny!"

"Really?" Zatanna still looked paranoid.

**I am letting you proceed.**

"Okay…" Dusk nodded slowly. "Why the change of heart?"

**A big brother cannot ignore his sister's cries.**

"I see…that sounds like Danny." Red Huntress lowered her gun.

"Alright…" Rocket looked relieved. "Um…Where are we exactly?"

**This is the core of the Phantom. Over there, is the very essence that is Danny.**

The cloaked Memory Danny pointed off into the distance. There appeared to be a green ball of energy floating above the ground. It looked big from here, but they were a good distance from it. Most likely, the ball of energy was actually massive when up close.

**But the burden's Danny carries has began to decay this area. Each grave is a regret that Danny feels.**

"You can't move a few meters without a gravestone, though…" Rocket mentioned.

**Exactly. It has weighed him down, and with the shock of losing his powers and failing to help Freakshow has pushed him over the edge. That is why Danny has given up and shall pass soon.**

"We have to help him." Dusk clenched his fists. "But how do we do that?"

**Go to him. To the core Danny. If you can get to him, perhaps you can help. But be warned, there will be barriers…obstacles. That is why I can take you no further than this. Even I have limits compared to the core Danny. He will not allow me to take you any further than this. If I try to move any further, I shall disappear. So you are on your own from here on out.**

"Thank you for this." Spirit nodded to him. "Don't worry. We'll save Danny."

**That is my hope. But be careful and do know that time is running out. Very soon. The outer mindscape will fall, and this place will disappear forever. Now go. Hope's survival is counting on you.**

* * *

><p>The group of five flew towards the core as quickly as they could. Because Zatanna did not know any flying spells yet, she was carried on Red Huntress's hover board. Overall, their journey over the graveyard was relatively peaceful at first. This did not mean that they would let their guard down, though.<p>

"Woah!" Rocket did a barrel roll in order to dodge what looked like a hand made out of green energy. It jumped out of one of the graves and tried to grab her. "That was close!"

"Yeah-Ah!" Spirit flew up to avoid another hand. "There's more of them!"

It was then that hands began to spring up from each grave. They reached up and tried to pull the heroes down. All of the flying vigilantes were force to dodge and avoid the hands. This was greatly delaying their progress.

"We don't have time for this." Dusk noted. They were still going at the same speeds, but most of the time they were going sideways instead of forward to the core.

"I don't think we can blast our way through!" Red Huntress was using her guns to blast the hands away, but they quickly regenerated.

"Kaerb eht sdnah!" Zatanna shouted. The hands began to dispel. This only last for a brief second before they appeared again.

"Everyone get close!" Rocket shouted. "I'll shield you!"

Red Huntress with Zatanna, Dusk, and Spirit all began to fly close to each other. A kinetic bubble of energy formed around them and protected them from the hands.

"What about you?" Spirit looked out to the other girl.

"I'll distract some of the hands while maintaining the shield." Rocket nodded at them while dodging some of the hands. "I don't think my kinetic tech can absorb the energy here, so it's only a matter of time before it breaks! If I keep the attention away, it might make it though!"

"But…" Red Huntress frowned. She didn't like the idea of leaving Rocket unprotected.

"I'll be fine! Start going! I'll try to keep up!" Rocket yelled.

"Right." Dusk nodded.

The group then returned to their trek to the core. Like Rocket promised, the shield held. Unfortunately, Rocket quickly began to fall behind the others. It was hard for her to maintain the shield and dodge the hands at the same time.

"Keep going!" Rocket yelled to them. "Save Danny!"

She was then grabbed by the hands and held down. The girl quickly disappeared in a flash of green. This caused the remaining four's shield to fall.

Luckily, they were incredibly close to the core now. In fact, they could now begin to see the massive sphere of energy more accurately. It was like a miniature sun. The green energy flared and danced around it. Below it was a translucent dome. Within the bubble was Danny. He was kneeling before six graves within that dome.

"Danny!" Red Huntress cried. "We have to get to him."

"The hands are back, though!" Spirit cried.

"I'll deal with them!" Zatanna shouted. "I'll make you a path too!"

"What are you going to do?!" Dusk questioned.

"What I have to!" Zatanna jumped down from the Red Huntress's hover board. As she dropped, she yelled. "Ekahs pu siht ytrap!"

When Zatanna landed, she placed her hands on the ground. This caused a massive shockwave to blast out. The ground wrippled and shook as the dirt shifted all over the place. All the hands that were in front of them disappeared in a flash. The sorceress, however, did not take out the ones behind them. Thus, they were able to grab her and dispel her from the halfa's soul.

The group of three landed in front of the dome surrounding Danny and the six graves. All of them instantly began to beat against the dome. They yelled and shouted for Danny to let them in, but the teen did not listen. While on his knees, Danny knelt over and placed his face on the ground in shame.

"Damn!" Red Huntress watched as the hands began to form again. "Find a way in that dome! I'll hold back the hands!"

"Right!" Spirit began to use her Spectral Claws to try and cut the dome open. It did not work. "Dusk, help me!"

"I'm working on something…" Dusk had formed a single Burst Gauntlet. He was charging all of his energy into that one weapon. "Keep focusing on that one spot…"

"Hurry! The hands are getting close!" Red Huntress was using their wrist guns to shoot the hands back. There were too many of them, however, and they kept regenerating. They would soon overtake the heroes.

"Just a bit more…" Dusk focused completely on the Burst Gauntlet. "Now! Spirit, move!"

Spirit stopped cutting at the dome with her Spectral Claws and jumped out of the way. Dusk rushed forward and threw a punch at the dome. His Burst Gauntlet rammed through the dome. This only created a hole the size of a fist, though.

Removing his fist, Dusk let the Burt Gauntlet fade and grabbed onto the edge of the hole. He began to pull at it and widen it. "I'll try and make it big enough for you, Spirit!"

"That won't be enough!" Spirit grabbed the other side of the hole. She pulled with all her might.

"Guys!" Red Huntress looked back as the hands overtook her. "Good luck!"

With that, she was gone.

"RAW!" Both Spirit and Duks pulled at the hole. It began to expand and widen.

"Go! He needs you!" Dusk shouted when the hole grew big enough for a person to go through.

"No, he doesn't!" Spirit smiled and shook her head. "He needs her."

"Huh?" Dusk blinked. "What are you…"

"You did well…" A girl stepped through the hole. She seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Death?" Dusk's eyes widened.

"Thank you." Death smiled back at them. "Don't worry. I can handle it from here."

That was the last thing they saw before they were dragged out of Danny's mind.

* * *

><p>Spirit's eyes snapped open. Her head ached like she was hit with a sledgehammer. "Holy crap, that hurts!"<p>

"Ugh…" Dusk rubbed his temples. "Did anyone catch the plates of the semi that hit me…"

"Oh no…" Artemis paled when the two children woke up. "If you're here…"

Jason Blood looked over to the still comatose Danny. "It appears we failed."

"Danny…" M'gann began to tear up. Conner instantly pulled her into a hug.

"His condition is falling rapidly." Secret was rapidly trying to heal his body. "I can't do anything, though. It's not a physical thing. He's just fading…"

"No!" Kadur punched the ground in anger.

"I can't believe this…" Zatanna trembled as she began to sob.

"It appears this was all for nothing." Nocturne sighed.

"No…You're wrong…" Dusk shook his head.

"What are you talking about?" Wally held his head in his hands. "Danny's dying."

"That's the thing, though…" Spirit couldn't help but smile. "Danny is at his strongest when Death is near."

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Danny repeated these words over and over again. He knelt before six graves. These were the six people that he failed first. They were the reason the degradation process even began.<p>

The graves read the names Jack Fenton, Madeline Fenton, Jasmine Fenton, Lucas Lancer, Tucker Foley, and Samantha Manson.

"Danny…" Death approached Danny from behind. "Danny you need to stop this."

"It's all my fault. They didn't deserve to die…None of them did…" Danny sobbed.

"Danny, you must listen. You're killing yourself. You can't do this. The world needs you." Death spoke gently.

"No. I can't…I can't forgive…I did this…" Danny cried.

"…I didn't think that you would listen to me." Death noted. "Your guilt is too deep. No one can get through to you like this. No one…but someone you think you wronged."

"Danny…"

Danny's head instantly popped up. His tear stained face showed an expression of shock. Slowly, he turned to face the person who addressed him. Her face and voice often haunted his nightmares. "Sam?"

"Hey, Danny." A white robed Sam Manson smiled down at him.

"I…I can't…" Danny stood slowly. He reached out and gently tried to touch her face. "I thought you were gone forever."

"You can't get rid of me that easily." Sam mentioned as he gently cupped her face.

"An illusion. You have to be. Sam is dead…" Danny retracted his hand like it was burnt.

"No, Danny, she's the real Sam." Death stated. "I brought her here to talk to you."

"She…She's real…" Danny's eyes widened. "You're really here, Sam…"

"I am, Danny." Sam nodded.

"Sam, I…I…" Danny grabbed her hands and dropped to his knees. "I'm so sorry! It's all my fault that you died!"

"Danny…" Sam knelt down and hugged him tightly. "You don't need to ask for forgiveness. I forgave you a long time ago."

"Sam…" Danny cried into her shoulder.

Death smiled. At that moment, the degradation of Danny's mind came to a halt. Everything was still.

"Danny…" Sam gently pushed him away a bit so she could look into his tear stained eye. "You need to stop blaming yourself like this. You're killing yourself with guilt. Do you think that any of us would want you to do that? Do you think that we would want you to suffer because of what happened, because you're wrong. All of us forgive you for your mistake. Besides, it's not really even your fault. You tried to save us. It was Dark Dan that killed us."

"But…"

"Shush." Sam placed a finger over his lips. "I'm talking now."

Danny was silent.

"These graves…these constructs of your guilt…They're not necessary." Sam gently wiped away his tears. "None of them should exist because no one blames you for what happened."

"But…The Nasty Burger Incident was my fault…I was the one that instigated the war…I failed to save anyone during the training simulation…The Ghoul Project used my energy to torture and kill people…" Danny mumbled.

"Idiot." Sam shook her head. "We forgive you for our deaths. It was the Guys in White that wanted war. That simulation was meant to make you fail. And the Ghoul Project is the Light's fault, and no one else's."

"But…" Danny didn't get a chance to say anything else.

"No. No buts." Sam glared. "Please, Danny. You're the only one that thinks that you're guilty of anything…Well, your enemies do, but those douches don't count."

Danny was silent as Sam gently pulled him to his feet.

"Don't you get it? Since the beginning, the only person that needed to forgive you…is you." Sam gently took his hands into hers. "Let go of your guilt, Danny, just like you let go of your anger during the war. Free yourself of these shackles and chains you placed on yourself."

"I…I don't know if I can…" Danny mentioned.

"You can. I know you can." Sam stated. "Because you can do anything. Here, open your hand."

Danny obeyed. Sam then gently placed something into his palm. She took a step back and let him see what she help.

"This…It's the ring that Dad got so I could ask you out…" Of course, that time he was dating Valerie, so it was a bit awkward dealing with his Dad.

"Yeah…I thought it said 'Wes' when you gave it to me for safe keeping." Sam chuckled. "Read it upside-down."

"…What do you want me to do with this?" Danny questioned.

"That is a symbol of the shackles you placed on yourself. Destroy it. Prove to yourself that you're finally ready to forgive yourself for everything that happened and move on." Sam stated.

"But if I do that…Then won't I be giving up on your memories?" Danny looked down at the ring uncertainly.

"No, Danny. You don't have to forget us." Sam smiled. "But you need to live your life without letting our memories weigh you down."

"Even if I do this…I still won't be able to help the others. My powers were destroyed by Freakshow." Danny sighed.

"No Danny. They weren't. The Reality Gauntlet is strong, but your powers come from a stronger force." Sam pointed to Death.

"As long you have your connection to me," Death spoke. "You will always have the potential to use your powers. Look above us at that ball of energy. That is your power source. Freakshow may think that he destroyed your powers, but they will always return to you if I am close by. That is how you gained your power in the first place."

"What…What do you mean?" Danny questioned.

"You've always had that power, Danny. You were just too afraid to use it until you had to." Death explained. "The first time you died as a baby, you became a half-ghost. You just never used that power until your second encounter with me. And now, you're once again suppressing your own powers. This time, it's because of your guilt and your perception that you went against your obsession. But if you forgive yourself…you'll be even more powerful than before."

"I…I…" Danny looked down at the ring. He looked conflicted.

"Do not let your current loved ones suffer because of your guilt of your past loved ones, Danny." Sam encouraged. "It's time. You must protect what matters again like they came to save you."

"…You're right." Danny nodded. Once again, tears ran down his face. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it, Danny." Sam stepped forward and gave him one more gentle hug. She then stepped back. "Stay safe, Danny...and remember to treat Valerie right. I think that…she's good for you."

"I will." Danny nodded. "Goodbye, Sam."

"Bye, Danny."

With that, Danny crushed the ring in his hands. It shattered into tiny little pieces. Then, he let go. The shards drifted up from his open palm and into the air. The ring and the guilt that it represented faded into the wind.

Danny's mindscape was covered in a blinding light. The outer mindscape quickly repaired itself. The city was restored. The ice melted, and the buildings repaired themselves. Light shown from the green sky as gentle snow began to fall across the city.

Things changed in the inner mindscape as well. The graves all around Danny's core quickly began to disappear. Each one blinked out of existence until the only ones that remained were the six in the center. Slowly, each one of those graves faded as well until nothing remained.

It was then that the ball of green energy above the now empty field began to grow. It surged outward and expanded to over ten times its previous size. The green light shone brighter than ever.

This time, however, there were strands of white and gold energy in it as well.

* * *

><p>"What?" Secret blinked down at the body on the bed. "His vitals…They suddenly went back to normal…"<p>

Danny Fenton's eyes snapped open.

"Woah!" Secret jumped back.

"Danny!" Spirit grinned as she pushed herself to a standing position.

"Mentor, you're okay…" Dusk gained a relieved look.

Danny sat up. "I am…" He looked over to Secret. "Greta…you're the one that healed my body right?"

"Y-yes." Secret nodded.

Danny gently placed a hand on top of her head. "Thank you."

"Y-you're welcome…" Secret watched in shock as Danny pushed himself to his feet. He looked different than before. He looked…powerful…confident.

"Danny!"

"You're okay!"

"Thank God!"

Young Justice, Spirit, and Dusk rushed to their leader. They all gave the halfa hugs and pats on the back. Danny laughed and returned to gestures of affection.

"How?" Jason Blood questioned. "How did you come back like that? I thought we failed to get to you?"

"No. You did exactly what you needed to do." Danny smiled. "Thank you…All of you, for sticking by me. It must have been tough."

"Yeah, well, I think that should cover a few favors that we owed you." Superboy grinned.

"That it does…Although, I think I owe one of you a favor that I doubt I'll want to repay." Danny glanced to Nocturne.

"Don't misunderstand the situation, halfa. I did this because I had to, not because I wanted to." Nocturne glared at him. "The only thing I want from you is your death."

"Well, you'll have to wait a while for that…" Danny rolled his eyes.

"Danny…Your hair…" Red Huntress watched as the white streak in Danny's hair disappeared.

"Yeah…Don't worry, that's a good thing." Danny chuckled.

"What happened?" Rocket questioned. "How did you snap out of it?"

"I got a visit from an old friend and had some sense slapped into me." Danny explained.

"Wow, that is perfectly vague." Zatanna noted.

"And it will stay that way for a bit. I think we have to worry about Freakshow first." Danny mentioned.

"True, but how will you fight without powers or armor?" Robin questioned.

"Don't worry about that…" Danny walked past them and opened the door.

Everyone in the main hall of the bunker turned to him. He was met with same reaction as before. All of his friends rushed to him and embraced him.

"Oh, Danny." Vision hugged him tightly. "I…I'm so sorry. I was going to leave you…I'm such a terrible person."

"Vision…." Danny pushed her back and gently gripped her shoulders. "You had to make a choice. I don't think even my life is worth the entire human world and Ghost Zone."

"Daniel…" Vlad eyed him. "You seem…different."

"I feel different. I feel better than ever." Danny grinned. "I feel like taking Freakshow down."

"Danny…" Wulf spoke. "You no have powers…"

"Don't I?" Danny grinned. A white ring surrounded him. "I'm going ghost."

Everyone watched in wonder as the ring went across his body and transformed him into Danny Phantom. Green energy blazed around him. A Haunting Aura of peace and confidence swept over the room.

"How?" Dusk questioned.

"Trade secret." Phantom smirked. "I'll tell you later. But right now, I think we need to stop Freakshow from destroying the planet."

"Hell yeah! Now that's what I'm talking about!" Spirit did a fist pump.

"You make it sound easy…" Kaldur noted. "But the entire League, some of the most powerful ghosts, and talented assassins were all taken down by him."

"We are planning an all-out assault soon." Vision mentioned. "We're leaving in a few minutes, but we haven't been able to come up with a better plan than to attack him all at once. We thought about using different ghost artifacts, but they would either be ineffective or take too much energy."

"I see…" Phantom grinned. "…Too much energy, huh?"

"Danny?"

"I think I have a plan. Vision, tell me, where exactly did you hide the Mirror of Memories?"

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you all for reading and please remember to…<strong>

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	33. Together

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."

Helen Keller

* * *

><p>Chapter 33: "Together"<p>

(Sunday-January 2, 2011)

"_Are you sure this plan will work?_" Batman questioned from the image on the Bioship's window.

"Not at all." Phantom stated to the screen. "But I'm not hearing anyone coming up with better ideas."

"_He's right, Batman. Our options are limited right now._" Vision sounded through the ship. Unlike Batman, she did not appear on the screen. This was because she was flying right outside the Bioship.

"_So we're going to just take a gamble on this and abandon the assault plan?_" Batman questioned. "_Our plan with the Light is solid. They use their scattered forces to draw as much as Freakshow's attention away from this fight as possible by trying to outstage him with chaos and bruise his ego, while we bring the fight to him. If we change the plan now, we might fail horribly."_

"Wouldn't it be smarter to have the Light help?" Rocket questioned.

"_They are too scattered, and I don't trust some of them not to stab us in the back._" Batman sighed. "_This is the safest plan Vision and I could come up with."_

"We don't plan to abandon the all-out assault. All we want is a chance to go ahead and see if Danny's plan works." Robin spoke up.

"_So you're willing to risk your lives on this gamble?_" Batman questioned.

"Well, Phantom's plan originally to go himself. We refused to let him do that." Kaldur stated.

"_So the ten of you-"_

"Twelve!" Spirit spoke up.

"We are going as well." Dusk stated with crossed arms.

"_So the twelve of you are going to attack Freakshow, an enemy that proved to be almost untouchable by normal means, by using the outrageous plan to use the Mirror of Memories. An item, I remind you, I thought was completely destroyed."_ Batman glared at them. _"And you expect me to order everyone to support that plan?_"

"Yes." Phantom nodded. His eyes showed conviction. "Because it will work."

"…_Fine._" Batman nodded. "_I will order everyone make a path for you._"

"_We'll be ready to protect the Bioship in case anything happens._" Vision spoke out.

"Thanks." Phantom nodded as the connection was cut. "Dear God, I hope this plan works."

"If it makes you feel better, I think your plan is better than the one we had before." Zatanna mentioned.

"It definitely is, but…not by too much. Especially since you just came out of a coma." Robin mentioned.

"Dude!" Kid Flash elbowed Robin's side. "Don't be a jerk."

"And this is coming from Wally." Artemis snorted. "You know what you said was stupid if Kid Mouth think it was dumb."

"My girlfriend is so supportive…" Wally mentioned.

"Hey, I'm just saying." Robin shrugged.

"He does have a point." Superboy crossed his arms. "We're not just going to the center, we have to go halfway around the perimeter before heading to Freakshow."

"I'll be careful as I fly." M'gann mentioned from her spot on at the helm.

"That's not the issue. We couldn't dodge Freakshow's attack before, right?" Superboy frowned.

"That's why we have so many people around us ready to protect the ship. And why Batman's having the Leaguers and ghosts pave a way for us." Red Huntress mentioned.

"It would help if I could form a shield around the ship, but I don't think I can make one that big that could stop any real damage." Rocket sighed.

"That is fine. We will just have to use the resources we can." Kaldur mentioned.

"But will that be enough?" Phantom sighed. "Okay…Dusk, give it to me straight, does this plan have any chance of success?"

"Why are you asking him?" Spirit questioned.

"Because he's my logic guy."

"What?! Why not ask me?! I'm logical!"

"No you're not."

"…Yeah, I'm not." Spirit admitted. "Alright Dusk, how good's our chances?"

Without looking at anyone, Dusk raised his hand so that it was parallel with the floor. He waved it around. "Meh…"

"Meh? Your answer is meh?" Phantom questioned.

"Yep."

"…I'll take it."

* * *

><p>"This is not going to be fun." Plasmius mentioned. He, along with the other people with him, were flying beside the Bioship.<p>

"It is not…" Vision agreed tiredly. She was flying on the right side of the Bioship. She was at the opposite end that Plasmius was guarding. "It has been nonstop for all of us for the past three days. I look forward to a hot bath after this."

"Tsk…" Nyx frowned. She flew above the Bioship. "Even I'm sick of all this, and I love the chaos."

"I've been tired of all this since the beginning..." Secret mentioned. "And at least you got a break. I've been working nonstop since this started. I just want to rest."

"The bad thing is…We still have to clean up the mess after this is done." Raven sighed. She flew beside Nyx. "I hate my life."

"Could you not be so depressing?" Cassandra glared back at the girl. "It's ruining my prebattle meditation."

"How can you even meditate?" Etrigan the Demon questioned the girl on his back. The demon possessed Jason Blood was leading the Bioship forward. "We are thousands of meters above the ground."

"I have been trained in worse conditions." Cassandra noted.

"Um…Why are you even here?" Nyx questioned. "You have no powers."

"Don't act like I can't fight, because I could definitely defeat you." Cassandra noted.

"Excuse me!?" Nxy snapped at the assassin.

"Besides…" Cassandra ignored Nyx. "My parents are out there fighting. I must go to them."

"…" Nyx looked away. "Yeah well…I guess I want to help my Mom too, so I won't kick your ass right now…I'll wait until after all this is done…"

"Stay focused." Plasmius ordered. "We are drawing close to the battle. We cannot be caught unaware."

"Grr…" Wulf growled. He was bothered by something, and it wasn't the inability to use his powers to get to Freakshow. The ringmaster had altered reality around him so that nothing could teleport near him and not portals could open beside him. Wulf's powers were useless right now, but still, there was something else he didn't like. "Where Black Ring users?"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Vision was the first to speak up. "They refused to follow orders. I saw them disappear as we were leaving."

"What if they attack us?" Raven questioned.

"That is doubtful." Plasmius mentioned. "They went through a lot of effort already to try and stop Freakshow. They are out allies until this is all over. I am sure that they will do something to aid the fight against Freakshow."

"But what about after?" Etrigan questioned. "What if they attack us while we are weakened like Freakshow did?"

"…We will just have to deal with that problem when it arrives."

* * *

><p>"Ah!" Freakshow leaned back on his thrown of silk, leather, and jewels. "Now this is living!"<p>

Lydia was silent as she stood at his side.

Both of the circus people were at the top of a large brick tower that stood far above even the tallest of skyscrapers. They were even above the clouds at this point. Freakshow enjoyed the idea that he was above everyone else in the world. The Master of all Reality also enjoyed the view. It wasn't the view from the top of the tower that made him smile, however. No, it was the holographic images that amused the ringmaster.

All around the tower were images of various other locations across the planet. Freakshow watched as the world was thrown into chaos. Land crumbled. Tsunamis crashed. Hurricanes flied. People cried and ran in terror. Heroes and villains alike were trying to fight their way to the center of the storm chaos.

Freakshow scoffed at them. It was impossible to get him. Through the use of the Reality Gauntlet, he locked every possible way to teleport here. The sky was too filled with storms to come from space. The ground was too hard to dig under, and he made it so that intangibility was impossible.

Feeling generous, though, Freakshow actually gave them a small chance to get to him. It was possible to fight to the center of all the chaos. It was near impossible to do that, though. Freakshow created giant bats, snakes, zombies, and monsters to protect him from all sides. The wounded and exhausted fighters would never even get close.

"Why give them a small glimpse of hope?" Lydia questioned. "You could easily make it so no one could get to you."

"And where's the fun in that?" Freakshow leaned to the side of his throne and beamed up at the woman. "If there is absolutely no chance for failure, then this would be boring. It feels good to win, but what is the point if there is no chance to lose?"

"The chances of them even getting to us is less than one percent." Lydia mentioned. "And the chances of them defeating you after that is even lower…to the point that it could be considered virtually impossible. What difference is it if the chances of you losing is virtually zero compared to literally zero?"

"I suppose…I just love seeing them see that small light at the end of tunnel without any real chance of getting to it. It's hilarious to watch them struggle. Of course, if they even get a little close, I'll erase their very existence."

"Were you always this cruel?" Lydia gained a saddened look.

"No, not always." Freakshow shrugged. "Not before you died, at least. Speaking of which, I can turn your body into one of flesh now if you want. You can be human again."

"…" Lydia paused in thought. "Not now. I shall wait until this is done. Then I will allow you to change me into a human."

"Oh? Why is that?" Freakshow questioned.

"I want to see how this plays out." Lydia answered. "Before I turn into a human, I wish to see if it was a mistake of you to give them even the smallest bit of hope."

Freakshow snorted. "Whatever you say. I won't argue. When this last little 'fight' is over, then we shall celebrate. It won't take too long. In fact, I'll just…Wait, what's going on?"

The Master of All Reality waved his hand. Three different pictures zoomed from different angles and stopped in front of him. They all showed similar scenes.

* * *

><p>"What?!" Superman's eyes widened as a black wave of energy blasted through the area and destroyed the various monsters Freakshow created to fight them.<p>

"You!" The masked Green Lantern glared at the person who helped them.

"Do not fret." Hotep Ra mentioned. "I am here to assist you."

"What why should we believe that?" The Fright Knight glared at the Black Ring user.

"Because I wish to stop Freakshow as well." Hotep Ra answered. "And right now, you need all the help you can get."

* * *

><p>"ROAR!" Aragon in dragon form charged into battle. His black flames decimated all that they touched.<p>

"Why is he helping us?" Captain Marvel questioned as he floated above the dragon.

"Freakshow is a threat to all." The Spectre noted. "It is in his best interest to fight with us."

"By why chose here?" Icon questioned. "We are probably one of the groups that need the least amount of help."

"…We are on the opposite side as Phantom's group." Spectre mentioned. "Perhaps…He is trying to draw attention away from there…"

"…Then we should give him some help." Captain Marvel grinned.

* * *

><p>"Nocturne…" Doctor Fate glared at the sleep ghost. "Give me one reason why I should not destroy you where you stand."<p>

"Because if you do that, the Sleep Walkers will disappear." Nocturne gestured above to the thousands of Sleep Walkers that were helping them fight.

"Why are you helping us?" Zatara held his wand towards the Black Ring user. "You have always been our enemy."

"Well, I don't want Freakshow to do anymore damage." Nocturne grunted. "The more he does, the more challenge we will have in the future."

"I do not believe that we need your help." Martian Manhunter stated. "We should just subdue him now and save us some trouble later."

"Idiot!" Nocturne rolled his eyes. "I know this group doesn't need my help. But that's the reason for that. My group decided that our powers would best be used with the most powerful groups away from Freakshow. That way, all of the freak's attention will be drawn to one side of the perimeter…Away from the side with Phantom and Colossus."

"I see…" Doctor Fate nodded. "That will give Danny an open window to go through."

"It boosts our chances of success by a lot." Zatara agreed. "But…I still don't trust you."

"And you shouldn't. But until this is all over, we really don't have a choice but to work together." Nocturne mentioned.

"…Then let us fight." Martian Manhunter stated.

* * *

><p>"The Black Ring users?" Freakshow frowned. "I did not think they would appear…"<p>

Lydia frowned as well.

"This will be more difficult." Freakshow mentioned. "I can defeat them with the Gauntlet, but I can't use the Gauntlet directly from this distance. They have too much of resistance to it…"

Lydia knew that was true. She frowned at the screens. Those three locations were relatively close to each other across the perimeter. They were spread out through about a third of the circle of people attacking them. "Why are they on one side…and fighting beside some of the strongest members of the League and Council?"

"They must be trying to push their way into the center." Freakshow smiled. "Smart, but it won't work. I'll just put more energy over there."

"What about the other areas?" Lydia questioned

"Please. Even if those weaklings get here, I'll destroy them." Freakshow waved off her concerns arrogantly.

"…Are you sure?" Lydia questioned. "Perhaps-"

"Silence! I already made up my mind!" Freakshow glared at her.

Lydia looked down at the man she loved. "Very well. I shall not advice you anymore."

* * *

><p>"What?" Miss Martian blinked. They managed to get into the chaos of the fight. Oddly enough, it was lighter than she anticipated. "Thought there would literally be a wall of enemies…"<p>

"Something happened." Kaldur mentioned. "From the reports, there were a lot more creatures than that."

"…Phantom to Batman." Phantom addressed the communication device. The Dark Knight's image appeared once again on the screen. "Batman, did something happen? The line seems lighter than what you described."

"_So you noticed it as well…"_ Batman nodded. "_The Black Lanterns have apparently began assisting some of the more powerful groups in their assault. The result is that Freakshow seemingly turned most of his attention that way._"

"That gives us an opening." Dusk realized.

"Did they plan that?" Kid Flash questioned.

"_It is possible. Nocturne was always a cunning enemy._" Batman stated.

"_With Freakshow distracted by Black Lanterns, the Light's forces across the planet, and the other Leaguers, we should take advantage of this now._" Vision's voice sounded through the Bioship. _"Young Justice, you need to move as quickly as possible to Colossus then head to the center. Plasmius and I will create an opening with the League members ahead."_

"That's GA, RA, and Black Canary…" Artemis mentioned. "Are…you on good enough terms with them to work with them?"

"_We will manage."_ Vision mentioned. "_Get ready to move, we're going ahead now. Move around the circle. The people surrounding the ship will do their best to protect it._"

"_I will inform everyone to stop pushing to the center. Instead, they'll focus on drawing as much attention away from you as possible."_ Batman noted.

"Right." Phantom nodded. "We'll get this done."

"…_I'm sure you will. Batman out."_

"_Take care, Danny. Vision out."_

"Things are getting interesting…." Superboy mentioned. "Should I get Sphere from the back and give the others some support?"

"No, we need the Supercycle to be in good condition when we get to Freakshow." Phantom instructed.

"Right!" Spirit beamed. "And it's not like my friends need any help. They're pretty awesome."

* * *

><p>Plasmius charged forward with energy blazing around him. As he flew into the chaos, he flung balls of energy to the various creatures that Freakshow created to combat them. As the balls of energy drew close to the creatures, they expanded. The magenta colored energy tore through the freakish enemies with ease.<p>

"Woah!" Green Arrow paused in his shot. "That was super effective."

"Stay focused!" Red Arrow snapped. He was not in the mood for any of this. If this wasn't a worldwide threat, he wouldn't even be here. "We need to keep working to make an opening for the Team."

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Black Canary ended her Canary cry. The sound easily dispatched the enemies around them. Unfortunately, she could not keep that up forever, and they would be defenseless. "Huff…They keep getting closer...pant…"

"Then perhaps I can help!" Vision floated behind them. She raised her arms. Hundreds of small balls of energy began to orbit around them. They moved so quickly, the energy balls appeared to be merely blurry lines. When the creatures got close to the balls of energy, they were quickly torn apart and destroyed in a blaze of energy.

"You…" Black Canary glared at the other woman.

"I know that you probably have a grudge against me, but there is not time for that." Vision mentioned. "We must focus on the fight."

"She's right, Canary." Green Arrow nodded to the ghost woman. "We have to work together now. We can be mad later."

"Fine, but how do you expect us to fight like this?" Black Canary questioned. "Your shield will stop all our attacks."

"When the archers fire their arrows, I will alter the course of my energy balls so the arrows will get past." Vision explained. "As for you, I will lend you some of my Visual Birds. Use their images to confuse the creature and destroy them with your Canary Cry."

"…Alright." Black Canary nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

"Then let's do it!" Red Arrow fired a few explosive arrows into the air. Like Vision said, the arrows got past the orbit of energy balls. The arrows all hit their targets and caused large explosives.

"Right!" Green Arrow began to fire as well.

"Haha…" Plasmius smirked from above as the explosive arrows helped him clear a path. After a quick wave of ectoplasmic energy destroyed enough creatures to give the Bioship room to move, the alien ship rocketed past the group and continued on their mission.

"Break a leg, Daniel." Plasmius mentioned. "Preferably Freakshow's leg."

* * *

><p>The Batwing, a black aircraft shaped a bit like a bat, flew through the air. Different blasts of energy flew off the jet's ectoplasmic weapons. They left devastation in their path. Originally, he was with Pandora's group, but his weapons and plane gave him an edge and protection, so he went to an area that would need his help more.<p>

"That's impressive!" Ember grinned. She strummed her guitar and sent out a shockwave of sound energy that blasted a lot of different creatures away from her. She looked back to the jet that was flying a decent distance away from her. "How you doing in that hunk of metal, Bats?"

"_As good as expected."_ Batman's voice sounded in her Fenton Phone earpiece. _"But I am the one with protection. How are you doing?"_

"Me? I'm rocking it!" Ember's hair extended out in flames. She waved it around and sent a torrent of fire out around her.

"_I see…_" Batman frowned out the window at her. He was familiar with Ember. She was a ghost that used to date Phantom, but when they broke up, she became a rockstar. Oddly enough, she almost reminded the Dark Knight of that other fire ghost Torch. "_What about you, Atom? Are the ectoplasmic cannons responding well enough?"_

The shrinking hero nodded. He was deem within the weapons of the Batwing preforming maintenance on the machines. He wasn't that much of a fighter, but tech like this was definitely up his ally. "_I'm repairing any damage I can find and am keeping the firing power at maximum. We should be able to keep this up for a while._"

"_Good, we need to keep this up as long as possible to give the Team time to get the Freakshow."_ Batman instructed.

"That I can do…" Ember nodded. She wasn't by his side now, but she would always support Danny when he needed her help.

* * *

><p>"Woah!" Nyx used a wave of shadow energy to destroy a wave of freakish creatures. "These things are everywhere!"<p>

"Duh…" Raven rolled her eyes. "That's why we're protecting the Bioship."

"I've faced worse odds!" Etrgan swiped at some of the flying bats and snakes.

"RAW!" Wulf and Cujo were ahead of the group. They tore through the creatures with ease.

"Honestly, what did you expect?" Secret questioned. "Did you expect a picnic?"

"You really have been hanging around us too much." Raven muttered. "You're getting super sarcastic."

"I knew this wasn't going to be easy, but…Hey there's my mom!" Nyx's eyes lit up.

"We reached the second checkpoint." Cassandra noted.

"Awesome!" Nyx grinned. "This is our stop! Come on, Greta! Let's do this! Good luck you guys!"

"Yipee...more fighting..." Secret sighed.

"Don't die, you two." Raven gave a halfhearted wave.

"Stay safe!" Etrigan ordered. "No student of mine is allowed to lose to these freaks!"

"Right!" Nyx laughed. In a blaze of black energy, the girl rocket from her spot around the Bioship. She was quickly followed by the blazing white smoke of Secret. Many of the creatures followed them. This gave the Bioship room to move forward to the third checkpoint. "Hey Mom!"

"Nyx!? Greta?!" Pandora batted several of the creatures away with an electrically empowered spear. "Are you injured?!"

"I'm fine!" Nyx giggled. "This is pretty fun, right?"

"Secret!" Greta rushed into battle. Her white smoke tore through the creatures, and her old habit of saying one world came back during the adrenaline of battle.

"The battle is always a joyous occasion!" Wonder Woman exclaimed as she stabbed her sword through several different creatures.

"You're fighting by Wonder Bra?" Nyx mentioned loud enough so that Pandora could hear it, but Wonder Woman could not. "That's ironic."

"Yes, that's not lost on me…"

"Hey!" Youngblood raised his canon peg leg into the air and pointed it at the wave of creatures that were still swarming down on them. A massive ball of ectoplasm destroyed them. "Don't bring more enemies to us and ignore them, Nyx!"

"Chuck! Still an adult I see." Nyx snorted. "That look does not suit you. You should go back to being a kid."

"I will as soon as this is done…" Youngblood grunted. "It's not going to be fun to set up the seal again, though…"

* * *

><p>"Burn!" Torch swung his scythe around him. Flames danced around in a large ring. When it was completely formed, the fire ghost flung the ring of fire to the various creatures in front of him. They were all bathed in the cleansing power of fire.<p>

Red Tornado was quieter in his attacks. Blasts of wind came out of his and tore through the various freaks around him. Part of the winds caught Torch's flames and spread out the flames even further around them. Both fighters quickly took note of that.

Boom!

Crash!

Torch and Red Tornado were hit by different attacks.

"Ah! Torch thinks we're outnumbered." Torch mentioned

"Indeed we are." Red Tornado nodded. He and the fire ghost back into each other so that their backs were touching. "Can you handle it?"

"Torch can handle anything! Just leave it to Torch!" Torch grinned.

"Do not forget that I am here as well." Red Tornado mentioned.

"You're fighting? Torch didn't notice."

"Is that mockery? Interesting. Are you trying to provoke me into fighting harder?"

"Don't ruin it! Now form a tornado around us!" Torch ordered.

Red Tornado obeyed. Spreading out his arm, the android created a massive whirlwind around them. This sent the creatures around them flying. Torch then added to the attack by swinging a fire coated scythe into it. This created a massive whirlwind of fire that destroyed everything in its path.

"Now that's what Torch is talking about!"

* * *

><p>"Huh…" Freakshow frowned at the various images around him. "A lot of the different groups are picking up their fighting. Yet…they're not moving forward."<p>

Lydia was silent.

"I don't get it…" Freakshow looked across the images. "How are they…Ah! The Martian Bioship!"

Lydia looked at the image. The ship was flying overhead of most of the fights. She watched as the blue skinned girl broke off from the group and flied down for reinforcements for another group.

"They're trying dropping off reinforcements." Freakshow noted. "So that's it…Oh well, it's not going to help. They'll never get close."

Lydia knew that Freakshow was an intelligent individual. She saw him create the plan that led to this situation after all. It seemed that the power went to his head. The Master of All Reality truly thought he was untouchable right now. That meant he was blind to the more subtle things.

The Bioship was heading in a course to the group of Lady Shiva and David Cain. Cassandra Cain was with the ship right now. It was possible that she would be dropped off with some of the other group that was with the Bioship. That meant that they were heading past that group and to the next group.

The one of Colossus, Green Lantern, and Captain Atom.

Lydia had a bad feeling about that. Something was wrong. Her instincts on these things were rarely wrong, so there was some plan going on here. Yet…she said she wouldn't give her lover anymore advice.

At the same time, though, he needed someone to pull him back to the proper mindset. Gently, Lydia placed a hand on his shoulder. Frederich could always tell that something was wrong when he looked at her face. She could just communicate her unease like that.

"Don't interrupt me!" Freakshow shrugged off her touch. "I'm busy watching the ants struggle."

He didn't even give her a passing glance.

Lydia frowned and took a step back. She would leave him be for now…

* * *

><p>"We're at checkpoint three!" Etrigan yelled out. "Let's go! Wulf, Cujo, it's up to you now!"<p>

"We got this!" Wulf grunted.

"WOOF!" Cujo barked out.

"This is going to suck…" Raven sighed as she, Etrigan, and Cassandra broke off from the group. They descended down below to the two sole assassins that were helping in the fight against Freakshow.

Shiva and Cain were working together like a well-oiled machine. Their teamwork was flawless as they fought back to back and defended themselves from the various creatures. They flipped over each other and sent spinning kicks around the other. In addition, Shiva was throwing shuriken in all directions while Cain was using his guns to mow down the freaks. Despite the dangerous things they were doing, neither fighter hesitated. They trusted each other completely.

This did not stop them from being threatened by the massive number of creatures, though. In fact, they were being pushed back.

"No!" When they were low enough for her to land safely, Cassandra jumped of Etrigan's back. She brought out her knives and stabbed a lizard creature in the head.

"Cassandra!" Shiva's eyes widened. "What are you doing here!?"

"I've come to help!" Cassandra joined her parents and began to fight off the creatures.

"Like Father like daughter!" David Cain barked out a laugh.

"Don't encourage her! This is dangerous!" Shiva glared.

"This is in her blood. It would be hypocritical of me to tell her to leave." Cain grinned at his daughter. "I trust you to have my back, Cassandra."

This caused the girl to smile slightly.

"Ah, the emotions…how sickening…" Raven muttered out. She flew above them and yelled, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Black and white energy spread out. It grabbed a boulder and threw it into the various creatures around her. They were crushed instantly.

"Now is not the time to be sentimental!" Entrigan flew around and crushed the creatures with his great strength.

"Fighting beside demons…" Cain chuckled. "Well, I've done weirder things in my life."

Raven looked over her shoulder to Lady Shiva. "You're not going to try and kill me, are you?"

"…No." Shiva shook her head. "I owe you for protecting my daughter. That is enough for me to owe you a bit. Today shall not be the day you die, spawn of Trigon."

"Gee, thanks…" Raven rolled her eyes.

* * *

><p>"I have to say, Frostbite, I prefer you as an ally than as an enemy." Aquaman mention. He was using a triton to stab through the different creatures charging at them.<p>

"Hahahahahaha!" Frostbite flash froze several of the beings around him. "That is what most people seem to think, your Majesty."

"Why so formal? Are you not a leader yourself?" Aquaman questioned. The blond man flipped over a few creatures and split them in half with a blast of water.

"I am, but formality is part of who I am." Frostbite used his ice claw to skewer on of the creatures.

"You talk too much!" A woman with brown wings on her back and golden armor yelled from above. Hawkwoman soared through the sky and used her mace to strike down her enemies. "Stay focused on the task at hand!"

"I apologize!" Frostbite yelled up to them. "Also, tell me if things get too cold! I do not wish to harm you!"

"Don't worry about us!" A man with similar wings and armor as the flying woman shouted. Hawkman was assisting his wife with his trusty battle ax. "We can handle a bit of cold!"

"True, but I don't want to accidentally slow down your flying patterns!" Frostbite exclaimed back.

"Our wings are strong!" Hawkwoman grinned. "I doubt you could take us down."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Aquaman chuckled. "I've fought this man. He is extremely powerful."

"Aw, you're making me blush." Frostbite chuckled.

* * *

><p>"We made it!" M'gann cheered as the image of Colossus drew closer.<p>

"Yes!" Zatanna grinned. "Almost there."

"We're not done yet." Phantom looked around at his teammates. "We need air support. Red Huntress, Rocket, Spirit, and Dusk give us air support. Zatanna, Artemis, go with Superboy on the Supercycle. Help RH and Rocket."

"Right!" Said team members instantly followed his instructions.

"M'gann, keep the Bioship ready to go." Phantom stated. "As soon as I'm done, we're heading to Freakshow."

"I'll be ready to go." M'gann nodded.

"Do you need any help?" Kid Flash questioned.

"No." Phantom shook his head. "Hopefully, this won't take long."

"Right." Robin nodded. "We'll be waiting."

"Be right back." Phantom fazed through the floor of the Bioshp. Now in the open air, Phantom looked over to the floating Wulf and Cujo. "Go to the next checkpoint! Plastic Man and the Flash sound like they need some help!"

"Okay!" Wulf nodded. He and Cujo then flew off in the direction of the other heroes. They would move around the circumference of the battle area, and Phantom's group would head straight to the center from here. Thus, they wouldn't see each other again until this was over. "Stay safe, friend!"

"You too!" Phantom called out. "Make sure you come back in once piece!"

"Bark!" Cujo nodded to his master as they flew off.

With that done, Phantom instantly flew down to the ground. Because of the support from Young Justice, all the creatures were being pushed back so that Colossus, Captain Atom, and Green Lantern were clear.

"Phantom!" Colossus grinned as his rival floated to the ground. "You've regained your health and powers! As expected!"

"But how…" The man with silver skin, red boots, and red gloves questioned. Captain Atom frowned. "You were almost dead before. How can you be at full strength?"

"I had some help from my friends." Phantom shrugged.

"What do you mean?"

"Hey, we can talk about this later." The African American Green Lantern stepped up. "Batman mentioned that you need to speak with Colossus?"

"Yeah, I need your help." Phantom looked at Colossus.

"What do you need?" Colossus questioned. "Are we to fight side by side and take down Freakshow?"

"I need you to reach into your left back pocket." Phantom stated.

"Huh?" Colossus blinked. "My pocket? Why?"

"Please just do it." Phantom said.

"Alright." Colossus reached back into his pocket. He gained a surprised look as he pulled out a hand mirror. "The Mirror of Memories? How did that get there?"

"Wait! I thought the mirror was destroyed!" Green Lantern frowned.

"Did the ghosts trick us?" Captain Atom inquired.

"Yep." Phantom nodded. "But we just wanted to hide it in the most secret and secure place possible."

"In the back pocket of an invincible giant…" Green Lantern eyed Colossus. "That's smart…but still…"

"We can talk about your feelings later." Phantom sighed. "Right now, I need that mirror."

"I see…Well, it all worked out…" Captain Atom stroked his chin. "It's weird how these things work out in the end…But I have to ask…How did you never notice that in your pocket, Colossus?"

"Well, I use my intangibility to get all the dirt and crime off my clothes and body." Colossus mentioned. "And I can barely feel punches with enough force to break concrete. How was I supposed to feel a tinny little mirror?"

"Like I said, the perfect hiding spot." Phantom reached out his hand. "Can I have it, please? I need to use it on Freakshow."

"Alright, Phantom." Colossus handed him the mirror. "But be warned, this mirror requires a ton of energy to use. You will exhaust yourself really fast if you use it too much."

"Don't worry." Phantom peered down at the mirror. "I have a plan."

* * *

><p>"What?!" Freakshow jumped to his feet. "How if that cursed boy still alive!? And how does he have his powers back!?"<p>

Lydia silently watched him fume.

"Damn it…" Freakshow snarled. "Why is he so damn hard to kill?!"

The Master of All Reality raised the Reality Guantlet into the air. The tower they were under began to descend into the ground. They quickly descended to the barren earth below them. The tower was completely gone, and all that remained was the throne.

"If the Gauntlet didn't take his powers away, then he might have an immunity to it." Freakshow rationalized. "He might be able to bypass the Gauntlet's attacks and defenses. And if Colossus, Captain Atom, and a Green Lantern is on his side…He might win. I need to stop them from getting here."

Freakshow pointed his hand in the direction of the group he was talking about. Energy flared around him for a brief moment as reality shifted. The image of Colossus and Phantom changed as a giant titan the size of a football stadium appeared. "There…that should help. The big hitters will stay behind to handle it, and I can kill Phantom and make sure he stays dead."

"…" Lydia walked up to Freakshow. "I don't like this. We should retreat."

"What?!" Freakshow looked at her like she was crazy. "Why would we do that?! I'm the Master of All Reality! No one can touch me!"

"Please, Frederich. My instincts are telling me that this will end badly." Lydia begged the man. "Let us leave and forget this nonsense. You can still be Master of All Reality. We'll just lock ourselves away in an alternate dimension or something. That way no one can get to us."

Freakshow ignored the logic. "Where's the fun in that?! Where's the pride in that?! What point is there to being a god if you can't take the joy of killing your enemies with your bare hands!?"

"Fredrich…" Lydia gave him a kind look. "Please…I know that you're a proud and injured man. I have seen you suffer for so long. Your parents ignored you. Your peers mocked you. Society rejected you. But…I…"

"You were always there for me…" Freakshow nodded.

"I understand you more than anyone else. I know that you are filled with anger and hatred for this world." Lydia got up close to Freakshow. She gently cupped his face. "I was and still am aware of your darkness. At first, I thought I could help, but now…This is who you are. Despite that, I still love you and want you to stay safe. Because love does not discriminate between good and bad. We complete each other. I want to stay by you, but we can't do that if we stay here. So, please, listen to me."

"Lydia…"

"Let's leave. Forget pride. Forget personal revenge. Forget Danny Phantom. We'll live together forever in a perfect home. We'll have children that we will give the love you never received from your parents." Lydia smiled brightly. "We'll be happy. You'll be happy for the rest of eternity as a husband, a father, and the Master of All Reality."

"…I…I don't…" Freakshow frowned. "I can't…If I leave, they will always mock me. They will call me a coward. I can't let that happen! I am better than them! Not the other way around!"

"Frederich, please!"

"Let go of me!"

"Please!"

"I SAID LET GO!"

Smack!

Lydia stumbled back after she was smacked across the face.

"…"

"…"

"…Lydia, I'm so sorry." Freakshow stepped forward desperately. "I didn't mean to…"

"I…" Lydia had tears in her eyes. Her cheek burned in pain. She looked at him with absolute despair. "I never thought you would ever raise a hand to me."

"Please, I am so sorry. I will never do that again." Freakshow pleaded.

"That is what all abusers say." Unashamed tears ran down her face. "But they always do it again."

"Lydia…"

"I've always known that you're an evil man. You lie, cheat, steal, beat, and kill. Yet…you've always been kind to me. You never even thought of hitting me before. Now, though…Now you strike me without even thinking about it." Lydia sobbed. "I could tolerate all the bad things you've done, but there are things I can't ignore Frederich. I refuse to stay around someone that will abuse me."

"Lydia, please, I love you." Freakshow reached out desperately.

Lydia stepped away from the man. She shook her head. "I love you too, Frederich. I love you so much. But I refuse to be a victim by your hand. This is who you are now, and you've made it extremely clear that you won't go back to who you were before."

"No! I'll change!"

"Don't lie to me. You can lie to everyone, yourself included, but don't lie to me." Lydia's tattoos began to come to life and dance around her. "You have denied every possible chance to redeem yourself. That won't change now, and I can no longer stand by you."

"Don't leave me! Please! You're the only person that I've ever truly cared about!" Freakshow was crying as well.

"Yet you hit me like I'm a dog." Lydia trembled in sorrow. Her tattoos swirled around her like a tornado. "Goodbye, Frederich. I will always love you. I hope you somehow find happiness."

"Wait!" Freakshow lunged at her, but it was too late.

She was gone.

Freakshow was all alone.

* * *

><p>"Thanks for the help!" The Flash grinned as Wulf grabbed the creatures that grabbed onto him and tore them apart.<p>

"No problem." Wulf grunted.

"Good doggie…" Plastic Man's arm extended to pat Cujo's head as the green dog mauled some of the creatures.

"We come help." Wulf noted. He took a defensive stance and extended his dimensional claws.

"All right!" The Flash gave him a thumbs up. "We could use it."

"Yeah!" Plastic Man smiled widely. "There are so many of these things that-"

Boom!

Cujo's ears shot up as he turned to the direction that he come from.

"Danny…" Wulf muttered at he looked back.

"Should we go help?" Flash questioned.

"No. Our job fight here." Wulf turned away from where the noise came from. "Trust in them. Danny always comes through."

"Woof!" Cujo agreed.

"Alrighty then…" Plastic Man nodded.

* * *

><p>"Damn!" Phantom growled as he dodged a massive foot that tried to stomp him. 'Everyone! Get away from that monster!'<p>

All of his airborne allies scattered.

"Well…" Colossus looked up at the titan. It was a wall of muscles and armored skin. The being stood so high that it could be compared to a skyscraper. "That's a sight."

"Did Freakshow send that thing!?" Captain Atom shouted out as he flew around the monster.

"He must have figured out our plan!" Green Lantern frowned deeply as he formed tried to blast out the titan's knees.

"Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" Colossus laughed. "And he came up with this! How fun! It will be a pleasure to crush this thing!"

"Colossus…" Phantom looked over to his rival.

"RAW!" The titan sent out a punch at Colossus.

"RAW!" Colossus roared and met the punch with one of his own. A massive shockwave went out when their fists made contact. Colossus used his raw power to match the titan's power and cancel the attack out. The red skinned ghost then followed up by sending another shockwave to the fist in front of him. The force caused the titan to stumble back, but he lacked any injuries.

"Go!" Colossus roared. "We will handle the titan! I wanted to fight by your side, but that does not seem possible now! I will fight and make sure this titan does not interrupt your fight with Freakshow!"

"But…" Phantom frowned.

"Only you can defeat Freakshow!" Colossus argued. "That is your duty! On your honor, save this world! Stop the villain that threatens us all!"

"…Right!" Phantom nodded. "I'll kick his ass!"

"Well said! Well said!" Colossus smiled as Phantom raced off to the Bioship.

"So…It's us versus that thing?" Green Lantern questioned. "I'm not really excited about that."

"Well…We have this guy on our side at least." Captain Atom noted. "I definitely like him more as an ally than as an enemy."

"Enough talk!" Colossus roared. "It's time to fight!"

The giant of a man flew forward the titan's head. With a roar, he sent a shockwave at the titan's head. The final battle had begun.

* * *

><p>"…We're almost there." M'gann mentioned as they flew through the air.<p>

"Yeah…" Phantom nodded. "It's almost time…"

"It's all on us, isn't it?" Robin questioned.

"It appears that way. Either we win, or the entire planet loses." Aqualad nodded.

"No pressure there." Zatanna sighed.

"How is different than everything else we've done for the past four days?" Rocket questioned.

"She's right. The stakes have been high for a long time now." Red Huntress agreed.

"A long time…I don't think four days have ever felt so long." Artemis mentioned. "God…I wonder what my mom is doing right now. She must be worried sick."

"And my parents are probably going nuts." Kid Flash added in. "What I wouldn't give to go home and get some sleep right now."

"We can sleep after this is over." Superboy grinned. "Once Freakshow's a bloody stain on the ground."

"That sounds like a great image to sleep to." Spirit chuckled.

"It does…" Phantom looked over his Team. "Let's make it a reality. Today, we're all together. Young Justice is stronger than ever before. I know we can do this."

"Technially, I'm not a part of Young Justice." Dusk mentioned.

"Me neither." Spirit stated.

"Well, you're honorary members." Red Huntress elbowed the children.

"Yeah…and maybe in a few years, you can join for real." Phantom noted. "I'd have to convince Vision, but I'm sure she'd let you when you're thirteen. Until then, you could train with us."

"That would be great, but perhaps we should focus on the future after the fight." Kaldur suggested.

"Right…" Phantom nodded. "First Freakshow, then the future. Let's do this."

* * *

><p>Freakshow was crying. Hot tears ran down his face. His heart ached. He stood alone with only a throne and the Reality Gauntlet to comfort him. Trembling, Freakshow wiped the tears from his eyes. "Well…That's fine…This is how it's meant to be…I was always meant to be alone."<p>

He heard a ship approaching. It must be the Bioship. They were coming for him. Despite his pain, Freakshow could not allow himself to lose focus right now. He had to fight.

They tried to get him off guard. Some sort of flying motor cycle thing flew down and shot energy blasts at him. One of the people on the bike, a blonde girl, shot different arrows at him. Another dark haired magician girl sent magical attacks at him.

Other flying enemies came in. The sidekick of Icon was trying to attack him. The Red Huntress was also attacking him. Even the little brat halfas were attacking him. It didn't matter, though. Freakshow created a shield around him that blocked all the attacks.

As quickly as it started, the attacks stopped. The children spread out and surrounded him. They were accompanied by the rest of Young Justice. Twelve different children stood around him. Far less than the amount of League members, ghosts, and assassins that stood before him in Amity Park.

It was obvious that they did not stand a chance, yet they stood firm. They were all prepared to fight him. A look of complete confidence shined on all of their faces. It was inspiring. It was intimidating. I was…

"…Psh…Gack…MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA!"

It was hysterical.

"Ahahahaha…" Freakshow managed to stop his laughter. "Oh, this is rich. Out of all the different people that could get here, it was children that actually made it. How funny!"

"Don't underestimate us!" Superboy jumped off the Supercycle. This way, Sphere could attack in the air as Superboy attacked from the ground.

"Or do." Kid Flash shrugged. "That will make kicking your ass easier."

"Oh, you're all so adorable…" Freakshow shook his head. "I am the Master of Reality. I am all powerful. What makes you think you have even a fraction of a chance?"

"Because we are together." Artemis pointed her bow at the ringmaster.

"Because you are alone." M'gann's eyes glowed.

"That means nothing!" Freakshow snapped. Anger flared at the mention of his solitude and the loss of Lydia. "Lydia may not be my side right now, but I still have more power in my pinky finger than you have in all of your bodies combined! So tell me, what else do you have!?"

"We have a plan." Robin took a self-defense stance.

"We have a reason not to lose." Aqualad readied his Water Bearers.

"Psh! A reason not to lose?! A plan!? So does everyone else in the world! They plan not to lose because they don't want to die!" Freakshow exclaimed. "All you of you are just pathetic children that are too afraid to even move!"

"Weird…" Dusk eyed the man as he formed his Burst Gauntlets. "You're the one that seems afraid. You're trembling."

It was true. Freakshow was shaking uncontrollably.

"From rage, fool!"

"Really?" Spirit questioned. "Because you have a sad look, not a look of anger."

"Shut up!" Freakshow snapped. "I'll destroy all of you!"

"I doubt that." Red Huntress pointed her gun at him. "Someone like you can't beat us."

"We've fought against worse odds." Rocket mentioned. "And that was only an hour ago."

"You…" Freakshow was confused. Why were they so calm? Did they not realize the threat he posed? He could kill all of them easily. He showed that with Phantom just one day ago.

…With Phantom…

Freakshow looked at Phantom. That was it. Phantom was their leader. His confidence was what was inspiring them. If he was taken down, their moral would fall. Raising a hand to the halfa, Freakshow grinned. "Fine then. I'll just have to kill you all over again."

"No, Freakshow. You won't." Phantom pulled out the Mirror of Memories.

"What?! When did you get that?!"

"You can't beat us. We stand together. We are strong. We are Young Justice." Phantom glared at him. "And nothing you could ever do will stop us."

All at once, they charged forward with battle cries. They began the biggest fight of their lives, and they were determined to win.

* * *

><p>"Get back!" Freakshow held up his Gauntlet covered arm. Like during Freakshow's previous fight, a massive ball of energy instantly appeared. Thousands of blasts of energy were sent across the plain towards the twelve young fighters.<p>

"No!" Phantom held out the Mirror of Memoirs. Energy poured into it, and a figure appeared from it. It was Scribe. The writer formed a keyboard, and instantly started typing, 'Freakshow's attack disappeared.'

The blasts of energy faded instantly. Phantom would be concerned about using a power similar to the Reality Gauntlet, but with all the bad karma Freakshow built up, the halfa was certain this small bit would be fine.

"What?" Freakshow's eyes widened. While attacking, he could not defend himself. That was one of the few weaknesses of the Reality Gauntlet. "NO!"

Kid Flash rushed in and punched Freakshow across the face. The force sent the ringmaster flying. He rocketed towards Red Huntress. The ghost hunter already raised a gun and was pointing it at the Master of All Reality.

Quikly shifting, Freakshow changed his plane of existence so that no one could attack him. Of course, he could not attack anyone without shifting back, but that was fine. It was better than being shot.

After passing through the attack and Red Huntress, Freakshow twisted and landed to his feet. He would have changed back instantly if it wasn't for the boulder that was thrown at his head. The Martian girl had reacted to him and threw the boulder so he couldn't attack Red Huntress from behind.

Grinning, Freakshow looked at M'gann. He knew what the weakness of Martians were. They couldn't handle fire. Thus, Freakshow turned himself into a living flame. Fire spread out throughout the area. Most of the fighters managed to dodge the flames. Miss Martian and Aqualad, however, froze at the sight of the flames. They would have been consumed by the fire, but the flames were stopped by blasts of freezing energy.

Using the Mirror of Memories, Phantom created a shade of a blond man wearing striped pajamas. It was his old friend Klemper. Combining his own ice powers with the ice powers of Klemper, Phantom managed to not only protect his teammates but also attack Freakshow at the same time.

"AAAAAHHHHHH!" Freakshow cried in pain as the ice struck him. He was at the disadvantage to ice users like this. The ringmaster quickly changed back to normal.

Just as he did this, Spirit rushed out of the freezing blue energy. Most people would have been afraid to move through that torrent of energy, but the female halfa was not afraid. She trusted Danny unconditionally. Using all of her power, Spirit kicked the now physical Freakshow away. Grunting in pain, the Master of All Reality was sent flying away. He soared towards a readied Superboy.

The Kryptonian clone brought his fists together and sent them at the ringmaster. Freakshow was batted away like a fly. Once again, he was sent flying. This time, however, he flew towards Phantom.

"You! Why won't you just die!?" Freakshow growled. The only reason this fight wasn't over yet was because of Phantom and the Mirror of Memories. If the Mirror of Memories was gone, he would win instantly. He had to get that mirror.

Extending a hand, Freakshow shot a massive ball of energy at the halfa teen. This would definitely hit Phantom because he was prepping to use the Mirror of Memories again. That meant that the fight would soon be over.

…Or at least it would be if Dusk didn't jump in the way, form a massive shield, and block the attack.

"Damn you!" Freakshow howled. He continued to fly towards Dusk. The Master of All Reality then batted the boy away with his Reality Gauntlet covered arm. Luckily, Dusk managed to block the majority of the damage with the shield. The force of the attack managed to shatter the shield and sent the boy tumbling back.

Turning his attention to Phantom, Freakshow was shocked to see Solomon Grundy charging at him. The massive brute brought both his fists down to crush the smaller being. Using the Gauntlet to upgrade his strength, Freakshow caught the massive arms and held them back.

For a brief second, there was a power struggle between the brute and the ringmaster. This was quickly interrupted when Rocket swooped in and nailed Freakshow in the ribs with a blast of kinetic energy. The force of the blast sent Freakshow rolling away.

"DAMN IT!" Freakshow didn't understand. How was he losing? "I WILL KILL ALL OF YOU!"

Placing the Gauntlet on the ground, Freakshow began to reshape the ground. The earth trembled below them. Spikes and columns of earth shot up. Boulders flew through the air. The ground seemed to be about ready to open up and consume them.

"Netfos eht dnuorg ekil a wollamhsram!" Zatanna yelled out.

Her magic spread out and turned the ground into mush. This completely neutralized the attack and made sure that no one was injured from the earth. Unfortunately, this kept the people on the ground from being able to move.

It was then that the Supercycle decided to act. The New Genesis Sphere flew to the man and began to open fire. Freakshow formed a square shield above him to stop the attacks. This gave Zatanna the opportunity to harden the earth again.

After that was done, Wolf quickly reacted. The silver haired canine lunged at Freakshow and bit the man's leg. The ringmaster cried out in pain and dropped the shield. That didn't matter a lot, though, because the Supercycle stopped its energy blasts so it wouldn't hit the other pet of Young Justice.

Just as Freakshow was about to attack the canine, Artemis shot the man with a trap arrow. As soon as it hit, wire burs out and wrapped around the ringmaster. Wolf jumped away as Robin and Aqualad rushed forward. Robin tripped Freakshow as the Atlantian hit the Master of All Reality down with the Water Bearers.

"**GARAH!**" Freakshow yelled in absolute fury. Energy flared around him, destroyed his restraints, and pushed his assailants away from him. He shot up into the air like a missile. The man flew high above them to the point that he looked like a dot in the sky. "**DIE!**"

Pointing his arms down, Freakshow gathered a massive amount of red energy. After a few seconds, Freakshow fired the energy. The blast of red was so large that it could cover a city. If it hit, then all of Young Justice would killed instantly.

Luckily, it didn't.

"OW!" Freakshow cried out in surprise as several missiles hit his back. This painful distraction caused the energy he gathered to disappear.

"Got him…" Phantom fell to one knee. The Mirror of Memories used massive amounts of energy, and he had already used it a lot. This last time, Phantom used the mirror to create a memory of one of his oldest rivals and enemies. The metal exoskeleton ghost wore black clothing, was covered in weapons, and had a green mohawk. Skulker, the Ghost Zone's Greatest Hunter, used heat seeking missiles to stop Freakshow from attacking him. After that was done, Phantom dismissed the shade to conserve energy.

"He's coming back down!" Superboy used his incredible vision to look up at the man. "He doesn't seem to be using an energy attack!"

"My Premonition says that he's going to hit the ground and cause a shockwave!" Spirit shouted.

"Good…" Phantom stood and reached into his pocket to pull out a Fenton Thermos. "Time for the real plan. Everyone, spread out! Get far enough away so you won't be hurt by the shockwave! It's time to take him down!"

Everyone followed his instructions.

"**RRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWW!**" Freakshow shouted as he slammed into the ground. A massive shockwave spread out and sent everyone and everything flying. This include Freakshow's near unbreakable throne.

A large cloud of dust spread through the area, but Freakshow still knew where Phantom was because the ringmaster tracked him. Rushing through the smoke, Freakshow quickly found Phantom. The halfa was getting up and had an uncapped Fenton Thermos in his hands.

Freakshow reached out with his non-Gauntlet covered hand and grabbed Phantom by the throat. "DID YOU REALLY THINK YOU COULD WIN!? I AM THE MASTER OF ALL REALITY! I MADE MYSELF COMPLETELY INVULNERABLE TO DAMAGE! I AM IMMORTAL! I AM ALL POWERFUL! NOTHING CAN HURT ME! NONE OF YOUR ATTACKS DID ANYTHING BUT ANNOY ME! GOOD JOB, YOU MORON! YOU ANGERED YOUR ALMIGHTY GOD, AND NOW YOU'RE GOING TO DIE!"

Phantom lifted the Fenton Thermos up.

Freakshow instantly took it from Phantom and crushed it. "FOOL! I'M NOT A GHOST! THAT WOULDN'T WORK ON ME!"

"It wasn't…supposed to…" Phantom desperately clawed at Freakshow's arm.

"WHAT?!"

"I…I'm not good at fighting…That's why I couldn't help Amity Park fight off the Light…But I couldn't hide like a coward through this…" Phantom's form began to change. "I knew I had to stop you…so I found them…and Phantom asked me to help…so I did…"

"YOU'RE NOT PHANTOM!"

"I'm not…" Amorpho shook his head. "But he is."

"Thank you, Amorpho." The real Phantom was beside Freakshow. The halfa was now grabbing on tightly to the Reality Gauntlet. He switched places with Amorpho in the thermos really quickly to avoid detection. When Freakshow destroyed the thermos, Phantom was released right beside the man. He would have used duplicates for this plan, but he knew that he wouldn't have enough energy after using the mirror. "You were a big help."

"NO!" Freakshow's eyes widened when he saw Phantom's hands on the Guantlet. That was the single greatest flaw the Reality Gauntlet. Whoever touched the Reality Gauntlet long enough to think of a command could shape reality to his or her whim.

"Time to see how powerful the Reality Gauntlet really is."

Energy burst all around them in a massive explosion.

* * *

><p>Freakshow looked around in a panic. After the energy faded, he expected something drastically different. Nothing was different, though. The land was still barren. Young Justice and Amorpho was still rattled. Phantom was kneeling on the ground. The halfa had failed.<p>

Freakshow decided to rub his nose in it. "Muhahahahahahahaha! You failed! Everything is the same!"

"Is it?" Phantom stood.

"Yeah, it is!" Freakshow laughed. He summoned his throne to his side. Once he killed Phantom and took the Mirror of Memories, he would kill Young Justice from the comfort of his own throne. "I've won! Your best strategy failed."

Skipping over to the ghost, Freakshow grinned down at the slightly shorter man. "I can't believe I let you get me so rattled! Muhahahahha! You were never a real threat to begin with! You're so pathetic! Tell me, what did you try to change?!"

"It's not what I tried to change…It was what I remembered. The power that I remembered." Phantom stated simply.

"What? I can't hear you~" Freakshow sang out. He reached his non-Gauntlet covered hand forward to grab the ghost by the throat. This time, for real.

Phantom grabbed Freakshow's hand out of the air.

"What? What are you-OOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW!" Freakshow cried in pain. It felt like his hand was being crushed into tiny pieces.

Phantom raised his head to reveal his pure white eyes. White and golden energy blasted out around him. He had attained ascended ectoplasm once again, and he was about to bring down the wrath of a real god down upon Freakshow.

"**I once heard you say that Nekron was immune to the effects of the Reality Gauntlet. I figured that it had to do with his level of power and his state of existence. He was created to reverse the good deeds done by Savage. So, reality shaped a being that was above the Gauntlet's power, a being that existed in a higher plain of existence, because no matter what you do, a two dimensional being can never touch a third dimensional being.**" Phantom spoke. "**And I know for a fact that this power is a plane above the Reality Gauntlet. I can nullify the Gauntlet's effects with this power. To me, you're no longer invulnerable.**"

"But…How can the Gauntlet create a power that is stronger than itself?" Freakshow questioned.

"**It didn't create this power. I have the potential to reach this level of power. I only used the Reality Gauntlet to jumpstart my power.**" Phantom explained.

"No…" Freakshow whispered.

"**Yes. Now, it's your turn to suffer!**" Phantom sent a punch at Freakshow's head. The force of the blow knocked out several of the ringmaster's teeth and sent him flying into the throne. The chair was instantly destroyed as Freakshow crashed through it. The ringmaster skipped several times like a stone over water and then crashed into the ground forming a crater.

Turning to Amorpho, Phantom spoke again. "**Amorpho, go hide in the Bioship. You have done your part. Thank you.**"

"N-no problem. I-I'll just be going!" Amorpho turned and flew away to avoid being caught in the battle to come.

"Danny!" Spirit cried as Young Justice finally began to regroup.

"Woah!" Kid Flash's jaw dropped. "Bro, that's awesome."

"Is that the ascended ectoplasm? It's…impressive." Zatanna began to sweat from the force of the energy.

"**Thank you**."

"I can see why you think this power can help us." Aqualad noted.

"How strong are you?" Superboy questioned.

"**Strong enough to beat Freakshow.**" Phantom turned back to the area where Freakshow went.

"That is an awesome answer." Robin laughed. "Now on to part two, right?"

"**Yes, using the ascended ectoplasm, I'll-**"

"**RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!**"

Everyone looked as a massive ghost appeared in front of them. It appeared that in a last ditch effort to fight against the ascended ectoplasm, Freakshow turned himself into a ghost. The giant green ghost lacked any legs but had an extra demonic face on his chest. He had four arms with sharp claws, one of which had the Reality Gauntlet on it. His face had a thick chin, a long nose, pointed ears, and a third eye on his forehead. The being also wore a red cape, black tophat, and two large batwings on his back.

"So…I think he turned himself into a ghost…" Artemis mentioned.

"Noooooo. Really? I hadn't noticed." Rocket snorted.

"Mentor, does this change the plan?" Dusk questioned.

"**No…The plan is still the same.**" Phantom pulled out the Mirror of Memories.

"Will that really work?" M'gann questioned.

"**Let's find out.**" Phantom raised the Mirror of Memories up into the air. A massive white light shined out of the mirror and covered the area. When the light faded, the entire area was covered in thousands of different ghosts. They were all ghosts that Phantom remembered even though most people forgot about them.

Because of his absorption of foreign energy during the GIW War and the Ghoul Project, Phantom experienced the memory and the thoughts of the ghosts that died. He knew everyone one of their names and experiences. Thus, he could create a shade of all of them through the use of the Mirror of Memories. Normally, this would be impossible because of the raw amount of energy needed to create a single shade. With the power of the ascended ectoplasm, however, Phantom could create all the shades he could want.

"Woah!" Red Huntress cried out in surprise. "That's a lot of ghosts!"

"**Don't worry about their safety. None of them are really alive in any shape or form. Let them protect you from Freakshow, and I know we can defeat him.**"

He was met with roars of approval.

"**Now, let's finish this.**"

* * *

><p>(Play: Diamond Eyes by Shinedown)<p>

Freakshow roared in madness. He swung his massive arms around at the members of Young Justice. The shades quickly rushed to protect the members of Young Justice and stopped the attacks from getting close. The sacrificial shades all disappeared in flashes of green energy.

Kid Flash ran under the giant ghost. Using a secret function in his gloves that allowed him to strike ghosts, the speedster grabbed the ghost's tail. Kid then began to spin rapidly and caused the tail to spin with him.

The Master of All Reality tried to reach down and grab the speedster and stop the yellow blur's attack. He was stopped, however, when Red Huntress and Rocket flew around his head and began to shoot blasts of energy into his eyes. This caused the massive ghost to roar in pain and swipe at the young heroes. Luckily, the shade ghosts saved them once again.

It was then that Kid Flash let go of Freakshow. His tail now released, the ringmaster ghost began to spin rapidly. After he stopped, the ghost stumbled in confusion and dizziness. It didn't help him that hundreds of the shade ghost lunged at the monster and latched onto him. They began to bite and scratch at him.

Knowing that he was currently unable to move, Robin and Artemis went into action. From the sides, they fired and threw several different kinds of shuriken and arrows. The weapons then hit the ghost in a flare of explosions, wires, and different foam traps. This hindered Freakshow's movements so that he couldn't escape.

Everyone quickly took advantage. All the flying members of Young Justice quickly opened fire on the massive ghost. Rocket and Red Huntress continued to shoot blasts of energy at Freakshow, just as Superboy in the Supercycle did. M'gann used her telekinesis to fling boulders at the ghost, and Zatanna, who was riding in the Supercycle, used her spells to slow the ghost down.

"He seems to have become mindless in this form." Dusk mentioned.

"Yeah, he hasn't used the Gauntlet once." Spirit mentioned as the ghosts came up with a plan.

"**You still need to be careful. His power and endurance are incredible.**" Phantom stated.

"Can't you take him?" Dusk questioned.

"**Yes****. But it could take time, and by then, he'll regain his mind and use his ghost powers and Reality Gauntlet to push me back.**" Phantom noted.

"Alright. What do we do?" Spirit questioned.

"**Help them distract him. I'll get in close and begin to bombard him. If I work fast enough, I can knock him out before he regains his mind.**" Phantom ordered.

"Understood."

"Got it!"

All three ghosts rushed in. Dusk and Spirit began to assist the members of Young Justice. Phantom went to Freakshow's midsection and began to attack.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Each blow twisted the skin and caused massive waves of pain to spread throughout Freakshow's body. All the hits were accompanied by blasts of white and gold energy. The attacks burned and bruised Freakshow's midsection terribly.

"**GAAAHHHH!**" Roaring in pain, Freakshow broke free from his restraints. He sent out a burst of energy from out of every pore in his body. The force blasted all the members of Young Justice and the shade ghosts away. Even Phantom was pushed back a tiny bit, but it wasn't a lot.

Seeing an opening, the berserk Freakshow gathered energy in his mouth and prepared to roar it out.

"Piz sih htuom tuhs!" Zatanna yelled out.

A zipper appeared on Freakshow's mouth. It quickly zipped closed. This kept the energy in his mouth and caused it to explode in his body. Smoke rose out of the ghost's nose and ears.

Despite the pain, the ghost continued to try to attack. Spheres of energy appeared around him. They all fired at Phantom. Each one was stopped, however, by Rocket, Red Huntress, and the shade ghosts's counter attacks.

Seeing that ringmaster was about to attack again, M'gann user her powers to lift Aqualad to the back of Freakshow's neck. The Atlantian placed his hands on the back of the ghost's neck and began to channel magical electricity through his body. Freakshow would have shouted in pain, but his mouth was still zipped shut.

The ghost tried to reach for Kaldur. His hand clawed at his neck. Aqualad quickly rolled out of the way and began to slash at the ghost's neck. The magical Water Bearers cut through the ghost's skin with ease.

Phantom quickly went back to continue his assault. The halfa sent a barrage of punches at Freakshow's midsection again. The torso of the ghost was quickly beaten, bloody, and burnt.

In absolute anger, Freakshow gathered energy into his four hands and three eyes. He aimed to blast Phantom with seven waves of incredibly powerful ectoplasm. This would have worked, if Phantom didn't have backup.

Dusk formed a katana and stabbed it into the lower left arm of Freakshow and began to tear through the skin. Spirit did something similar with the upper left arm. M'gann floated up a sharp boulder and stabbed it into the lower right arm. Aquald finished off the upper right arm with his Water bearers. All four of Freakshow's arms fell to his side uselessly.

While this was happening, the Supercycle, Rocket, and Red Huntress flew up to the massive ghost's face. They each shot at Freakshow's eyes. All the blasts hit and tore through the eyeballs of the ghost. He was effectively blinded.

All the young heroes in the air moved away to give Phantom some space. The only exception was Kid Flash. He grabbed Freakshow's tail and began to run behind Freakshow. The force of the pull caused the ghost to lean over. Seeing that his work was done, Kid Flash let go of the tail and continued to retreat.

Now having the ringmaster's head completely exposed, Phantom decided to go for the knock out chin punch. Grabbing the Mirror of Memories from his pocket with his left hand, Phantom began to reabsorb the ectoplasm of the shades. Energy poured into his body once more. He then gathered the ectoplasm into his right hand. In that instant, Phantom's arm no longer seemed to be physical. As he gathered all of his energy to it, the arm began to shine so brightly that it appeared to be pure white and gold energy. It was like a blazing sun contained within a single arm. It was a contained supernova ready to explode at any moment.

Sending his fist forward, Phantom hit Freakshow with the strongest attack he ever threw. The fist made contact, and a massive explosion spread out. The blast spread out so much that it covered the entire area. It even covered all the young heroes. The energy seemed to recognize them, however, and refused to harm them at all.

When the explosion ended, all that was left was a field of dust and a defeated broken Freakshow.

They had won.

* * *

><p>"<em>Guh…" Freakshow opened his eyes painfully. He was in his regular body, so someone must have changed him back. Most of his injures were still here, though. Only his eyes seemed to heal from the transformation. "Phantom?"<em>

_The halfa looked down at the downed ringmaster. Phantom had yet to release the ascended ectoplasm, so he was still coved in the white and gold aura. That wasn't what frightened Freakshow the most, though. The thing that scared the ringmaster was the Mirror of Memories in the halfa's left hand and the Reality Gauntlet that covered the halfa's right arm. __From his perspective, Freakshow thought that Danny Phantom looked exactly like a god, and the halfa had the power to back it up._

"_**I'm surprised that you woke up so soon.**__" Phantom noted. "__**You're pretty badly injured.**__"_

"_Thanks to you…" Freakshow sighed. "I suppose your power surpasses mine."_

"_**It does, but not in the way you think.**__" Phantom noted._

"_What do you mean?" Freakshow questioned._

"_**The power you think that beat you was the ascended ectoplasm, but you're wrong.**__" Phantom peered down at the man. "__**Even with all the power in the world, it means nothing if you don't have anyone to support you. That was the reason I won. I had people to protect me and save me from my own self destruction. If I didn't have them, I'd be dead right now**__."_

"_That…sounds stupid…" Freakshow frowned. "I was the Master of All Reality. I controlled everything. I was a god. Why would I need help? Why would I need other people to keep me company?"_

"_**Not knowing the answer to that is exactly the reason you lost today.**__" Phantom shook his head in pity._

"_Really? It's not because of the Mirror of Memories and the ascended ectoplasm, because that's what it feels like."_

"_**You're pathetic.**__" Phantom sighed. "__**I won't try to explain it to you. You're too far gone to understand.**__"_

"_Maybe I am." Freakshow grunted. "But maybe I also like it."_

_Phantom could only look down at him in disgust._

"_So…Are you going to finish me off, or let me succumb to my wounds?" Freakshow questioned. "I feel that you've undone every power and ability I set for myself with the Gauntlet. I'm very mortal now, so are you going to finish me off quickly or slowly?"_

"_**Neither.**__" Phantom pointed the Reality Gauntlet at the man. "__**I'm going to heal you, and you're going to spend the rest of your life in prison.**__"_

"_Tsk! I'll just escape and come after you for revenge! You're a fool for sparing me!" Freakshow sneered._

"_**Maybe I am, but it's better to be a fool than a pathetic loser.**__" Phantom then began to focus on healing Freakshow._

…

…

…

_It wasn't working._

"_**Huh…**__" Phantom looked at the Gauntlet. "__**It didn't work.**__"_

"_What do you mean it didn't work!? Are you so stupid that-"_

"_Danny."__ A soft voice spoke out. Despite the light tone, the voice still drowned out Freakshow's rant easily with the authority and purity that it held._

_Phantom turned to the side to see Death walking over to Freakshow._

"_Your mercy is astounding, but it won't work here."__ Death mentioned. __"Like you said, he's too far gone. He has rejected every chance of redemption available. And he was given a lot of chances."_

"_**But…Does he really deserve to die? Doesn't everyone deserve a second chance?**__"_

"_Everyone deserves a second chance, but no one deserves as many chances as he's had."__ Death smiled at Danny. __"He has long since ran out of chances. His punishment for his sins has already been decided. There's nothing either of us can do.__"_

"_**But…He's no worse than Dark Dan was…**__"_

"_Danny, please. I know that you care, but…It's already too late. He's not you. He did not take his redemption."__ Death stated soothingly. __"Please, remember, that Death is not a punishment. It is a natural thing that is needed to keep the universe in order. I do not discriminate. Everyone eventually dies, and then they must answer to the consequences of their actions."_

"_**I know…But I can't help but think that I could have ended up the same way he did.**__"_

"_You could have. The only difference is that when you had the chance to change and to forgive, you took it. He didn't, and now, he'll pay for it."_

"_**I see…Goodbye, Freakshow.**__" Phantom turned to Freakshow._

"_Who the hell have you been talking to!? You're crazier than I am, you freak! In fact…" Freakshow paused when Death touched his arm. "What? Who are you?"_

"_I am Death."__ Death stated neutrally. She did not show compassion. She did not show anger. She was completely neutral. "__Frederich Isak Showenhower, it is time to move on. The afterlife awaits."_

"_What?! No!" Freakshow's form began to fade. Greens smoke rose from his body. "I refuse! I'll become a ghost!"_

"_You already did a few moments ago. You changed yourself to be a ghost to fight Danny. Once you become a ghost, you can never go back to being a normal human completely. Even the Reality Gauntlet cannot change that.__" Death paused. "__But it can still do many things. Danny, please come find me after this. There's a meeting that you should attend. Now come, Frederich, it's time to go."_

"_No! I refuse! Let go of me! No! Have mercy! Lydia, please save me! I'm not ready to die! Lydia! LYDIA! LYDI-"_

_"One who does not have the ability to forgive has no right to beg for mercy."__ Death shook her head in pity as she destroyed his body._

_It was over. The ringmaster's Reality Gauntlet corrupted body could not be allowed to exist in this world, so Death would take everything. His body dissolved into smoke and energy and disappeared with Death. And with that, Freakshow was gone and off to whatever was in store for him in the afterlife. __Phantom didn't think it was going to be anything good, though._

* * *

><p>"Danny!" Kid Flash was the first to arrive at the scene. "Bro, what happened? Where did Freakshow go?"<p>

"…**Death took him.**" Phantom answered.

"You mean…we killed him?" M'gann looked horrified.

"**No. It was his time, and she came to take him to where he belongs.**" Phantom noted.

"What…does that mean?" Kaldur questioned.

"Death came, huh…" Dusk frowned. "How was she?"

"**She looked well.**" Phantom snorted.

"Really? That's good I guess. I'm still surprised that she looks like a goth girl instead of a skeleton." Spirit shrugged.

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Superboy questioned.

"**It's complicated. I'll try to explain some of it later.**" Phantom mentioned.

"Alright…but what are you going to do with the Gauntlet?" Robin questioned.

Phantom stared at the Gauntlet that covered his arm.

"You could change anything you want." Red Huntress stepped forward. "Do you still want to use it to speak with your family?"

"…**No, I've already accepted that they're gone. I'll use this to turn everything back to normal.**"

"Define normal?" Rocket questioned.

"…**Exactly how things were before Freakshow showed up.**" Phantom raised his arm. "**And…I do think that there's a meeting I need to attend.**"

"What does that-"

Reality shifted once more as the world around them was covered in a bright light and things began to change once more.

* * *

><p>Phantom stood in a long hall. Along the wall were different pictures. There were seven of them. Each picture was about a single person. The halfa recognized only one of the people, but the other people looked familiar. This was because those seven people were all in this room.<p>

At the center of the room was a circular table. There were eight chairs, and seven of them were filled. Each chair held an unusual person in them. They were all different in appearance, but they all seemed close. And they were all looking at him.

"Danny…Welcome." Death smiled gently at the teen.

"So…" Danny looked across the table. "You guys are the Endless. Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Despair, Desire and Delirium."

"We are, brat." A large muscular man grunted. "Welcome to our little meeting room. You should feel honored. No normal mortal gets to come here."

"Don't be rude, Destruction." An elderly robed blind man spoke up.

"Whatever, Destiny…" Destruction groaned. "This is such a pain in the ass. Why do I have to be here?"

"We need him here, yeah? He's the one connected to us through the hands of hope and willpower. Thus, he is our avatar, and like it or not, we do have to deal with the problems of the universe. Or have you forgotten that in your uber laziness, Destruction." A girl with the craziest hair Danny had ever seen spoke up.

Destruction just grunted.

"Please, Daniel, sit." Destiny gestured to the one remaining chair. "We have a lot to discuss."

* * *

><p><strong>And cue the Endless. For the most part, I want to keep them all in character while avoiding any Sandman spoilers (if you haven't read the comics, then go do it. They are awesome). There might be a few small tweeks, though.<strong>

**I just had to do my final edit after watching the Walking Dead. I am so worked up. Season 5 Episode 14 "Send" was epic. I got mad to the point that I had to move around to calm down. If you watched it, you know why. Yes..."This is the beginning."**

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	34. Forgiven

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"When you forgive, you in no way change the past - but you sure do change the future."

Bernard Meltzer

* * *

><p>Chapter 34: "Forgiven"<p>

(The musical theme for this chapter is: Sunrise by Our Last Night)

(Monday-January 3, 2011)

Phantom sat down at the large table. He looked around at the other seven people. "So…You know me…And I kind of know you, but…who's who exactly?"

"Well, I'm Death, but you already know that." Death gave him a calming smile.

"I am Destiny." The blind old man wearing a dark robe stated. He had a large book chained to his hands.

"Destruction, but you can call me awesome." The red headed muscular man grunted. His large grey trenchcoat was open to reveal his muscular frame

"Dream…but some people call me Morpheus…" A pale, tired looking man with dark ring rings around his eyes and hair that could only be described as what a person would have after just waking up sighed.

"Oh, don't sound so mopey, Dream." The palest woman Danny had ever seen spoke. She had her black hair pulled up into a pony tail. Her red lips and eyes basically jumped out at him in contrast to her flawless pale skin. Her beauty and body were something that men fantasized about and woman envied. "I'm Desire, hun. Pleasure to finally meet you."

"Don't you do anything to him, Desire." A rather chubby woman with a thick face and dark eyes glared at the other woman. Oddly enough, this woman had red tattoos running all along her body. "Your cruelty knows no bounds."

"And how does my cruelty compares to yours, Despair? How many tragedies are you behind watching in glee? If I remember, when a certain planet blew up, you were smiling. The ultimate despair, right?" The seductress rolled her eyes.

"Oh! Are we talking about personal things in front of him now?!" A strange looking girl with wild hair filled with the colors of the rainbow giggled. Her make up kind of made her look like a bit of clown. "Can I share then? Because I know for a fact that Death has some very strange books under her bed~"

"Delirium!" Death's face flushed. "Stop that!"

"Okay…" Phantom blinked at this interaction. "You're definitely siblings. I can see that much."

"Yeah…We bicker a lot…" Dream gave him a tired look. "It's exhausting...Of course, you know all about exhaustion with the enemies you face. Thanks, by the way, for sticking it to Nocturne. God of sleep my ass…"

"Oh! Are we talking about dreams now?" Desire grinned. "Because I know plenty of Phantom's fantasies that are quite interesting."

"W-what?!" Phantom stuttered.

"Oh, please don't! I don't want to hear what goes through the mind of a teenager!" Destruction groaned. "It would be too much trouble."

"You think everything is too much trouble, Destruction." Destiny mentioned. "That's the reason your element has been so out of control for so long. If you did your job, a lot of tragedies could have been avoided."

"Shut it! You're damn right I don't do my job! No one appreciates it!" Destruction was outraged. "They all blame me for everything! Well guess what, morons! In order for creation to exist, destruction must exist as well! Why do I have to get a bad rep for only one side of my element?!"

"One side?" Phantom questioned.

"The Endless are the elements our names represent." Death explained. "But we're also the opposite, for example, while I take people to the afterlife, I also am there when they are born. I visit people at the beginning and at the end of their lives."

"Yeah! And I control creation just as much as destruction!" Destruction exclaimed. "Yet no one appreciates that! So what if I'm taking a break! You would too if you were cursed and spit at for a millennium!"

"We've all had our critics, Destruction." Dream mentioned. "Every day, people question whether to chase their dreams or live for reality. It's so tiring…"

"At least none of you have rhyming elements…" Desire pouted. "Desire and disgust…Rhymes are so cliché!"

"Don't be so dramatic." Despair frowned. "And you all complain too much. I've heard dying people whine less than you, and they were crying out in anguish."

"I see…" Phantom nodded slowly. "That explains a lot. The seven different elements of the universe that are unavoidable. Destiny and free will. Death and life. Destruction and creation. Dream and reality. Desire and disgust. Despair and hope. Delirium and…sanity?"

"I'm not crazy!" Delirium cried out. "I used to be Delight! But that…that changed a long time ago…"

Phantom watched as the strange woman squirmed under the attention of their gazes. Seeing her discomfort of the situation, Phantom decided to change the subject. "Right…So let's talk about the reason you wanted me to come here in the first place."

"Yes…" Destiny nodded. "That would be for the best. You see, Daniel, unlike other mortals, you have a connection to us in your very core. One that was there since the day you were born."

"I still don't get how that's possible." Despair mentioned. "A new born child has no ability to even communicate correctly, let alone deny the most powerful force in the universe. Death is absolute. Even the so called gods will die one day. This universe may very well die in the future, yet a small babe was able to deny her?"

"Oh! Oh!" Delirium waved her hands around. "That's easy! For who else could deny Death but a person who embodies both her elements at once? One that just came into life, but is soon about to die. In fact, he embodied each of our elements at once! Destined to die, but chose to live! Just obtained life, but about to die. Despair of having a pathetically weak body, but hope that your family will make things better! It's so simple! Embodiment of everything this universe has to offer all at once! Add in the raw selflessness and willpower, and you've got the ultimate champion!"

"…I'm not sure I follow you." Phantom mentioned.

"No one does…" Dream yawned. "But make no mistake, Delirium has the most unique mindset in existence. Her lack of a set pattern of thought makes her see and understand more than any of us. She might even be the wisest person in the universe."

"Crackers!"

"…Or she's just nuts…" Destruction grunted. "Coo coo for Coco Puffs…"

"Hey! I invented that! Don't use it against me!" Delirium exclaimed. "It took hundreds of years before I finally got a human to use the idea, so don't ruin it for me!"

"Moving on…" Destiny sighed at his young siblings' antics. "It is because of this connection to Death…connection to us, that we have an invested interest in you. Because you are literally our avatar to the physical world."

"Wait…aren't you guys all powerful?"

"Even we have rules, hun." Desire shrugged. "If we didn't limit what we could do, one of us could go out of control. Those without limits and restrictions will think that they're a god and fall into darkness."

"It is in that reason that the League is very wise." Death smiled. "Their limits allow them to serve the world without appearing as gods. Some people may question their rules on no killing, but they are needed, and it is far easier to kill than people think. And once you start killing, it only gets easier. And if you eventually can kill to the point that you no longer feel anything, then you no longer value human life. And no one can be a champion of life and justice if they don't value life."

"Yeah…You're right." Phantom nodded.

"It is our rules that prevents us from directly interfering with many events in the physical plain. Because if we abuse our power beyond making sure our natures are upheld, ripple effects will happen." Destiny began explaining again. "Even with events such as the Reality Gauntlet or with the Light's distortion of what should be, we can't interfere. That is the reason we need guardians in the physical world to keep the peace. Normally, people such as the Justice League would be enough…but you complicate things."

"I complicate things? Isn't it that everything around me is complicated instead?" Phantom questioned.

"It's an unusual situation…" Death sighed. "It was written long ago that, in this universe, you would die the day that you were born, but that didn't happen."

"It caused ripples and changes." Despair added. "Many good, but there is the consideration of your alternate future self."

"From what I understand…The war you guys fought in was going to happen, but it was supposed to happen differently. The ghosts were supposed to be wiped out." Destruction crossed his arms in thought.

"Then many different things would have happened…Nyx would have been kidnapped and turned into a monster…The Ghoul Project would have then been a total failure, and Joel would have died…And the backlash of war would have spread to Amity Park and killed everyone there." Dream frowned as he said this.

"Not to mention the consequences with Freakshow still escaping and what the Black Lantern Rings will do…" Desire chuckled.

"Desire! Spoilers!" Death glared.

"Right…You don't like to hear about the future…"

"And neither should Daniel." Death glared at Desire. "Remember that having special knowledge of future events can change the outcome. Many times for the worse."

"Yeah, yeah…" Desire rolled her eyes.

"…So I changed things?" Phantom questioned.

"You did. That's why you are the Fate Changer." Destiny nodded.

"Oh, that? The prophecy thing…" Phantom didn't look pleased. "Don't tell me that BS is real."

"It's not real." Destiny shook his head.

Phantom blink. "Really? Because I've heard a couple of people mention it. In fact, Clockwork talked about it."

"Look at this, Daniel." Destiny raised a large book that was sitting on his lap. "This book is a written record about what was, is, and will happen. Every word in it is true…Except that it changed when you resisted Death. Since then, there has been a point in history where no one knows what is going to happen. That point is now."

"I don't understand." Phantom mentioned. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"You changed things…so I decided to act. Your influence can help people change for the better. You can change things for the better without backlash like the Reality Gauntlet. I knew that I had alert a few key individuals so they can change the universe and what was going to happen."

"What was going to happen?"

"Anti-Life."

"Everyone would die?" Phantom's jaw dropped.

"No…they would be neither alive nor dead." Destiny stated. "But with the help of the people that needed to know about you and what you can do, it can be prevented. That was why I created a fake prophecy and asked Clockwork for help."

"You know Clockwork?" Phantom questioned.

"Are you kidding? He has tea with that guy every other week." Destruction rolled his eyes.

"Why-"

"No questions, hun. If you know too much, then that would be breaking the rules." Desire mentioned. "Like Destiny graciously reminded me, you have to go into this blind, or chaos will rain down."

"…Right…" Phantom nodded. "But why is okay for you to tell me all this?"

"This is a warning." Dream sighed. "Because of the choice you now have to make with the Reality Guantlet."

"Don't worry about that." Phantom shrugged. "I don't plan to use it more than to setting things back the way it was before Freakshow interfered."

"Ah, but the thing is, you don't have to." Despair noted.

"Right! You have good karma. Suffering, trials, good deeds, and an honorable spirit all make it so that you won't have backlash from breaking the rules with the Reality Gauntlet." Delirium giggled and span around in her chair.

"That's right." Death nodded to the mortal that was connected to her. "While it is a crime to break the laws of reality purposefully, it isn't to do so through accident and acts of good will. Through all of your trials, you have proven yourself a strong warrior for good despite all the bad things that happened to you. Thus, you will have a bit of leeway to change what you want."

"I can change reality without consequence?" Phantom blinked.

"To an extent. You can only do it by using the good karma you built up." Destiny explained. "If you go past that, then you might suffer the same consequences as Savage, Scribe, and Freakshow."

Phantom looked at the gauntlet on his arm. "But what do I do?"

"You will need allies. More people that you can trust." Destiny eyed the boy. "From people who used to be your enemies. From people that could have had different endings if you changed some things."

"…I see…" Phantom nodded. "The Reality Guantlet can't bring back souls that passed into the afterlife, but it can do things that will change a ghost into a human…"

"Ah, you know that rule well…" Destiny nodded.

"Alright…I think I can see why you wanted me here. Don't worry. I'll handle things in the future." Phantom grinned.

"Be careful, though," Death warned with concern. "Things will not always be easy…"

"They never are with me…" Phantom stood and began to walk away from the table.

Death quickly followed. "Before you go, I have to ask…how are you doing after everything that happened? It couldn't have been easy on you..."

"I'm great now. Thanks to you and my friends." Phantom gave her a gentle smile. "You saved me yet again. Thank you."

"Oh don't worry about it." Death waved him off. "Things would be boring without you around, Danny."

"Yeah…It sure would be." Phantom chuckled. "Hey, Death?"

"Yeah…" Death paused as Phantom pulled her into an embraced.

"Thank you for taking care of them. All of them." Phantom stated as he referred to his family. "They…they mean the world to me."

"…You're welcome." Death smiled. "Goodbye, Danny."

"Goodbye, Death."

* * *

><p>"Woah…" Artemis blinked as the light faded around them. "What happened?"<p>

To the rest of the world, only a second had passed despite Phantom's conversation with Endless. In that time, Phantom changed everything back to normal. The world had returned to how it was before Freakshow attacked. The only difference was that the Ghost Writer and Solomon Grundy were still gone from this world.

"We are outside Amity Park…" Kaldur noted as he over looked the restored city. In fact, all the damage done to the city was completely gone.

Well…Phantom did change a few things apparently…Why else would the city look so good?

"What happened to the fights?" Colossus looked around in confused. "I was just about to crush that titan!"

Young Justice looked over to see that the Justice League, ghosts, and assassins were right behind them. Any damage they received from the battle seemed to disappear. They all seemed confused about the situation but also looked relieved to see have the fight finish.

"Everything's back to normal…" Superman muttered.

"Does that mean you were victorious?" Batman looked over to Young Justice.

"Yeah! We totally wiped the floor with Freakshow!" Kid Flash grinned.

"Then where is he?" Wonder Woman questioned.

"He disappeared." Dusk mentioned. "I believe that there was backlash from the Reality Guantlet."

"Where is the Guantlet?" Plasmius questioned.

"Danny had it on." M'gann blinked. "Where is Danny?"

"Over there…" Red Huntress saw Phantom standing at the edge of the city. He looked towards his home.

"Danny!" Superboy called over.

"Hm?" Phantom looked over his shoulder. "What's up?"

"Dude!" Robing rushed over to him with the rest of the Team. "What are you doing over here?"

"Thinking…" Phantom looked down at his Gauntlet covered arm.

"Did you already release that energy?" Zatanna questioned at Danny's normal appearance.

"I didn't need it anymore." Phantom noted. His eyes were still on the Gauntlet. "It's not a power that should be used without caution…just like this thing…"

The rest of the large group behind Young Justice approached them. They were all eyeing Phantom.

"Danny…" Vision looked at the teen. "What do you plan to do with the Gauntlet?"

"That's what I'm thinking about." Phantom looked over at all the people. "Before, the Ghost King separated the Reality Gauntlet from his power sources and hid them across the planet, right? He did this because he thought the power would be needed again…but I'm not sure that was smart. The Reality Gauntlet isn't a power that should be used…So…"

Phantom raised his arm. The Reality Gauntlet began to glow. Energy whirled around it. The jewels on the side of the weapon glowed and dimmed. The metal of the gauntlet seemed to rust a little. After a few moments, the energy died down.

With glowing blue eyes and energy, Phantom then began to freeze the weapon on his arm. The metal of the gauntlet was soon completely covered and infused with ice. After the entire weapon was covered, Phantom sent out a blast of normal green energy. The Reality Gauntlet was shattered into tiny pieces.

"I decided to destroy it." Phantom let the frozen metal shards drop to the floor where they quickly disintegrated into nothing.

"You used the power of the Gauntlet against itself to make it powerless." The Fright Knight reasoned. "The Gauntlet effectively erased itself from existence."

"It's for the best." Phantom noted as he smiled at them all. "The Reality Gauntlet never caused anything but trouble, and I already changed things back to normal and erased the rest of the world's memory of what happened with Freakshow, so there was no point to keeping it around."

"So you didn't use it to change anything for the batter at all? That's disappointing…" Rocket sighed.

"I didn't say that…" Phantom smirked as he began to walk into the city. "Oh, and here." Phantom threw the Mirror of Memories to Colossus. "Go ahead and put that back in your pocket. Make sure no one gets that…"

"Wait! What?!" Spirit voiced all of their thoughts. "What did you change?!"

"I'll talk about it later!" Phantom called back. "I'm going home for now! I'm super tired…"

"Bro, wait!" Kid Flash ran after his teammate.

"We're not done talking yet!" Superboy and the rest of the members of Young Justice ran after him.

"Huh…" Spirit blinked as she watched them go. "I wonder what he changed…"

"It was probably something significant." Dusk mentioned. "Mentor wouldn't waist the opportunity on something stupid."

"Why not do something stupid?" Nyx threw her arms over the two halfas. "That's far more fun than something smart like world peace…"

"Were you not paying attention to what just happened?" Raven rolled her eyes. "It's using the Gauntlet stupidly that started all this."

"Aye. I believe that be enough adventure for one day." Youngblood walked up to them. He was still in his adult form.

All the kids stared up at him.

"What?"

"You need to change back." Dusk mentioned. "This form does not suit you."

"Yeah! I cannot take you seriously while you're a big bad real pirate." Spirit nodded.

"Is that an insult or a compliment?" Youngblood muttered.

"Take it however you want." Raven shrugged.

"Don't worry, I can go back to normal, but it might take a few hours…" Youngblood shrugged.

"Good." Nyx puffed out her cheeks. "Cause I can't pick on you if you're like that…"

"I suppose his form could be worse." Greta mentioned. "In fact, I'm surprised that you don't have any tattoos…What's with that look?"

"You can talk?!" Youngblood's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh, right…I forgot that you didn't know…So, yeah, I can say a lot more than secret. I just thought it was hilarious to keep the joke up."

"…Well…It kind of was!" Youngblood grinned. "High five!"

"Okay…Not with your hook, you moron!"

While this was going on, Batman eyed the Mirror of Memories. "So…You tricked us…"

"We did." Vision nodded. "I thought it would be for the best."

"Well, luckily it was." Green Arrow smiled. "Ow! Hey!"

"Not the time." Black Canary elbowed him in the ribs.

"Things did turn out, but how can we trust you if lie to us about things like this?" Superman questioned.

"We could ask you the same thing about several things." Pandora mentioned. "You have your own secrets."

"She does have a point…" Captain Marvel admitted.

"I don't claim to know what's going on…" Colossus looked down at the mirror. "But should I keep it in my pocket or give it to one of you?"

Batman looked at the mirror. "Keep it. It is safest with you."

"…Are yous sure?" Plasmius questioned.

"Perhaps we might not always be truthful to each other, but I believe that we can trust you." Batman reasoned. "Today, we fought side by side and took down a near invulnerable enemy. I think that means something."

"It's true. I definitely prefer you more as an ally than as an enemy." Superman smiled.

"Yes…Our childish grudges have only hindered us." Fright Knight nodded. "If the younger generations can work together like they did today, then why can't we?"

"Yes...If Danny can look past everything so easily…I don't see why we can't." Plasmius chuckled.

"So what is this? A truce? An alliance?" Wonder Woman questioned.

"I think…the beginning of a friendship would be the best way to describe it." Vision spoke up.

"A friendship…" Batman nodded and extended his hand to her. "I can accept that."

"…I think we can as well." Vision took his hand and shook it.

"Ah…" Pandora smiled down at them. "And what of the villains that worked with us?"

Everyone looked to where David Cain, Lady Shiva, and Cassandra were before. They were gone now.

"Oh, them? Torch saw them disappear two minutes ago." Torch shrugged.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Red Tornado questioned.

"Torch thought we were having a touching moment." Torch mentioned. "Torch didn't want to ruin it with details."

"Details…" Red Tornado actually sounded amused. "That is one way to put it."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-January 4, 2011)<p>

In Master Mansion, there was a room that was dubbed the Memorial Room. The room was out of the way and basically bare. The only things that were in the room were simple stones with words engraved on them.

_Vortex: The perfect storm_

_Skulker: The Ghost Zone's greatest hunter_

_Klemper: A true friend_

_Agent Z: A worthy foe_

_Scribe The Ghost Writer: Author, reader, and ally_

_Solomon Grundy: Born on a Monday_

_Freakshow: Ringmaster of reality_

"Goodbye, Scribe, Grundy…" Dani wiped away some tears. "I'll miss you…"

"…" Joel looked down at the memorials. "Rest in peace, comrades."

Danny place a hand on each of their shoulders in comfort. "They're in a better place. Death will make sure of that."

The three halfas were the only ones left in the room. The other members of the Phantom Family had already paid their respects and left a few minutes ago. Joel, Dani, and Danny remained behind for a bit longer.

"Hey…It's almost time to eat…" Danny noted to his younger companions. "Vision will be mad if we're late."

"Yeah…We can come back later..." Joel noted.

"Right…" Dani nodded. "Come back…"

"You go ahead." Danny mentioned to them. "I'll come downstairs in a minute."

Nodding, the two younger halfas exited the room and headed to the dining room.

"…You can come out now." Danny spoke out after Dani and Joel were gone.

Lydia walked through the wall. "How did you know I was here? I am able to hide my presence from your ghost sense. Fred…Freakshow made it that way when he upgraded my powers."

"You underestimate my family." Danny noted. "Vision knew you were here all day. I'm just glad you didn't attack, because I would hate to have to fight again so soon..."

"I see…" Lydia looked over to Freakshow's memorial.

"Why are you here, Lydia?" Danny questioned kindly.

"I…I wanted to say thank you." Lydia mentioned. "Even though I left Freakshow, I kept one of my tattoos near him to watch. You showed him far more kindness than he deserved. Thank you."

"You're welcome." Danny nodded.

"…Why…why did you make a stone for him…and your other enemies?" Lydia questioned.

"I like to think it's about showing respect." Danny shrugged. "They're bad guys, but...They're my enemies. I think that means something."

"But you don't have your old family's names in here." Lydia pointed out.

"They have a statue dedicated to them." Danny smiled. "This room is for the people who deserve to be remembered, but probably won't be. We will never forget our closest allies, or our greatest enemies."

"…You are a strange person, Danny Phantom." Lydia shook her head. "But…You're a good man as well."

"Thanks…" Danny tilted his head. "Um…What are you going to do now? You obviously don't want revenge, so…"

"I don't know. My whole obsession revolved around keeping Freakshow away from the darkness." Lydia's head fell in shame. "But that's gone now, and I'm still here. I don't know why…"

"When Freakshow upgraded your powers, he changed a part of you." Danny noted. "He made it so that even if he disappeared, you could continue on. That's the reason I didn't take your upgraded powers away. If I did, you would have died."

"How do you…"

"The Reality Gauntlet showed me many things so I could better understand my enemies." Danny smiled. "And I learned that no matter what happened, Freakshow still loved you deep down…Way deep down."

"So…There was still a part in there that cared for me…" Lydia smiled. "I'm glad."

"What will you do now? You're welcome to stay in Amity Park, of course, if you want to." Danny suggested.

"No…I don't think that I can…" Lydia shook her head. "There are too many memories here. I think I will travel and find out what will really make me happy."

"Okay, but be careful out there." Danny stated. "It can be dangerous."

"I know."

"Alright…I hope you find happiness, Lydia." Danny smiled. "I know you deserve that much."

"…Thank you. Goodbye, Danny Phantom." With one last look at Freakshow's memorial, Lydia turned and floated out of the mansion. She was gone.

"Goodbye, Lydia."

* * *

><p>"…And then she called me brother." Joel looked over to his family. They were all gathered in the living room, and Joel decided that it would be best to reveal the truth to all of his family…or at least what appeared to be the truth. "I'm not exactly sure what that means, but I think that there's a decent possibility that I am the son of Ra's Al Ghul."<p>

He was met with silence.

Danny let out a loud whistle. "Well, damn."

"That might explain why you could survive to be a halfa while everyone else, even Agent Z, were only partial half-ghosts." Vlad stroked his chin. "From what I understand of the Lazarus Pit, it can revive and reguvinate almost every living creature…with major side effects, of course. Ra's has been exposed to it for centuries. The Pit has probably altered his DNA. It would make sense that it could leave effects to his offspring."

"But I've read the reports of the Ghoul Project…" Vision frowned. "They said you were the least compatible genetically, yet you were the biggest success…Did Ra's change the reports to hide his connection to you?"

"Why would he do that, though, if he excommunicated Joel?" Dani questioned.

"He knew I would survive." Joel stated. "He knew that because of my genetics that I would gain powers. Then, with my strength, I would be accepted back into the Shadows without any objection. Then, even if I was unstable in anyway, the Lazarus Pit could stabilize me."

"Why allow us to take you, though…" Danny wondered.

"They were planning the assault from the start." Vision nodded to herself. "So, either you would accept their deal, and they would gain Joel by extension; or you would reject it, and he would be forced in a situation where he would be forced to kill and forsake his beliefs. Either way, they win."

"Except I didn't kill." Joel mumbled.

"I doubt that will sway your father." Vlad mentioned. "With your show of power and control, he probably wants you as his successor more than ever. And because you are still a young child, he thinks that he can change your outlook on how things work."

"That doesn't matter." Joel said conviction. "You are my family now. I will never turn away from that fact."

"I'm not worried about that in the slightest." Vision smiled at the boy. "What does concern me, though, is Ra's. There's so much left unknown. If you're his child, then why did he leave you in an orphanage for so long? Why hide your lineage? And what lengths will he go to in order to get you on his side?"

"…That stuff doesn't matter for now." Joel shrugged. "I'm a half-ghost and a part of Amity Park now. Nothing's going to change that anytime soon."

* * *

><p>(Wednesday-January 5, 2011)<p>

"So the Council's trying to get you to join?" Dani questioned as she took her seat in the stands. A bag of popcorn was in her hands. "That sucks, I'm sorry."

"Ah…Yeah." Youngblood, in his normal child form, gave her a sad look. "I'm getting a lot of pressure from them to join…It's annoying…"

"Rack! I told you so…" Polly grumbled from his shoulder.

"Hey! I'm the one that's supposed to be childish!" Youngblood glared at him.

"Well, I did tell you so…I went on and on about the consequences…" Poly rolled his eyes.

"Whatever…" Youngblood placed his head in his hands.

"Cheer up, Chuck." Victor sat next to his two ghost friends. "It could be worse. My parents have been freaking out since New Year. I don't think they want to move, but they are getting super overprotective of me. I think they want to start training me in self-defense…"

"That sounds fun." Great mentioned from her seat beside Victor. "I should probably practice my combat as well…"

"I still can't get used to the fact that you can talk." Victor gave her an odd look. "It's super weird."

"Ah, you'll get used it." Dani shrugged. "And at least we won't have to deal with the secret jokes anymore, right Greta?"

"Secret." Secret grinned.

"Okay, I should have seen that coming…" Dani admitted.

"Shush! It's starting!" Victor pulled out his video camera and began his recording.

"Okay…I appreciate your agreeing to train me, but I have to ask…" Nyx gave an annoyed look to Jason Blood. "Why are there bleachers here for them to watch us?!"

"Because I thought it would be humorous." Jason Blood shrugged as he walked across the training room he constructed in his home. "The recording was my idea. I would like to reminiscence about your failures and mishaps later on."

"Wow…" Raven rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the confidence in us…"

"I know that you are both talented students, but you have very unstable forms of magic." Jason Blood chuckled. "I'm sure something will go wrong, and that's why I want evidence. Is everything good, Victor?"

"Yeah, Mr. B!" Victor waved over to the older man. "I got this camera, and the other ones you wanted me to install are the corners!"

"Good man. Good man…" Blood nodded.

"But why do they get sit there, eat popcorn, and watch us train?" Nyx frowned.

"They asked if they could." Blood shrugged. "Having you tried saying no to a combination of Dani and Greta's puppy dog eyes. It's impossible I tell you!"

"True…" Raven frowned. "I warned her about corrupting Greta…"

"I can make my own decisions, Doom and Gloom!" Greta yelled over.

"Ha! I taught her that!" Nyx wiped an invisible tear. "I'm so proud of her…"

Raven merely sighed. "Sometimes, I hate my life…"

"No you don't. Not yet at least." Jason Blood grinned. "That comes during training."

* * *

><p>"So…There was a reason you didn't wipe our memories, correct?" Lady Shiva glared at the teen that was sitting across from her. They were all in Fenton's Works living room. It had simple couches and chairs that allowed them to sit, but there wasn't much else in the room. It wasn't used a lot after all.<p>

"Yes." Danny nodded to Shiva.

"And I take it there's also a reason you erased the Light's memory of my betrayal." Shiva frowned.

"Yes. Yes there is."

"What do you want, then?" Shiva glared.

"Mother, don't be rude." Cassandra looked up to her mother. "He did help us a lot. Now we won't be hunted down."

"That is true, but there's always a catch." Shiva continued to glare at the teen.

"Oh, relax Shiva." Oddly enough, David Cain was not smoking at the moment. Apparently, he wasn't allowed to in Fenton Works. "It's not like he's extorting us or something. He doesn't have that look in his face."

"Yes." Danny nodded. "I'm not going to blackmail you. All I want in return for allowing you to keep your memories is to keep our secret."

"That's acceptable." Cassandra spoke up quickly.

"Cassandra…" Shiva sighed.

"I do, however, have an offer for all of you." Danny added.

"I knew it." Shiva frowned.

"I want you all to be my allies." Danny stated.

"Allies?" David Cain cracked a smile. "You do realize that Shiva and I have tried to kill you at different times…"

"I know, but some of my closest friends have tried to kill me at some point. Vlad, Superboy, Valerie…" Danny trailed off. "I could name more."

"What are you offering?" Cassandra questioned. She eyed him with admiration. Oddly enough, this made Shiva's mood worse and David Cain's mood swing up in amusement.

"I have the feeling that some of the hardest times this planet has ever seen will happen within a few years." Danny noted. "I need as many allies as possible. And it wouldn't hurt if I had some inside agents in the Shadows…"

"Oh, so that's it." Shiva rolled her eyes. "You want moles."

"You won't have to feed me a lot of information." Danny raised his hands up in surrender. "I just want to know that if something were ever to happen, I would have people on my side."

"That does make sense…" Cassandra noted.

"What's in it for us?" Shiva questioned.

"One, I'd be willing to pay you. Two, I can offer you asylum in Amity Park if you ever need it." Danny explained. "And three…I can offer you all a clean slate if you ever need it. Through Vlad's connection, I can have all your crimes erased from existence."

David Cain gave a low whistle. "That's one hell of an offer…but you do know that I'll never join the Shadows…"

"Then you'll be a free agent. I was planning on recruiting a few others that might be willing to work with me, like Madame Rogue." Danny handed him a piece of paper. "I'll have you as my personal mercenary and intel broker for what's happening in the underground. This will be your base payments."

"…Hot damn…" David Cain muttered. "That's a lot of money…I'm in."

"David!" Shiva snapped. "You would sell yourself just like that?"

"Look at this." David showed her the amount.

"…I see…" Shiva stopped chiding him. She turned to Danny. "I do not want money. I have enough of that. What I want is my daughter's safety. So, if I do this, do I have your word that Cassandra will come out of this safely? She will have money, asylum, safety, and forgiveness for our sins?"

"Yes. You have my word."

"…Very well…" Shiva looked over to her daughter. "I'm in as well."

"You know I'm in." Cassandra actually gave Danny a smile. "I will help anyway I can."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-January 6, 2011)<p>

"So you're going to start school soon?" Fright Knight questioned. He sat meditating in Masters Mansion training room.

"Unfortunately." Joel was sitting on the floor as well. Unlike Fright Knight, however, he wasn't meditating because Cujo jumped on his lap, and he was having trouble concentrating through the pit of pain. Nevertheless, he didn't chastise the dog and continued to pet him. "I'd prefer not to, but apparently I should try to live a normal life…"

"You should." The Fright Knight nodded. "You are still part human, and have your whole life ahead of you."

"Still…School sounds boring." Joel sighed. "I would prefer to spend my time elsewhere."

"You and every other child. But it is something you must do…" The Fright Knight stated. He had a distant look.

"…Are you okay?" Joel questioned. "You seem distracted."

"Oh…Yes." The Fright Knight nodded. "I suppose Scribe's passing has hit me harder than I thought. I've known him for so long. It's hard to admit that he's really gone."

"…I feel similarly about Grundy." Joel frowned. "We were so alike in many ways. Both part of the Ghoul Project…We struggled together through a lot. We even escaped together. But now he's gone…"

"Such is the way of life. Eventually, everyone must pass on." The Fright Knight sighed. "And then we are left to deal with the loss. Of course, I've never been one to deal with loss in a regular manner. I've always been a bit of a loner…"

"I heard that there was a gathering in the Ghost Writer's honor." Joel mentioned. "Perhaps you should go? It might help…"

"That might be wise. And what about you? Maybe you should spend some time with Lady Danielle and her friends." The Fright Knight suggested.

"I don't know…" Joel shrugged. "Sometimes I don't feel like I belong in that group…"

"That is how I feel most of the time." The Fright Knight mentioned. "But I've learned that such things are mostly in my head. Your friends are always there for you when you need them, even if you don't deserve it."

* * *

><p>"Hey, there." Spirit waved. "Sorry to interrupt, but I got this note saying I should come here."<p>

"Ah, Dani…" Vision smiled kindly to her adopted daughter. "Yes, I believe Poindexter wished to speak with you. He's in Scribe's study."

Many of the members of the Council of the Elite and their friends had decided to have a get together in the memory of their fallen comrade. Poindexter offered to let them do this in the Ghost Writer's library as long as there was no damage to Scribe's beloved books. Everyone thought that this was a fitting location for what could be described as Scribe's wake.

"Yes, he has taken Scribe's death harder than anyone." Pandora sighed. She held a drink in her one of her hands as she leaned on the table. "Well…except for maybe Colossus."

"AAAAHHHH!" Colossus cried into his arms. "Scribe! He was so young!"

"I sympathize…" Wulf patted his shoulder. "But no he wasn't."

"I know! He was ancient!" Colossus roared as his tears fell.

"It will be alright." Frostbite consoled his friend. "Scribe will always live on as long as we remember him. And remember, his writings will go on forever."

"I know!" Colossus weeped. "But I will still miss him!"

"Everything will be alright, old friend." Clockwork stated. Despite his words, the Master of Time seemed saddened by Scribe's death almost as much as Colossus. "Time heals all wounds."

"Ah! That's such a terrible pun!" Colossus yelled out. "But…it actually does make me feel better."

"I thought it would." Clockwork turned to Spirit. He gave her a small smile. The Master of Time wasn't one to join such groups, but Scribe's death merited such a reaction and time of mourning.

"Wow…" Spirit blinked. "I didn't think that he would take it that hard…"

"You would be surprised…" Torch muttered into his drink. "It is the people that hide their emotions the most that have the deepest feelings…"

"Oh…" Spirit nodded slowly. She eyed Torch. "Is that why you're so quiet?"

"Part of it, yeah…" Torch chugged his drink. "Torch prefers to mourn in solitude, but with the prison empty and Ellie slinking around the place…"

"Are you drunk?" Pandora questioned.

"Give Torch a second…" Torch raised his palm. Fire jumped from his palm and covered his face. "Yep…Torch is drunk. Can't control…fire…"

"Yet you are in a library full of flammable books…" Vision rolled her eyes. "I suppose it's my job to stop you from burning anything."

"And on that note, I believe you should go see Poindexter, Danielle." Plasmius noted. "Before we're forced to subdue Colossus or Torch."

"Right…" Spirit nodded and turned to head deeper into the library. As she left, the Fright Knight approached the table and sat with his old friends.

Walking deeper into the library, Spirit came into a door with Scribe's name on it. She could see a dull light from the cracks in the door. It was quiet, though.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Sydney?" Spirit called through the door. "You in there?"

"Yes…Yes, come in…" Poindexter's voice sounded out.

Spirit opened the door to find a small office with a desk filled with papers. Like every other room in the building, the walls were lined with shelves, and the shelves were filled with books. Everything seemed to be somewhat messy in comparison to the other parts of the library.

"Woah…" Spirit blinked at Poindexter's appearance. His normal neat appearance was now a complete mess. "What happened to you?"

"I, uh, I haven't been sleeping well…" Poindexter sighed.

"I can see that…" Spirit gave him a worried look.

"Guilt is such a complicated thing…" Poindexter mentioned. "I couldn't help Master Scribe, and I abandoned the fight with Freakshow…"

"No one blames you for not fighting." Spirit mentioned. "Freakshow was too strong for regular ghosts to fight him. Amorpho didn't fight after all."

"It's no excuse…" Poindexter raised his thick glasses and wiped some tears away. "Even if I lacked the strength needed to fight, I was still a coward. Phantom was weakened and exhausted, yet he still fought. I can see why Master Scribe thought so highly of him."

"Sydney…" Spirit walked up to the desk. "You don't-"

"No. I didn't ask you here to console me." Poindexter shook his head. "I will get through my own grief in time. The reason I wanted you here was to give you these."

The black and white ghost handed her two books.

"What are these?" Spirit eyed the books in her hands.

"They are the stories of your, Phantom's, and Dusk's journeys up to this point. Master Scribe did not fish the second one, but I've spent day and night finishing it." Poindexter explained. He then gestured to the large tomb on the desk. "I used the Tomb of the Ancients to get everything right. I had to do it, because this was incredibly important to my master. He wanted you to have these as soon as possible, so I'm giving them to you now. He instructed me to let you handle the very ending, so you'll have to write that. He said that you would need the practice..."

"But why give them to me?" Spirit questioned.

"It was in Master Scribe's will." Poindexter sighed and sat in his chair. "He wanted you to be the keeper of these books. He thought that would be best served in your possession."

"Really? Because I tend to break crap." Spirit noted.

"He made sure that the books were incredibly durable." Poindexter adjusted his glasses. "He went through every precaution to make sure the books survive in your care."

"Why?"

"I'm not too sure about that." Poindexter shrugged. "But Master Scribe often knew more than he let on. If he thought that it was important for you to have these books, than you must have them."

"But…They're his last works…" Spirit gained a guilty look. "Shouldn't you be the one to keep them?"

"I have all the books in this library to remind me of him." Poindexter smiled at her kindness and consideration. "That is enough."

* * *

><p>"So…You want me to get back in touch with Dr. Roquette? And you also want me to talk to Technus…Er, Dr. Tillman?" Harriet Chin blinked down at the list Danny gave her. "And all the rest of this stuff…Are you up for it?"<p>

"Yeah!" Danny grinned at her as they walked into his workshop in Axion Labs. "I'm totally re-energized. I feel like I can handle anything."

"…Yeah, I guess, but still…" Harriet stared at him. "It's a lot."

"Good thing I can use duplicates again, huh?" Danny shrugged. "Besides, I have the Stones and Vlad to help."

"Okay…" Harriet blinked. "I've got to say…I don't think I've ever seen you so…upbeat."

"Well, I just feel more alive, you know?" Danny smiled as he walked over to the Stones. "Are you going to stay for a bit? Because if you are, you might need some goggles."

"No…apparently, I have some work to do." Harriet held back a chuckle." And for some reason…It feels good."

"Yeah…It does." Danny waved to her as she left. He then turned to the Stones. "Silas, Elinore! How are you?"

"Er, good?" Silas blinked at the teen. "And you?"

"Oh, I'm great." Danny smiled. "Thanks for sticking around. I know the whole 'Fenton is Phantom' thing is kind of weird."

"Yes, well…" Elinore Stone rubbed the back of her neck. "Victor does seem very happy here, and we do love our work here. Besides…With you and all the ghosts here, this city is still one of the safest cities to live in."

"As weird as that sounds…" Silas chuckled. "Besides, I think that our work here will be incredibly important to the future. Especially with all the projects you have lined up. But I have to admit, this latest project concerns me. I understand why you want to fix the Red X suit and Fenton Exorcist Armor, but why do you want to create a fully functioning A.I.? It's rather risky."

"Oh, I don't think it will be." Danny shrugged. "Not with the personality I plan to put in it. I think the A.I. will be too worried about me and my safety to ever even think about betraying me. Look at this."

He handed them a piece of paper. It had several different instructions and plans on it. That was not the thing that drew their attention, though. What really caught their attention was the name at the top of the page. It was kind of hard to find the right words to fit the anagram, but when looking at the words, Danny couldn't help but laugh. The words fit the personality perfectly.

The Joy Analyzing Zippy Zealot

J.A.Z.Z.

* * *

><p>(Friday-January 7, 2011)<p>

"So you're leaving?" Dani questioned as she followed Ember out of Masters Mansion. Ember had already said her goodbyes to everyone. She even gave Danny a short hug and Valerie a firm handshake. It was a short goodbye, but it was enough. "I was hoping you would at least stay until the art show that was coming up. I submitted a drawing as a surprise. I think people will appreciate it. I call it 'Family'."

"Yeah sorry, kid, I have to get back on the road again." Ember shrugged. "Got a concert coming up. Send me some pics, though. I'm sure it will go great."

"Yeah, thanks." Dani frowned. She continued to walk down the drive with Ember. "But I still wish you could stay…It's so rare to have the whole family together…"

"So you think of me as family?" Ember smirked down at her.

"Well, don't get a big head, but…Yeah." Dani rolled her eyes. "You did come help us when we needed it."

"Yeah…I'm such an idiot." Ember chuckled. "My ex calls me for a bit of help, and I drop everything to get here. I can see why he told me to go. If I thought that I was needed here at all, I wouldn't be able to stay away…"

"But that's what family is all about." Dani argued.

"…It is." Ember stopped, turned to the younger girl, and knelt down. "But sometimes, we need to recognize our places. Mine isn't here anymore. My future is out there right now, and everyone else's is right here."

"Yeah…" Dani nodded.

"My purpose is to follow my dreams, and then when they're complete…Maybe I can come back." Ember smiled. "Until then, look after things. I know Danny, and that Joel kid seems to be a bit off as well. Keep them in line, okay? It's a job only a woman can do."

"I will." Dani smiled back.

"Right…" Ember paused. "And before I go…Can I ask you about that Torch guy?"

"Torch? What about him?" Dani blinked.

"I don't know, but something about him seems familiar." Ember frowned. "And whenever I bring it up with Danny, he changes the subject. I think something is up."

"Oh…Well, I can look into it, but Torch is pretty much an open book." Dani mention. "But, I guess…everyone has their secrets. Just look at Youngblood, Raven, and Greta. Who would have thought that they had such strange secrets? Do you want me to do a little digging?"

"No…" Ember shook her head and stood. "I was just curios. It's probably nothing. For a moment, when we were being held by Freakshow, Torch looked over at me like…"

"Like what?"

"Like how Danny looks at you when there's trouble."

* * *

><p>Joel sat on a large hill in Amity Park's city park. He had a decent view of a lot of the city. The boy could even see his soon to be school. Part of him dreaded going, but another part of him was excited. This was a chance to create bonds that were uniquely his own.<p>

The ghoul loved his family, but he wanted the chance to branch out. After all, Joel always wanted a normal life. This was his chance to have a little bit of taste of normality. Of course, it might very well fail. Nothing about Joel is normal, and he did have a bit of a problem with talking with new people. Making friends could be difficult to him.

"Mhm…" Cujo whined in his lap.

"Spoiled dog…" Joel muttered as he went back to betting the dog that was disguised to have brown fur.

Cujo seemed to have a smug expression. Joel was right. This dog was spoiled.

"Hello, Joel."

Joel turned to see Great standing near him. "Secret keeper…"

"Oh? Is your pride injured that you never figured out that I could actually speak?" Great smirked as she stood near him.

"…A bit…" Joel admitted. "I should have figured it out, but I didn't. Everyone else just seemed so used to it…"

"I kept up a good act huh?" Greta giggled into her hand. "I think everyone appreciated it in the end."

"…It was funny." Joel admitted with a shrug. "But only a bit."

"Oh, geeze." Greta rolled her eyes. "Would it kill you to lighten up."

"Maybe." Joel looked up at her. "It could cause the universe to collapse on itself for all we know."

"Hahahahahaha!" Greta plopped down beside him. "See! You're a lot more fun with that whit of yours."

"I guess…" Joel looked over at the school. "Do you think other people my age will appreciate it?"

"I'm sure they will." Greta smiled. "You're going to be the most popular guy there."

"Okay, now you're lying." Joel mentioned. "Me popular? I tend to hide the shadows."

"But you're athletic, funny, and have a hard core scar." Greta pointed out. "Kids love that."

"I suppose, but I also forget the small things and can be a bit intimidating." Joel reasoned. "That tends to put people off. You have to admit that, Greta."

"…Maybe a bit." Greta laughed. "But I think that adds to your charm. You're Joel after all. Just be yourself, and I'm sure you can take on anything. Grade school should be a walk in the park for you."

"Well, it can't be any worse than the Ghoul Project." Joel gave a small smile. "Are you going to start going to school too?"

"Oh, no way. One of the benefits of being a full ghost is that I don't have to go to that boring prison if I don't want to."

"Well…That doesn't make me feel better at all."

* * *

><p>"Thank you for your hospitality by allowing me to stay in Amity Park." Amorpho noted. "It is much appreciated. I hope I can help you in your endeavors."<p>

"Don't worry. I'm sure you'll be fine." Phantom smiled as he stood at the edge of Lake Eerie.

"Right, but I am a bit worried. I am not used to having so much attention on my true face." Amorpho held his cane tightly.

"You'll get used to it." Phantom paused and looked off to the side. "Hey, Amorpho, could you head back to Amity Park? I need to do something."

"Er…Right." Amorpho nodded. "Perhaps I shall blend into the crowd in Amity Park. There are a few tricks and pranks I want to try out."

"Make sure to ask Spirit and Nyx for help." Phantom suggested. "They'll be mad if you leave them out."

"Right, of course." Amorpho turned and began to fly away.

Phantom did not move. He gave the other ghost a few minutes to get clear of the area. When the halfa was sure that the shapeshifter was gone, Phantom turned to the nearby trees. "I came like you told me to."

"You did…" Vandal Savage walked out of the trees. He was followed by Jinx. "Who was that?"

"A friend. I have a lot of them. But you've already learned that lesson." Phantom smirked at him.

"I did…" Savage nodded. "Things did not play out the way I planned."

"I bet they didn't." Phantom snorted. "But I tend to mess up the big bad plans of the villains."

"That you do." Savage acknowledged.

"So why did you call me here?" Phantom questioned. "You going to try and control me again?"

"No." Savage shook his head. "I only wished to speak. Although, I am a bit surprised to see that you are talking to me alone…"

"I think I'll be alright. You don't want to kill me after all, and I can hold my own." Phantom noted. "You want me on your side, right?"

"I do." Savage eyed Phantom. "You still are the example of how far humans and ghosts can go…"

"I don't know about that…" Phantom rubbed the back of his head. "But I do know that I've seen what happens when humanity comes together. We're unstoppable. If you really wanted to make this planet better, you would work to promote the Justice League. Evolution will happen when it happens."

"You're naïve." Savage frowned. "A coddled race is a doomed race. We need to prepare ourselves from the threats out there. You don't know what the rest of the universe is capable of."

"I think I have an idea, but pushing the Earth's evolution won't get us anywhere. Especially because your idea of improving mankind is by hooking up a couple of teenagers." Phantom snorted.

"Danny!" Jinx snapped. Her face was red. "Don't talk like that…"

"Don't be embarrassed." Savage looked over to his daughter. "Sex and reproduction is the most natural thing in this universe. It's been going on since the beginning of time. It's not something to be ashamed of."

"Dad…Sometimes you embarrass me…" Jinx placed a hand on her face. "And besides, I'm too young to be thinking about such things…"

"Please, you're sixteen. If you were alive merely 500 years ago, you would already be wed and have children by now." Savage scoffed. "But enough about that. I didn't come here to talk about that."

"Then why did you bring Jen?" Phantom questioned.

"I thought that her presence would make sure you were less hostile. I was correct. You haven't attacked yet after all." Savage grinned.

"Okay, so let me hear it. You still want me to join the Light." Phantom sighed.

"That won't change, Phantom." Savage explained. "You are too valuable of an asset and too big of a threat to go unchecked."

"Well, too bad." Phantom glared at him. "I will never join the Light."

"You're young." Savage shrugged. "You'll mindset will change over time. I've seen it happen thousands of times. That's why Ra's and Klarion haven't given up on Joel and Nyx yet."

"Stay away from them!" Phantom snapped. "You can't have them!"

"That decision is up to them. As is yours. But I will do all I can to change your mindset set to meet ours." Savage chuckled. "In fact, there are plenty of people in Amity Park that have potential."

"You can't have any of my family. Not Joel. Not Nyx. And especially not Raven." Phantom glared. "I won't let you kill an innocent girl."

"She may be innocent, but she will bring an end to this world." Savage noted. "If she lives until her sixteenth birthday, then Trigon will enter this world. And no one wants that uncontrollable tyrant in this dimension."

"Dad…She is just a little girl." Jinx argued. "I know she's a threat, but still…"

"I know you have a soft spot for children, Jennifer, but the only options are her death or the end of the world." Savage frowned.

"No, there's another choice." Phantom glared at him. "We stop Trigon by kicking his ass."

"You speak like that will be easy." Savage scoffed. "He is a being that is more powerful than you can imagine."

"I think I've fought worse…" Phantom thought of Freakshow.

"No. You haven't." Savage shook his head at the teen's naivety. "You haven't seen what true evil is yet. You have yet to look a being in the eyes that lacks any concern for anything or anymore. You haven't fought someone that's only goal is complete and utter destruction. You have not faced true gods of death."

"I'm sure I will someday." Phantom grinned. "And they may be too much for me alone, but I'm not alone I have my friends and my family to stand by me. And as long as that's true, then there's no threat I can't stop."

"And what if those people disappear?"

"Is that a threat?" Phantom glared.

"No…It's an observation." Savage sighed. He then turned and began to walk away. "Life, bonds, and alliances are such fragile things after all…"

"…" Jinx watched him walk back into the forest. She then quickly approached the halfa. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's not your fault." Phantom smiled at her.

"I know, but…He's still my dad, and he can embarrass me." Jinx flushed.

"Forget about it." Phantom placed a hand on her shoulder. "Even if he's my enemy, I still think of you as a friend."

"...Hahahahahaha!" Jinx burst out laughing. "I see you took my advice. You haven't changed at all, you know that, Mr. Nobody?"

"Actually, I have. It's just been a positive change." Phantom grinned.

"Yeah…you seem happier." Jinx gave him a smile. "For what it's worth…I hope you can hold onto that joy for a long time."

"That means a lot to me." Phantom nodded.

"So…" Jinx elbowed him. "Does your having a girlfriend mean we can't hang out anymore?"

"It might. But even if it didn't, wouldn't your dad have a problem with us meeting?" Phantom questioned.

"Danny…Do you know that guy? He would think that it's a good way to get you on our side." Jinx mentioned.

"…True. But I think we'll be chaperoned if we do hang out." Phantom shrugged. "By your father, by the League, and especially by Red Huntress. She'll be there every time we see each other from here on out."

"That's okay." Jinx shrugged. "It will be nice to have a lot of friends. It will be like that I'm normal."

"Jennifer!" Savage called out to her. "It's time to go!"

"…I got to go." Jinx smiled at her friend. "It was good seeing you. Stay safe, Danny."

"You too, Jen. You too."

* * *

><p>It was getting late, but Danny didn't care. He had a meeting he had to attend, and he couldn't risk missing it. After all, he didn't want to anger Clockwork. Considering that it was the Master of Time, though, he would probably get over it pretty fast. He had all the time in the world after all.<p>

"Ah, hello Daniel." Clockwork smiled as Phantom slipped into the seat in front of the time ghost. "Right on time."

"Really? I thought I was late." Phantom mentioned.

"Not by my watch..." Clockwork chuckled.

"And yours is the only one that matters, I guess." Phantom laughed as well.

"Yes it is. Tea?" Clockwork offered the teen a cup of steaming liquid.

"Thanks." Phantom took the cup and sipped the drink.

"Is there a reason that you wanted to visit, Daniel?" Clockwork questioned.

"Nope." Phantom shook his head. "Just felt like talking with a friend."

"Oh? And here I thought that our conversations always confused you..." Clockwork changed from an old man into a child.

"They do, but I think it just helps me learn more." Phantom stated.

"So you have been paying attention..." Clockwork seemed happy.

"Of course. Had the lessons hammered into me." Phantom knocked on his own head for emphasis. "Took a while, though."

"But you got it. That's all that matters." Clockwork mentioned.

"Yeah..." Phantom nodded slowly and sipped his tea. "So...The First Prophesy, huh?"

"Yep." Clockwork sipped his own tea.

"You had something to do with that right?" Phantom questioned.

"Yep." Clockwork nodded.

"I see." Phantom paused. "So how much of it is BS?"

"Almost all of it." Clockwork admitted. "It was all made up based on the fact that fate is uncertain around you. Destiny wanted to get people to pay attention to you and your family when the time is right."

"Oh...Can I hear it?"

"Sure, that won't hurt anything, but just so you know, every other interpretation of it is wrong. So people will look at you like you're nuts if you quote me on this..."

_One day a there will be born a child that is weak beyond reason_

_Despite this, he will grow and flourish under the support of others_

_His great struggles will bring him unimaginable pain, but will inspire those around him_

_Through his sacrifices, new champions of cheer, endurance, and love shall be born_

_The components of life can come together around him to free everyone_

_Or Anti-life shall reign down on the universe under his thumb_

_He will deny death three times and ascend to absolute power_

_Beware the Phantom that can change fate, for his decisions will bring great change._

"..." Phantom paused. "That...is the cheesiest thing I have ever heard."

"It is." Clockwork nodded.

"But does come from Destiny...Even if he did make it up." Phantom sipped his tea. "That has to mean something."

"It does." Clockwork agreed.

"Damn, my life is always complicated." Phantom snorted. "Even the normal moments. I'm having tea with the Master of Time, and that's the most normal thing I did this week."

"That's a little sad, Daniel."

"It's very sad, Clockwork." Phantom grinned. "But not as sad as the guy that doesn't have anything better to do than focus on what I'm doing. There has to be laws about that sort of thing."

"Hahahahahahaha!" Clockwork roared out in laughter as he shifted into an adult. "Good to see you haven't lost your sense of humor, Daniel."

"Lost? I'll have you know, Clockwork, I never lost my sense of humor. After all, what's life without the witty banter?"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-January 8, 2011)<p>

**Recognized: Danny Phantom B04, Red Huntress B10**

Red Huntress walked hand in hand with Phantom into the Cave. "I'm looking forward to actually getting a tour of the Cave. Last time I was here, it ended badly."

"Yeah…Don't expect that to change too much." Phantom snorted. "Things get pretty chaotic around this Team."

"Sounds fun." Red Huntress grinned. "I can't wait until our next mission."

"Me neither actually." Phantom smiled. "It will be nice to test my full powers again. I mean, it's not like you let me use them in our spars."

"It's hand to hand training, Danny." Red Huntress elbowed him lightly. "I don't use my guns, and you don't use your powers."

"That's what you say, but I think you just like winning." Phantom noted. "You know, one day I might get better than you."

"In your dreams, spooks." Red Huntress laughed.

The two walked up to the middle of the Cave's main hall. The rest of Young Justice was on the other side. They were going to join them, but they were stopped.

"Uh hem…" Batman stood in front of them. "Can I speak with Phantom please?"

Red Huntress looked at Phantom to see what he wanted. He nodded at her. "Alright. I'll go check up on the Team." Her visor slid down, and she kissed him on the cheek before walking off.

"Hey, there Batman." Phantom grinned at the Caped Crusader. "What did you want to talk about?"

"I had some questions about the events surrounding Freakshow's attack." Batman mentioned.

"I bet. I came back from a pretty bad spot, didn't I?" Phantom shrugged.

"You did. And the Team went through a lot in a short amount of time." Batman stated. "That's why I gave you all so much time off."

"Thanks for that. We needed it." Phantom noted.

"Yes, but now we have to move on." Batman nodded. "But before that, I wanted to ask you a few things that I don't understand. How did you come back when Young Justice technically failed to save you?"

"I can't tell you that." Phantom sighed. "It's a very personal spiritual thing."

"…Alright." Batman conceded that. There were different events that he couldn't talk about in his life. "What about when you obtained the Reailty Gauntlet. You said that you changed some things."

"I did. But I did leave your memories, so I'm sure that you figured them out." Phantom gave the Dark Knight a knowing look. "Undergrowth was formed in barren village in Africa instead of New York City. It was a place that would greatly appreciate his efforts. This allowed him to gain a positive opinion on humans before he discovered the pollution of the planet. Instead of violence, he's now trying to peacefully fix the problems."

"I see…" Batman nodded.

"Penelope Spectra never died." Phantom stated. "Instead, she lived through her car crash and was never sent into madness by the events of her death. Now, she's a well-known psychologist that has developed several theories and techniques to combat depression."

"Hmm…"

"And Nicolai Tillman, AKA Technus, was never betrayed by the woman he loved. That's a fact that existed before I changed anything." Phantom explained. "She was being blackmailed and threatened with her family. Nicolai found this out before anything happened and helped her. Thus, he never went into a craze and killed himself in a drunken accident. He now lives happily with his wife while working close with S.T.A.R. labs and Axion Labs."

"…You changed small parts of their backstories." Batman noted. "By changing these small things, you reshaped their entire lives."

"Exactly." Phantom noted. "If the origin of a superhero is a fragile thing, then so is the origin of the villain."

"…Will there be backlash?" Batman questioned. "I was told that there were consequences to using the Gauntlet in such ways."

"It's been handled." Phantom smiled. "I used all the good karma I had built up. There shouldn't be any problems."

"…Why choose them?" Batman inquired. "Out of everyone in the world, why change them?"

"The Guantlet revealed a lot to me." Phantom explained. "I learned more about all of my enemies. Those three were the only ones that could be redeemed with such small changes."

"I see." Batman seemed to understand. "But why did you leave so much left unchanged? You could have reshaped anything."

"I couldn't go crazy with the stuff. I couldn't end world hunger or stop all the murderers in the world without consequences." Phantom stated. "There were a lot of things I couldn't change without ripples spreading out and changing everything."

"Is that why you let the Black Lanterns disappear?" Batman asked.

"Those guys are complicated." Phantom shrugged. "The Gauntlet can influence them, but only if you're close to them. They disappeared as soon as I beat Freakshow. They must have hid in an alternate dimension or something because I couldn't find them."

"I see…" Batman sighed. "Then there's nothing we can do about that."

"Nope." Phantom agreed. "We'll just have to deal with them when they show up again."

"True…" Batman nodded. "But at least we won't have to worry about the Light for a while. Queen Bee and Luthor were released and Jinx escaped before we took everyone at Santa Prisca into custody. But besides that, all the villains and assets that were involved during the events of the New Year are in custody."

"I heard you were going to transfer Walker to the Ghost Zone prison." Phantom mentioned.

"The League had a vote. The Ghost Zone can better contain ghost criminals." Batman answered. "Perhaps someday Belle Reve can hold such beings, but right now, we're still trying to clean up the mess that Hugo Strange and the Light's conspiracy made."

"I wouldn't count the Light out yet." Phantom frowned. "They are an influential group. They may be licking their wounds, but they'll be back. Just like the Black Lanterns."

"Yes…" Batman had a frown of his own. "Until then, we'll just prepare the best we can."

"No use worrying about it now." Phantom mentioned as he walked by the Dark Knight. "Nothing we can do but rest up and get ready. But I'm sure that if the Council of the Elite and the Justice League work together, then the bad guys will never win."

"And Young Justice?" Batman questioned.

"…We'll be here to fix things whenever they go wrong." Phantom grinned.

"Hey, Danny!" Artemis's shout drew the halfa's attention over to his teammates. "Hurry up!"

"Art, he's talking to Batman." Kid Flash muttered and rubbed the back of his head.

"So what?" Superboy crossed his arms. "It's been five days since we saw him. Can't he just say hi first?"

"Oh? Are your feelings hurt?" Robin elbowed the clone.

"No, Conner's just excited." M'gann giggled and grabbed her boyfriend's arm. "He's been looking forward to seeing his best friend all day. You should have seen him earlier. He was almost jumping off the walls."

"M'gann!" Superboy gave her a betrayed look.

"Oh! Please tell me you recorded that." Zatanna pleaded.

"I have a memory I could show you." M'gann mentioned.

"That's good enough." Rocket chuckled.

"Perhaps that is not a good idea." Kaldur came to his friend's aid. "Conner gets angry enough without teasing in the picture."

"Oh?" Red Huntress raised an eyebrow. "So would you prefer it if we made fun of you instead?"

"…" Aqualad paused. "Alright. Make fun of Superboy."

"Traitor!" Conner snapped. "Can't we just make fun of Wally like usual?"

"Hey! Don't turn this on me!" Kid Flash raised his hand up in surrender. "I haven't even done anything too stupid yet. I wanted to get through at least a week before Artemis and I had our first argument."

"And how did that go?" Rocket questioned.

"It's…been a struggle." Artemis threw an arm over her boyfriend's shoulder nonetheless.

"Hey! Don't start the party without me!" Phantom called over. "I'll be there in a minute!"

"Hmm…" Batman glanced between the halfa and the rest of Young Justice. "I heard that you fixed all of your power problems. I was wondering if that would become a bigger issue, but I'm glad that it didn't. This Team is better with you in it."

"Thanks." Phantom smiled.

"For that reason, I'm glad you rejected our offer to join the League." Batman noted. "Are you going to tell them about it, or will you keep it a secret?"

"No more secrets, I think they already know." Phantom mentioned. "They're not stupid and Superboy does have great hearing after all…"

"I see…" Batman nodded. "But I do have to ask…will the power issue ever pop up again?"

"No it won't." Phantom shook his head. "I've learned that I can't kill myself with guilt if I ever want to protect what matters. Forgiveness isn't just for others. Sometimes, the hardest thing to do is to forgive yourself."

"…That I know." Batman admitted.

"But if I continue to focus on what's gone, I'll never be able to live for today." Phantom noted. "So, I let go of my past mistakes. I have a clean conscious, and it's all thanks to my friends. With their help, I managed to forgive myself and let the failures I thought I made go away. Because of them, I remembered something that I let myself forget."

"And that is?"

Phantom looked over to his Team. They were still laughing and joking with each other. Every one of his friends were giving the halfa gestures to come over and join them. It was then that Phantom turned back to Batman and gave the Dark Knight the most serene look Batman ever had seen.

"No matter what happens and what is lost, there's always something that matters enough to let go of the past and keep fighting for the future."

* * *

><p><strong>The End<strong>

**Absolution- A story by The Struggling Warrior**

**Stay tuned for Bonus Chapters "Behind Absolution" and "Ghost Tales"**

**Note: I remember starting this story a little over a year ago, and the series three years ago. It feels unreal to get to this point, even though I feel rather sad that I've already gotten past the first season of Young Justice. Luckily, the prospect of the next story, which will take place in between seasons 1 and 2, will push me forward. To those that have stuck with me up to this point, thank you so much. And don't worry. The best is yet to come.**


	35. Behind Absolution

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"There are things I can't force. I must adjust. There are times when the greatest change needed is a change of my viewpoint."

Denis Diderot

* * *

><p><strong>Behind Absolution<strong>

(Sunday-July 4, 2010)

"It worked?" Vandal Savage asked the scientist from his specific screen.

"Y-yes, sir…" The man nodded. "The body you gave us successfully adapted to the ectoplasm."

"That is great news." Ra's Al Ghul smiled from another monitor. "I knew that the monster would adapt. He has been exposed to the Lazarus Pit for decades."

"I'm not so impressed!" Klarion's screen showed that he was frowning. "I could have easily animated the stupid body without ectoplasm."

"Oui, it would have been possible, Monsieur Klarion." The Brain agreed. "But zhis shows a great step in the Ghoul Project."

"Indeed." Queen Bee smiled. "This is the first time that there has been any success at all."

"But the first success never comes without consequences." Luthor stated.

"Er…" The scientist looked up at the screens that showed his bosses. "Yes, there seems to be a problem with the monster."

"And?" Savage questioned.

"He's…without any better terms to describe it…an angry moronic blob of muscles." The scientist explained. "We have no way of controlling his actions, and we fear that he will break out soon…"

"I see…" Ra's stroked his beard. "It is to be expected. The Lazarus Pit causes madness to those who enter it."

"It's not that he's crazy…" The scientist stated. "It's more that he won't listen to anyone. He's yelling and going on about how he has to kill someone and protect his home and family."

"Really?" Klarion seemed intrigued.

"Is he saying anything else?" Luthor questioned.

"Yes, he seems fond of the Solomon Grundy nursery rhythm." The scientist explained.

"Hmm…It seems fitting." Queen Bee was amused.

"But…er, I have to ask…What do you want me to do with him?" The scientist questioned. "If we keep him here, he might very well destroy everything."

"Excellent point…" The Brain agreed. "We have put a lot of effort into this Ghoul Project. We can't put it in danger."

"Agreed." Savage nodded.

"Where do we move him?" Queen Bee questioned. "If he's that out of control, then we don't have the proper facilities to hold him right now."

"Perhaps we should find a way to calm him down first." Luthor suggested.

"Uh, if you're thinking of drugging, using telepathy, or putting him on ice, then that won't work." Klarion noted. "He is a combination of magic and ectoplasm after all. He won't be that easy to subdue."

"Then, maybe it's time for a proper test to the first success of the Ghoul Project." Savage smiled. "Put him head to head with a real ghost."

"Ah…" Ocean Master smiled. "Then, Amity Park?"

"Amity Park." Savage nodded.

* * *

><p>(Sunday-July 4, 2010)<p>

"You're saying that…Danny Phantom was with these young heroes?" Savage questioned.

"Y-yes. It was quite the surprise to see him with the Leagues's sidekicks." Dr. Desmond fidgeted nervously.

"Why would he be in D.C.?" Ra's questioned.

"Perhaps it has something to do with the League." Queen Bee questioned. "They most likely want to keep him close in order to control him."

"But…then that means he isn't in Amity Park to deal with the other problem." Luthor frowned. "That is problematic."

"There are others in Amity Park to deal with it." Brain stated. "Besides, this gives us a great opportunity to eliminate Phantom before he can become an even greater problem, isn't that right, L-1?"

"…"

"L1?" Ra's questioned.

"Try to clone Phantom as well, but do not eliminate him." Savage ordered. "He has gained my interest. I want to see how far he can evolve."

"B-but he couldn't even beat Project Kr." Dr. Desmond noted. "He isn't that strong."

"I'm sorry? Are you questioning my orders?"

"N-no! O-of course not!" Dr. Desmond paled.

"Then do it."

* * *

><p>(Sunday-July 4, 2010)<p>

Grundy struggled against his bonds. He was in a dark cage. That much was obvious. Grundy remembered enough about cages to know where he was.

"Let Grundy free!" Grundy hollered. Then, he felt electricity ran through him. "AH!"

After the electricity stopped, Grundy was left panting. That kept happening. Whatever put him her obviously didn't want him to get free, but he had to escape! He had to get home! It was in trouble! His family was in trouble!

Dani was in trouble!

…Wait…Who was Dani? Where was home? Did he have a family?

Grundy…didn't know. He didn't remember. All that he knew was the anger. The absolute anger was caused by the images. The blond haired boy in pajamas…The small green blob…The thousands of green beings…They were all dead!

Who were they? Why did he see them? All Grundy had was questions, and that just made him angrier.

"GRAH! Grundy must get out! Stop them! They'll kill everyone!"

But no one listened.

* * *

><p>(Sunday-July 4, 2010)<p>

"Ow!" Virgil Hawkins waved his finger around in pain. "Dang! Rich, your dumb machine shocked me again."

"Sorry, Virg." Richard Foley apologized. "I'm still getting the calibrations right for Back-Pack 1.0."

"It's alright man, but why are you even building this thing?" Virgil questioned.

"To carry my stuff, duh." Richie grinned. "Don't you ever get sick of lifting stuff around the hard way?"

"…Yeah, I know what you mean, man. It's a pain sometimes carrying my school books. I wish I could just levitate them up or something."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-July 8, 2010)<p>

"Never turn your back on Phantom." Batman instructed Robin.

"What?" Robin questioned as they entered the Batcave. "Why? He seems totally trustworthy."

"I question his motives." Batman stated. "I learned his obsession. 'To protect what matters.' How can he do that in the Team?"

"Maybe the Team matters to him." Robin suggested.

"I doubt it. Phantom cares about his family above everything else." Batman rationalized. "The Team will prevent him from being with them. It might be only a matter of time before he abandons the mission for his family."

"…I could see that happening…" Robin sighed. "But still, you let him join. Why would you do that if this is such a big risk?"

"…Because Phantom has always surprised me." Batman stated. "I'm hoping that he will do so again."

"Hoping? You?" Robin was confused. "Hopes not rational, though. I thought you only considered things from a rational perspective."

"…This is an exception."

* * *

><p>(Friday-July 9, 2010)<p>

"The Team is great!" Wally cheered as he sat the dinner table. "I'm loving every minute of this."

"And how is Superboy doing?" Wally's mother questioned. The clone had stayed with them for a while, so she was curious to his condition.

"Er…Good, I guess. Hard to tell with him." Wally admitted. "But you should see Miss Martian! She's gorgeous! The Team's going to be a million times better with her around."

"Uh huh…" Wally's father smirked. He knew how his son was. "I bet it did. You weren't drooling too much, right?"

"Dad!"

Wally's mother ignored this and continued to ask about the Team. "What about the others?"

"Well…Rob is the same. It's going to be cool to hang out with him more." Wally smiled. "Aqualad's a bit too serious some times, but that's just him. He's cool."

"And Phantom?" Wally's father questioned. "You mentioned he was on the Team?"

"He is, but…"

"But what?"

"I don't know about Phantom, though." Wally noted to his parents. "He seems a little unfocused at times."

"He's probably just nervous." Wally's mother suggested. "He doesn't spend a lot of time with humans, I bet."

"Probably not, but I'm worried that he's not all for the Team thing." Wally admitted. "I mean, it's great to have him on the Team. He's got a lot of solo experience under his belt, but…I don't know. If he isn't all for it, then how can he work with us?"

"That's oddly deep of you."

"Yeah! I'm really deep. You'd be surprised about what goes on in my brain."

"Mostly girls probably."

"Dad!"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-July 17, 2010)<p>

Kaldur frowned at his closest friend in the surface world. "You were rather harsh back there with Robin and Kid."

"That's because I know what you're little team really is. It's something to distract you and something to help the Justice League keep an eye on Danny Phantom." Speedy glared at the Atlantian.

"…What do you mean by that?" Kaldur questioned.

"Like you don't know." Speedy scoffed. "The Justice League is at complete odds with the ghosts. They'll do anything to gain an edge on them after they all basically lost during the war. What better way to do that than control the ghost's motivational speaker and role model?"

"Phantom is more than that." Kaldur reasoned. "Many in the League speak highly of him."

"…Yeah, I get that. He's good at what he does, and how he handled himself during the war showed his resolve…even if he's an idiot for putting up with this team thing and the League." Speedy nodded. "But even Phantom must realize that if the League has him under their thumb, then they have an edge on the ghosts."

"Phantom does not seem like the type to let himself be controlled." Kaldur argued.

"Exactly." Speedy snorted. "Eventually, he's going to get fed up with all of it and leave. I'm just surprised he didn't leave when I did. But that was his mistake, and he'll soon learn from it."

"…I don't want to agree with you." Kaldur sighed. "But it is a possibility."

"Look…it won't be you guys that cause it." Speedy noted. "It's the League. They won't like that he won't want to play perfectly by his rules. Eventually, they're going to start to argue, and then the tension with the ghosts will only get worse."

"You think that this will really end that badly?" Kaldur questioned.

"He'll mess up at some point." Red Arrow frowned at Aqualad. "Then you'll see that I'm right."

* * *

><p>(Sunday-July 18, 2010)<p>

Red Tornado watches as Phantom left the Cave. The android was very curious about the ghost. He was a mystery that could not be figured out by regular logic. The red machine wasn't sure if he liked having him around.

"Speedy was wrong." Red Tornado heard Robin state to Kid Flash and Aqualad from across the room.

"Yeah! This Team will totally work! And Phantom will do a great job in it." Kid Flash grinned.

"I agree. I understand Roy's concerns…But I do not believe that he sees what we see." Aqualad nodded. "Phantom will do a great job on this Team. Even if there is tension, I believe we will get through anything."

Red Tornado paused. It was true that Phantom was a good influence on the Team. They functioned better with him on the Team. He was the glue that held them together. Now that made logical sense, and Red Tornado quite liked that.

* * *

><p>(Sunday-July 18, 2010)<p>

Pandora gritted her teeth. "I can't believe that freak would dare to try and harm my daughter."

"I understand how you feel, Pandora, but please don't do anything rash like forbidding her from coming to the human world." Vision warned. "Your daughter needs her friends."

"I…I am aware of that." Pandora nodded. "They are a good influence on her. The problem is…there are other influences as well. What if Freakshow revealed to full truth to her? What if Klarion met with her? She is safer at home."

"That she is." Vision could not argue with that. "But let me ask you this…Is life about safety, or about enjoying the time you have as much as you can despite the risks?"

"You're right. Just like always…I hate arguing with you." Pandora sighed.

"Everyone does." Vision stated smugly.

* * *

><p>(Sunday-July 18, 2010)<p>

"It seems that the Team has elected Phantom to be their leader." Red Tornado noted as he approached Batman in the Cave.

"Yes. It was a logical choice." Batman grunted as he continued to work with the holographic computer.

"You seem…upset. Did you wish for Robin to be in charge?" Red Tornado questioned.

"I would be lying if I said that thought did not cross my mind, but I am well aware that Robin is not ready to lead yet." Batman noted.

"And Phantom? Are you okay with him leading the Team?" Red Tornado inquired.

"Young Justice." Batman corrected. "They have dubbed themselves Young Justice."

"I see…So are you displeased with their choice in leadership?"

Batman paused. "Phantom has a lot of potential, but it is hard not to worry. He has other responsibilities after all. But…I am willing to give him a chance. He's earned it through his hard work and dedication to the fight against injustice."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-July 22, 2010)<p>

"It wasn't my fault!" Walker argued as he and Jinx stood before their bosses. "She wouldn't work with me!"

"Jinx has been successful in every other mission she's ever been on." Ra's mentioned. His image frowned from the monitor above Walker and Jinx. "It is only with you that she has failed. What does that say about you?"

Walker merely frowned.

"I apologize." Jinx bowed before the Light. "I should have done combat drills with Walker to prepare."

"We did just randomly pair him with you a few days ago…" Ocean Master mentioned. "I believe it would be unfair to punish you. Especially because Sportsmaster did manage to retain a sample of Kobra Venom."

"Agreed." The Brain spoke up. "It would be illogical for punishment at this point."

"Still, I don't believe these two make a compatible team." Queen Bee noted. "Perhaps we should think of pairing Walker with someone else."

"Agreed. Jinx works best when she is alone." Savage agreed. "Jinx, you will go back to your solo duties. Walker, we will place you under the command of Lady Shiva. You are to listen to every word she says."

"But-"

"No arguing." Luthor glared at the ghost. "You are not in charge here. We are."

Walker pursed his lips and fumed silently.

"Ah~ Don't be down, Walky…" Klarion chuckled. "Lady Shiva's getting assigned to a special project you'll enjoy. It was only a few hours ago I sensed a very special object pop up in Amity Park."

"Amity Park?" Walker perked up.

"Yes." Savage nodded. "You will work with Lady Shiva in obtaining the Mirror of Memories."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-July 22, 2010)<p>

Even when Walker and Jinx were dismissed, the Light did not disband their meeting.

"The Ghoul Project is officially gaining way." Lex Luthor mentioned. "Soon, we will begin to get results."

"Are you okay with this, Ra's?" Ocean Master questioned. "That boy of yours is in it, after all."

"He will be fine." Ra's had a look of steel. "He will survive."

"The boy does have time, zough." The Brain mentioned. "We did order the scientists zere to hold up a bit until we obtain the mirror."

"It won't matter." Ra's mentioned. "It's only a matter of time."

"You seem oddly calm about all this." Queen Bee noted.

"You don't know that boy. His genetics and force of will are unmatched." Ra's gave a small grin. "If anyone could survive the Ghoul Project, it would be him."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-August 3, 2010)<p>

"I cannot believe you followed me!" Lady Shiva glared down at her daughter.

"Is it really so hard to believe? I follow you everywhere." Cassandra blinked. "You rarely notice, though."

"Oh? So the great Lady Shiva has a blind spot for her daughter…" Walker grinned.

"Be silent ghost, before I slay you where you stand." Shiva threatened. Her gloves glowed a dull green.

Walker shut up.

"Besides, I don't see why you are so mad. If I didn't interfere with your fight, you might have lost." Cassandra mentioned. "You should not have underestimated Spirit."

"…You are right about that." Shiva sighed. "If I went all out from the beginning, I would not have been injured. I could have retrieved the mirror, and the mission would have been a success."

"What will we tell the bosses?" Walker questioned. "No mirror. All the Necromancers were destroyed. We failed completely."

"It will be fine." Shiva noted. "The mirror was only a side project for the Light. It doesn't matter too much, because I doubt the ghosts will use it. The Necromancers concern me, though. We are out of supplies to build more. The Light shall not be pleased."

"Then why don't you get more supplies?" Cassandra questioned.

"It's more complicated than that." Shiva noted. "Ectoranium is rare, and it takes a lot of it to make a Necromancer, and it's not like we can make the metal out of thin air."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-August 3, 2010)<p>

"Gah! I can't stand that guy!" Tyler Longshadow growled as he walked by his friend.

"Ty…" Jaime Reyes gave his best friend a sympathetic look. "You talking about your mom's boyfriend again?"

"Yeah! Maurice thinks that he's such a big man." Tyler gained a dark look. "But when I get older, I'll be bigger than him and show that jackass just how tiny he is."

"Hermano, I get that you're mad, but I don't think picking a fight with the guy will help." Jaime sighed.

"Yeah, I know. I'm just venting some steam." Tyler deflated. "You think I can stay over at your place over the weekend? I need a break from that guy."

"Alright, but I'll have to ask mi padres." Jaime mentioned. "They want to know and control everything about my life. I swear, if they could, they would have me covered in armor for the rest of my life."

* * *

><p>(Monday-August 9, 2010)<p>

Solomon Grundy did not have a whole lot to do in his cell. It was too small for his liking, and he was chained to stop him from moving. They tried a color thingy on him, but it didn't work on his unusual body. Thus, they tried the old fashioned way.

Not that Grundy wanted to escape. He was too deep in thought. That girl he fought…who was she? How did he know her? She was so familiar, but Grundy could not know why. For some reason, he thought she was his sister for a second.

It was odd. Dani. Who was she to him? Why did he feel the obsessive need to protect her?

'She's in danger.'

"Huh?" Grundy blinked.

'Can you not feel it! Sister is in danger! Go! Help her now!'

"But!"

'Do you want Dani to die!?'

"…No, Sister must not die!" Grundy roared. He pulled at his chains. Before, they contained his power, but the eruption of anger made it so they crumbled before him. Now free, Grundy broke through a wall and began to ram his way through the prison. He had to get to Dani!

* * *

><p>(Monday-August 9, 2010)<p>

"We were unsuccessful, Master." Nocturne knelt down and bowed to the glowing black blob of energy.

**I see…Even with all that power, you still failed.**

"Forgive us…" Aragon trembled before Nekron.

**I do not forgive, but I am not mad in the first place. Perhaps things are better this way. If I destroyed the mirror for energy, then we could not use it later.**

"But…the mirror shattered." Nocturne looked up to his master.

**No. That was decoy planted by Vision. She is a crafty one. You were doomed to fail from the start.**

"We still should have killed the ghosts. Especially that halfa girl." Aragon grumbled to himself.

**No. Do not kill any of the half-ghosts yet. They interest me. So much destruction happens around them. It is because of that that I was able to form the rings that are now on your fingers.**

"But you promised us revenge." Nocturne argued.

**And so you shall have it. But only once my plans are complete. You are to begin destroying ancient artifacts once more. The energy they release shall slowly restore my power.**

"Yes, master." Aragon bowed.

"We shall obey, but it will take much time with only the two of us." Nocturne noted.

**Do not worry about that. I have a new recruit in mind. Tell me, have you ever heard of Hotep Ra?**

* * *

><p>(Monday-August 9, 2010)<p>

Vision silently moved through Colossus's domain and home. It wasn't like she need too, though. Colossus could sleep through almost anything.

"Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…" Colossus snorted loudly. He was spread out across his massive bed.

Using her excellent control of her energy, Visions gently lifted the giant into the air. She slid the Mirror of Memories into his back pocket and lowered him back to his sleeping position. "There we go. Uncle Col, please protect the mirror and rest up. I believe that we will need both you and the mirror's help sooner rather than later."

* * *

><p>(Friday-August 27, 2010)<p>

"Tsk…" Ember looked out of her tour bus as she exited Amity Park. "Who would have ever thought that I would be sad about leaving this place…"

The siren ghost looked down at her guitar. Danny had let her leave to follow her dream. Ember felt joy at knowing that he cared enough about her to let her go. Part of her really wished that he would have come with her, but she couldn't let him do that. He would have killed himself by abandoning his obsession.

"I guess we weren't meant to be right now…" Ember mentioned to herself. "But that doesn't mean that things won't change in the future…"

* * *

><p>(Friday-August 27, 2010)<p>

Asami Koizumi sometimes hated her life. Her parents were never around. All of the kids her age were very cruel to her. She had nothing important in her life besides her dreams.

The Japanese girl often dreamed of better things. She imagined herself a hero like in the manga and anime. The Chi using warriors that fought against space invaders like in Dragon Ball Z. Part of her wished that her life was like that.

In fact, that was all she wished for. Asami wanted something other than this boring and lonely life. She wanted friends to care for her. She wanted adventures that would take her to exotic lands. She wanted to be more than just Asami.

"(Not likely…)" Asami muttered in Japanese. She stopped sweeping up her kitchen and stared at the broom in her hand.

Damn, she wished that the broom was a katana right now, or something cool like that.

* * *

><p>(Saturday-September 4, 2010)<p>

All the members of Young Justice were silent as they sat in the Bioship. They all just recently had their memories restored by M'gann. Once this was done, they quickly made their way back to the Bioship for supplies.

They thought about going after Phantom, but they were reluctant. He had abandoned them. Of course, this wasn't the Danny that they knew, but it still stung. Some form of their leader did not trust them. What could have made him that way?

Logically, it didn't matter all that much. Phantom would soon regain his memories and return to his old self, but the Team could not get the thoughts out of their head. The seeds of doubt had been sowed, and who knew what disaster would happen when it was harvest time.

* * *

><p>(Saturday-September 4, 2010)<p>

"What do you mean Dani's missing?" Valerie glared at the girl in front of her.

"It's exactly what I said. Masters Mansion was infiltrated." Raven had to forcefully push down her worry and despair. "Dani was exhausted from her training, and we think that she was kidnapped."

"What moron would kidnap Mr. Masters's daughter?" Valerie growled and clenched her fists in anger.

"We don't know, but we're going to find out…" Raven held out a bag. "But we could use your help."

"My…help…" Valerie took the bag and looked inside. It was her old ghost hunting gear. "But I…"

"I know you don't do this anymore, but..." Raven bowed her head. "Please help me save my friend."

Valerie stared at the gear. She felt guilt creep up inside of her. During the GIW War, she decided not to fight out of fear. It was her biggest regret in life so far. She abandoned her closest friends like they were nothing. They were people that she fought side beside and who saved her life on several occasions. But at a moment's notice, she abandoned them…

She couldn't let herself do that again. Dani needed her help. It was no time to be selfish and guilt ridden. It was time hero up.

* * *

><p>(Saturday-September 4, 2010)<p>

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" A short balding man called the Penguin shouted.

"We're here on behalf of Mr. Masters…" One of the thugs lifted his bat that he just used to beat Penguin's bodyguards. "He has a few choice words for you."

"Oh, shit…" Penguin paled. Damn it! He shouldn't have worked with those freaks! Now, Masters was going to ruin him! "Wait! Wait! Can't we talk this out?"

"No. We can't." Another thug in a dark suit glared at the short man. "Mr. Masters is not happy that you decided to attack his daughter."

"But I didn't mean to! It was Crane and Jones!" Penguin argued. "I told them not to!"

"You were still part of the deal." The first thug spoke. "Mr. Masters cannot let this go unpunished."

"Please don't kill me!"

"We won't…We're going to beat you until you sign over all your assets to Mr. Masters."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-September 4, 2010)<p>

"(Where's Dad)?" Eduardo Dorado Jr. questioned.

"(I told you, Eduardo.)" Ed's grandfather looked down to Eduardo. "(Your father is away on business)"

"(That's what you always say!)" Eduardo argued.

"(Because it's always true.)" The elderly man stated.

Eduardo scoffed and walked off. He hated this. His dad was always gone, and even when he was home, he was busy with work. It was stupid. What was the point of life if you worked all the time?

"(Stupid Zeta Tubes…)" Eduardo mumbled. His dad always worked on the teleportation stuff. Well, that stuff worked right? So why couldn't he just have Ed teleport over there to see him from time to time?

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)<p>

Nocturne threw the mummy ghost to the ground.

Hotep Ra jumped to his feet and looked around at the dimension of black and red swirling energy around him. "Where have you taken me?"

Both Nocturne and Aragon ignored him and knelt to one knee.

"What are you doing?" Hotep Ra demanded.

**They are bowing before their master. Just as you should be doing.**

Hotep Ra whipped around in fear. He saw a massive blob of black pulsing energy behind him. The mummy instantly cowered as he felt the dark and evil Haunting Aura that the thing admit. "AH!"

Falling to his knees, Hotep Ra had to fight back tears. This…thing was powerful beyond words. How could such a thing exist?

**Do you know who I am?**

"N-no…" Hotep squeeked out.

**I am Nekron the Reaper. The ultimate ghost and the seeker of death.**

"B-but…you were killed…"

**Hahahahahahahahahahaha! How can a being whose element is death die?! I was merely weakened, but now my power is slowly returning. But it will take time. That is why I need servants to work under me and help me revive myself faster.**

"A-and…you w-want me to be your servant…" Hotep Ra trembled in fear.

**Yes. These two are too consumed by their hatred of the half-ghosts to think logically about them. That is why I chose you. You have no opinion on them. Neutrality. It will be needed so that the halfas aren't killed prematurely.**

"I…see…" Hotep Ra frowned. He did not wish to serve under anyone. Part of him would just prefer to be killed than to be a devoted servant like he was to the Pharaoh.

**Do not think that you will go unrewarded, though. In exchange for your service, I shall provide you with a kingdom of your own. You will rule until the time of your death, then the kingdom will be wiped out, just like every life in existence.**

"So…you'll spare me, and give my dream…" Hotep Ra frowned. "How do I know you are not lying?"

A large red X appeared across the blob.

**On my word. Cross my heart and hope to die. If I do not complete my promise, I will fade away completely.**

"…Alright…Do I have to sign something?" Hotep Ra questioned.

**No all you need to do is put on one of my rings. Do this, and we are forever bonded as master and servant.**

A black ring appeared in front of the mummy ghost. It did not take him long to put the ring on his finger just like the two ghosts behind him.

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)<p>

'Danny Phantom is Red X…' Cassandra noted as she stealthily moved back to her mother's location.

This was big news. If this got out, Phantom's reputation might be shattered. Cassandra would never tell, though. She respected and admired Phantom too much to hurt him like that. Besides, the Red X thing just made him cooler.

Originally, she just wanted to have Red X pass on the Ghoul Project file to Phantom, but this was better. She got to meet the person she admired so much. He was even cuter than he appeared in pictures.

She should be worried about what she just did. What she did was treason. The Shadows would have her killed if they ever found out. Cassandra was not concerned about that, though. She did the right thing. For once, she was happy with her choice in life.

'I wish that I could always feel like this…' Cassandra noted. It was too bad that she was born as an assassin. She never had a choice about how her life would turn out. The girl was just expected to obey. This was her fate.

That was part of the reason she admired Phantom so much. He fought against the role that fate had defined him with. He showed mercy when he was destined to show anger and hatred. Cassandra had never seen such a thing before. She often wished that she could be like that.

A person that fought against fate…it was a nice dream.

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)<p>

"God…What am I doing…" Jennifer Savage sighed as she sunk into her bed. Unlike most assassins, she was given a lavish living quarters. The bed was large and soft in the wide room covered in pink paint. Most assassins would scoff at this room, but Jen was gifted with many benefits by her father.

Lying on her bed, Jennifer thought about what transpired today. She and Danny reconciled. After discovering that Phantom was Fenton, the girl felt her life grow darker. Her only friend was also her greatest enemy. Oh, the bitter irony.

She didn't say anything to anyone for both her safety and the safety of Danny, but she was still hurt. Danny was the only person in the world that treated her normally. He was the only one that was ever kind to her for the sake of being kind besides her father…

Of course he did. He was a pretty big freak just like her. Half ghost, half human. To think, the key to the Ghoul Project her father mentioned was right there all along.

After discovering this, Jen knew that they could never be friends again, but Danny once again surprised her. He offered a hand of friendship out once again. One look into his eyes, and Jennifer could not stop herself from forgiving him. His sincerity and concern always shined through like that.

But…now what? How could they possibly be friends? If Phantom and Jinx met again, they would be forced to fight. Would they just fake it? Would it escalate and cause their friendship to break apart?

How could this ever work?

"Damn it…" Jennifer sat up. Her pink pajama hung loose from her body. "I'm a fool…"

She couldn't forsake her friendship with Danny. Jennifer cared too much about him to let that happen. She knew that her feelings for him were more than that of friendship. The girl desired a far more intimate relationship, but that would never happen.

Perhaps she could delude herself, though. For a brief time, she could pretend it was possible and act like a normal person. Because she wanted this so much, and she would do anything to have it.

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)<p>

Freakshow frowned. "Damn…Ra's got away."

Lydia was silent as she stood by his side. He had teleported them away from the Shadows base and back to one of the abandoned warehouses that they stayed.

"I was so close too…" Freakshow growled. "He was right there…Damn ninjas. Always so sneaky."

"…There are still other options. Other opportunities." Lydia mentioned.

"You're right, my dear, but I'm just tired." Freakshow sighed. "I just want to get this done. Once I'm Master of All Reality, we'll have the world in my palm. We will own this world and live like royalty for the rest of time."

"I don't care about that." Lydia shook her head. "It doesn't matter how we live, as long as we're together."

"But you deserve so much better than that!" Freakshow argued. He gently grabbed her shoulders. "You deserve the world, so that's what I'm giving you. No matter what…"

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)<p>

Ra's Al Ghul sighed as Red X left. "You do know that he will never join us. Something is off with him."

"He works for Fenton." Luthor prepared drinks for them. "He is extremely loyal to him for some reason."

"I see…That means Fenton gave the information to the ghosts about the Guys in White." Ra's sighed. "Should we take action?"

"Fenton didn't knowingly work against us. Plus, everything worked out in the end." Luthor shrugged and handed Ra's his drink.

"I suppose it did." Ra's nodded. "Besides, if Red X is allied to Fenton…That makes Fenton even more valuable to us."

"But will he ally with the Light?" Luthor sipped his drink.

"Oh, I'm sure he can be persuaded. We just need to find some common ground."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-September 7, 2010)<p>

"So what did you think of the new kids?" Karen Beecher questioned.

"Meh…" Mal Duncan shrugged. "Megan seems nice enough, but the guy with her was really weird."

Karen messed with her yellow and black outfit. "Tell me about it. He seems to take everything so seriously. But he seems to care about Megan. He even carried her books."

"Oh, alright." Mal didn't really care about that. He did that for Karen all the time after all. "Either way, I hope he doesn't-"

"Woah! Heads up!"

Mal reacted instantly. He jumped in front of Karen protectively and grabbed his friend Martin before the teen could fly any farther.

"Gah…Thanks, Mal. I totally wiped out there." Martin looked back to his upturned skateboard.

"Geeze, you need to be careful." Mal sighed. "You could have hurt someone. You're lucky I was here to stop you."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-September 23, 2010)<p>

"It seems that Joel managed to defeat Grundy…" Queen Bee spoke to her companions through the monitors.

"I see…" Ra's couldn't help but smile at the thought of his son taking down such a strong monster.

"Interesting, but you do realize zhat zhis was only a ploy to ignore the fact that zhey lost three test subjects." The Brain mentioned.

"I would say it worked. Joel showed a lot of promise, and just how far the Ghoul Project can go." Luthor mentioned. "Still, this failure cannot go completely unpunished…"

"I won't. I will have some of the guards that were involved killed." Queen Bee stated.

"Good. With that out of the way, can we talk about why the ghouls made a bee line to Amity Park?" Klarion questioned.

"It is interesting…" Savage nodded. "Were they drawn there by the mass amount of ectoplasm, the connection to the Ghost Zone, or something else?"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-September 25, 2010)<p>

Bertrand had to hold back tears as he saw the woman he love forced into a padded cell. He watched as the shadowing hollered and yelled. She rammed herself into the soft walls of her cell and tried to free herself from the straight jacket that held her.

"What are we going to do with her?" Bullet looked to Torch. This purple skinned muscular ghost with an eye patch used to be Walker's second in command, but he refused to abandon the Ghost Zone like his old boss. His loyalty was to the prison, not to Walker.

"Torch doesn't know…" Torch sighed and eyed the crazed ghost. "What can we do? Torch could try to find a way to restore her mind, but her madness will make it impossible. Until then, be careful with her, and treat her kindly…"

"So…" Bertrand looked to Torch. "You will try to help her?"

"Yes…" Torch nodded. "We will…"

"Will…will you let me speak to her sometimes?" Bertrand asked. "Maybe I can help bring her back…"

Torch and Bullet shared a look. Torch nodded slowly. "Alright, but you will be guarded…"

"Thank you…Thank you so much…"

* * *

><p>(Sunday-September 26, 2010)<p>

Cassie Sandmark sighed and looked over to her mother across the table. "No offense Mom, but all this Greek architect stuff is boring."

"Really? I thought that you would be really interested in it…" Helena Sandmark blinked.

"It's not my thing. Why would you even assume that I like it?" Cassie questioned.

"Well, your father…" Helana paused.

"My dad?" Cassie gained an excited look. "What about him?"

"Nothing. Nothing." Helana shook her head.

"Oh come on, Mom!" Cassie frowned. "Why can't you tell me anything about him? Every time he's brought up, you clam up."

"I'm sorry, Cassie. It's complicated."

"I don't see how it's complicated at all…" Cassie muttered and clenched the table in front of her. She didn't notice as her fingers left deep imprints on the wood.

* * *

><p>(Friday-October 1, 2010)<p>

"…That did not go as planned…" Savage noted to his comrades. Most of their meetings were on monitors because of the distance between them, but today they decided to meet in person. It was an important day because the Injustice League was going to ease the suspicions of the Justice Leauge and the Council of the Elite. Instead…

"Danny Phantom became Doctor Fate…" Klarion muttered. "Even I think that's scary."

"This derails a lot of our plans." Ra's noted.

"Still…Zhe power of magic mixed with ectoplasm is awe inspiring." The Brain actually seemed impressed.

"Is that the level that Nyx can reach?" Ocean Master questioned.

"Maybe…" Klarion shrugged. "I'll just have to find out."

"Either way, we will be able to control this new Doctor Fate when our plans with the Starro Tech are complete." Queen Bee mentioned.

"No…" Savage frowned. "This level of energy does not meet that of the ascended ectoplasm. And while Nabu is in control, Phantom cannot absorb ectoplasm to reach that level again."

"What can we do, though?" Klarion questioned. "I doubt Nabu will be willing to take another vessel. This level of power can only be matched if Doctor Fate used another ghost as a vessel."

"Then he have to hope that another ghost steps up…" Savage eyed the image of Phantom Fate. "Or we will have to use the Starro Tech experiment we have planned to order the good Doctor to release Phantom."

* * *

><p>(Friday-October 1, 2010)<p>

"This…was not what I was hoping to wake up to…" Colossus mentioned.

"No, today is a sad day for the Ghost Zone…" Vision mentioned as she stood in front her personal garden. "One of the future leaders of our world is now lost."

"What do we do?" Plasmius questioned. "We can't leave Daniel like this."

"We must free him immediately!" The Fright Knight roared. "Lord Phantom cannot be allowed to live under the thumb of Nabu!"

"There is no way to force the helmet off of someone without killing them, though." Vision sighed.

"Then we either convince Nabu release him or trick him into it." The Fright Knight grunted out.

"The only question is…how?" Plasmius sighed.

* * *

><p>(Sunday-October 10, 2010)<p>

"Today has been an interesting day to say the least…" Vandal Savage grinned.

"Kekekekekekekekeke!" Klarion chuckled. "Yeah! I sensed it! Nabu took a new vessel. Danny Phantom is now free, and Nabu still has the combined power of magic and ectoplasm."

"Zhis is zhe best possible option, no?" Brain questioned.

"Yes. Now the Light will have both Doctor Fate and Danny Phantom." Ocean Master grinned.

"Not only that, the Ghoul Project is showing even more progress." Queen Bee mentioned. "Joel fought Agent Z today. Zempell did manage to injure Joel, but he passed out from instability."

"I see…" Ra's nodded. "Did Joel do well?"

"He did." Queen Bee nodded.

"So…Phantom. Doctor Fate. The Ghoul Project…" Savage chuckled lowly. "It seems all of our plans are working out quite nicely."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-October 12, 2010)<p>

"Screw them…" Jason Todd mentioned. He was sick of living in foster homes and orphanages. It was annoying as hell, and he was always bored and hungry. So, he left.

Living off the streets was far easier than that. He did what he want when he wanted to do it. To stay alive, he used his pickpocket skills to take what he needed. Sure, he really didn't have a bed, but that was fine. He could hang out in one of the abandoned buildings. Gotham had plenty of them.

"Still…I could use a bit more cash." Jason mentioned to himself. Maybe he could pimp out an abandon warehouse? That would be awesome.

How would he get the money, though? He was too young to work. There was no way he'd beg for it. Pickpocketing only got you so much when most people used credit cards. What could he do?

Seeing all the cars in a nearby parking lot, Jason paused. "Maybe I can steel some tires and sell them?"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-October 23, 2010)<p>

"Tsk…I told you, I don't need to talk about anything." Artemis rolled her eyes. She pulled her legs up to her chest as a defense mechanism.

"Because you're too tough for help?" Black Canary questioned as she sat across from the blond archer. This therapy session didn't seem to be going anywhere. Artemis was far too guarded to talk about her trauma from the training simulation. "You know, it's not a weakness to accept help from friends."

"Well I didn't ask for help!" Artemis snapped. "And I sure didn't ask Danny to sacrifice his arm to save my life!"

"I see…" Black Canary nodded in understanding. "So you don't like the fact that Danny allowed himself to get hurt because of you…"

"…" Artemis clenched her fists. "Of course I don't! I hate being weak! I couldn't do anything to help anyone!"

"There was nothing you could have done." Canary encouraged. "The simulation was designed to only get worse as time went on."

"That doesn't matter! I should have done something instead of almost get killed and later watch as Wally was killed without even trying to save him…"

"I see…" Black Canary tilted her head. "Why just Wally? Why not someone else?"

Artemis's face flushed. "No…I, er…I mentined that Danny lost his arm…"

"Don't use that to hide what's really bothering you."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-October 23, 2010)<p>

"Look, I'm fine." Wally stuffed a handful of popcorn into his mouth. "It's not like I saw anyone I care about die or anything."

"But you did see Danny lose his arm, and Kaldur was lost in the conflict." Black Canary argued.

"…Yeah, well, that stung, but it's all fine now." Wally rapidly chewed on a candy bar.

"Oh? What about the moment of your death?" Canary encouraged.

"What? I ran up to Bro, pushed him away, and disappeared in a blink." Wally snorted out and momentarily paused his eating.

"That's right. You ran up knowing that you would die in his place." Canary eyed the speedster.

"It's no big deal. Danny would have done the same for me." Wally shrugged.

"He would have." Canary nodded. "I can see that you're telling the truth mostly, but the thing about disappearing in a flash…I know that's a lie. You're a speedster and your adrenaline was running rapid in that moment. That moment happened in slow motion for you."

"Whatever…I guess so…" Wally fidgeted uncomfortably.

"Tell me, what were you thinking about in that moment?" Canary questioned.

"Oh you know, the usual. My parents." Artemis. "Food." Artemis. "Girls." Artemis.

Did he mention Artemis?

* * *

><p>(Saturday-October 23, 2010)<p>

"Hurting? Try traumatized." Robin lowered his head and intertwined his fingers. "I watched everyone I care about die in front of me, and my biggest dream was destroyed."

"Dream?"

"I always wanted…assumed that I would become THE Batman," Robin sighed. "But I saw what that really meant. Danny was in charge of everything. He was the one that would sacrifice anything for the mission. I saw how it slowly killed him. Every death made him look like he lost a piece of his soul."

"The mantle of leader is a heavy burden to bear." Canary nodded.

"But it was who I thought I was meant to be." Robin argued. "But after I saw what it really meant…I was thankful."

Black Canary gained a surprised look.

"I was so desperate to be the leader at first, but Danny naturally took the spot. I thought that eventually, I would take over, but now I'm glad that I never had to lead at all." Robin shook his head. "I won't…can't be the one responsible for so many people's lives."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-October 23, 2010)<p>

"I am no longer fit to be on Young Justice." Kaldur stated evenly.

"What?" Black Canary was shocked. "Why?"

"I directly disobeyed a direct order." Kaldur explained. "Danny ordered me to retreat, but I stayed and made sure that he survived."

"And you think that means you don't deserve to be on the Team anymore?" Canary questioned.

"Yes." Kaldur nodded.

"Kaldur, you were concerned with your friend." Black Canary tried to comfort him. "There is no sin in that."

"No…That is only the partial truth." Kaldur's face twisted in guilt. "I…saw what happened to Amity Park in the simulation. It was hell, and Danny was torn apart on the inside especially when…He was forced to leave the Red Huntress to die."

"Kaldur…"

"And in that moment, I knew that I would not be able to go on if I saw that happen to Atlantis. If I had to…" Kaldur stopped. If he had to leave Tula to die like that. It would kill him to lose the girl he loved. "The invaders would surely target Atlantis like that, and if I knew that I saw that, I wouldn't be able to lead Young Justice. Only Danny had to strength to lose everything and keep going. That is why I shifted that burden onto him."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-October 23, 2010)<p>

"It was all my fault." M'gann gently bopped her head. " Hello, Megan. Who else could take a simple exercise and turn it into a nightmare that terrorized everyone she cares about…"

Black Canary raised an eyebrow as M'gann's green skin shifted to Caucasian white. "You turned white…"

"No!" M'gann gasped and jumped to her feet. She looked at her arms in terror. "Oh…You meant Caucasian." She slowly sat down. "Yeah, I'm fine being Megan, but I can't be trusted with my other powers."

"M'gann, you're a Martian. Not using your natural abilities is like me refusing to speak, which, by the way, I tried for a while after my very first Canary Cry nearly deafened my entire first grade class." Black Canary noted. "So, I get how you feel, but not being yourself is never the answer. It won't make your feelings of guild go away. You must learn from what happened. Your uncle would be happy to train you. Practice, until you gain control and regain your confidence."

"But…" M'gann had tears in her eyes. "What if I hurt someone like I did with Danny? I basically shattered his mind."

"M'gann, that won't happen again as long as you have control over yourself."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-October 23, 2010)<p>

"Here's the ugly truth…" Superboy sat across from Black Canary. After having a strange adventure with a group of "new gods" that called themselves the Forever People, Superboy decided that it would be best to talk about what happened. "I wasn't devastated. Even with Superman, Tornado, you, the whole League dead. Even though I didn't save Wolf, watched Danny lose his arm, learned about Kaldur's death, watched Wally die, and abandoned M'gann, I felt…at peace."

Black Canary's jaw dropped.

"See from the moment I first opened my eyes in the Cadmus pod, there's been one thing that I've wanted and feared. To know what it is to be Superman." Conner explained. "And I knew, so I was…happy."

Superboy looked at Canary in desperation. "Everyone I know and care about is traumatized, and I'm happy. How do I get past the guilt of that? How do I live with myself?"

"I have no easy answers, Conner." Black Canary placed a gentle hand of Superboy's knee. "But one thing's clear. Admitting it is the first step."

"…" Superboy looked up at Black Canary and looked back down. "You know what the funny thing is…The trust and belief that people showed me. I already knew what it was like."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I never realized it, but Danny always looked at me like that. Even when we were fighting for our lives, he never once doubted me. He trusted me without question since the beginning. I never needed to have everyone die to see what it was like to be Superman."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-October 28, 2010)<p>

Tim Drake had a look of contemplation as he watched to footage. He saw it the first time, but he wanted to make sure. He watched as Robin the Boy Wonder flipped and turned in mid-air.

"It's the same." Tim mentioned to himself and his computer. "Just like the Flying Graysons…"

With those moves, the boy under that mask had to be the only survivor of the Flying Grayson family. Richard Grayson was Robin. Not only that, Grayson was the ward of Bruce Wayne. That meant…Bruce Wayne is the Batman.

'Did I really just figure that out?' Tim questioned.

It did make sense after all. Who else but someone with a ridiculous amount of wealth, free time, and solitude could possibly be Batman? No one really.

The only question was what to do now. Tim knew their secrets. He could easily do something with it, but if he did anything, then it would threaten the Dynamic Duo's lives. Gotham needed Batman and Robin, so Tim couldn't risk their lives like that.

"I guess I'll just keep it to myself." Tim shrugged and closed the video on his computer. "Not like I'll ever need to use the info after all."

* * *

><p>(Sunday-October 31, 2010)<p>

"You are a cold man, Z." Psimon mentioned as he led Grundy down the walls of the bloodied and silent Ghoul Project.

"Whatever…" Agent Z grunted. He carried Joel over his shoulder.

"You just prove my point." Psimon chuckled.

"Just take Grundy back to his cage." Agent Z rolled his eyes. "I'll take care of the kid."

"Whatever you say…" Psimon just smiled. "Alright, Grundy, Psimon says, go to your cell."

Grundy grunted and obeyed the telepath.

Agent Z ignored them as they wen the opposite direction. Instead, he went to the area where both he and Joel were kept during their stay in the Ghoul Project. The man paused when he saw their cages. He remembered his past discussions with the boy. 'I told this kid more about my life than I ever told anyone…'

And he betrayed Joel without a second thought.

"I'm such a heartless bastard." Agent Z muttered and put Joel back in his cage. "I betray the only person who showed me kindness in a long time…"

Phantom didn't count. There were days that Agent Z wished the ghost just killed him. The sweet embrace of Death would be kinder than this. This boy, on the other hand, stuck his neck out for Agent Z. His reward was decapitation.

"For what it's worth…I am sorry." Agent Z looked at the unconscious boy. "But this is the path that I have chosen. I must finish this. Even if it costs me my soul, I must have vengeance. I must kill Danny Phantom."

Turning, Agent Z began to walk away from Joel. "Forgive this old fool, Trever...Ellie. I have failed you once again."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-October 31, 2010)<p>

"You called for me?" Jinx bowed before the members of the Light.

"Ah, Jinx." Queen Bee smiled down at the girl. "How wonderful to see you."

Jinx frowned at Queen Bee's sweet tone. "Is there something wrong, your majesty?"

"She is angry. Just like the rest of us…" Ra's had a prominent scowl. He did not like how today went. First what happened with Joel, and now this…

"What did I do to anger you?" Jinx questioned.

"Kekekekekekekekekekeke!" Klarion laughed madly. "She asks like she doesn't know."

"Perhaps, zhis will clear up your memory." The Brain played back an audio tape they received from their mole Red Arrow.

"…_And there's still the problem of Phantom." Red Arrow mentioned._

"_Problem? I don't believe that there is a problem." Kaldur frowned._

"_That's because you've blinded yourself to the fact that he has mixed loyalties." Red Arrow glared. "Did you forget that he's part of that ghost Council just as much if not more than his membership in Young Justice? He's probably feeding them info daily."_

"_Red Arrow does have a point." Batman acknowledged. "Phantom cares a great deal about the fate of the ghosts, and we do not know what the plans of the ghosts are at this time."_

"_Are you kidding me?" Robin seemed insulted by all this. "Danny has taken down every villain we've come across. He's stuck by us. Hell, he even sacrificed himself by becoming Doctor Fate for us! How can you even consider being suspicious."_

"_That's the thing…" Red Arrow's eyes narrowed. "How do we not know that he didn't plan that from the beginning? We have no way of knowing of how ghosts influence Nabu. For all we know, that Dora is more in control than Nabu."_

"_That…is a possibility. I doubt it, though." Batman acknowledged. "Plus, there's the fact that Phantom has some…questionable contacts on the other side of justice."_

"_Who? Red X?" Kaldur questioned. "That much was obvious from the beginning when you invited Danny to the Hall on the fourth."_

"_No…It's not Red X. It's Jinx."_

Jinx was frozen in her spot. Cold beads of sweat rolled down her face. Her secret was found out. 'Damn it…'

"Jinx…" Vandal Savage stared down at his daughter. "Explain. Now."

* * *

><p>(Friday-November 5, 2010)<p>

Klarion smiled in glee. It had been the most wonderful of days. For once, his friends let him use his powers for something fun and useful. He got to separate the world into two. One for the adults, and one for the children.

That would be good enough fun on its own, but the day was far more profitable than that. Because of his distraction, the Light had managed to recover the remains of Starro. Now they were close to constructing Starro Tech. The mind control devices that would allow them to completely control the League.

But that wasn't even the best part of the day. No, the best part was when he met with Nyx. For the first time since her creation, Nyx got a glimpse of her father. She was even more perfect than Klarion thought. He could see the beginnings of madness in her eyes. That spark would only be strengthened as Nyx grew more curious about chaos.

"I may have to jumpstart that spark a bit more, though, if Pandora manages to intervene too much…" Klarion mumbled as black sparks of magical energy danced around his fingers.

Of course, things weren't all good. It turns out that the Gem was in Amity Park. Who would have thought that Trigon's spawn would be hiding there? It was a smart thing to do. Klarion was actually impressed by the cunning the girl showed by hiding in such a place. From the outside, she just looked like a normal magic user.

"Too bad the demon girl needs to die. She has potential."

* * *

><p>(Friday-November 5, 2010)<p>

Cassandra sighed as she sneaked back into her room. She did not get the chance to speak with Phantom like she wanted. It was a silly desire, but she thought that she might have a chance with her mother gone. It turned out to be useless, though. Phantom didn't even show up in Amity Park once.

"I wish that Spirit would have listened…" Cassandra whispered to herself.

There were plenty of whispers and rumors going on. But that wasn't what caught Cassandra's attention. No, what really caught her attention was when her mother, the ever calm Lady Shiva, began shouting at her superior. She yelled how she didn't care if Savage was going to confront Phantom soon and how she didn't want Cassandra to even be considered for a future project.

Cassandra didn't know what the second thing meant. After all, it seemed like her mother got her way. The odd thing was some of the words that were thrown around.

What did 'genetic superiority' have to do with anything?

* * *

><p>(Sunday-November 7, 2010)<p>

"Hey, Billy!" Mary Bromfield shouted to her friend.

"Huh?" Billy Batson blinked as he saw his friends run up to him. "What's up?"

"We were trying to find you all weekend." Freddie Freemen mentioned. "We were worried. I mean, come on, the adults disappeared."

"The heroes handled it." Billy mentioned.

"Yeah, but still…" Mary gave him a worried glanced. "You look pale. Is something wrong?"

"No," Billy lied as his thoughts turned to how his secret was revealed to the League. They weren't exactly happy. "I'm just tired. I didn't sleep at all while all that was going on."

"I bet." Freddie nodded. "I was freaking out, man."

"You should go get some rest." Mary encouraged. "It might make you feel better."

"Right…Feel better."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-November 11, 2010)<p>

"It is done." Savage addressed his colleges.

"Are you sure zhis is wise?" The Brain questioned. "To give Phantom such information…"

"It is all part of the plan." Ra's noted. "He will 'rescue' Joel and Grundy, but that won't matter. With the ultimatums we have given Phantom, we will either have control over them through Phantom's acceptance or through force."

"Are you not worried about this, Ra's?" Klarion questioned. "What if Joel doesn't do what you want? What if he runs away?"

"Joel does not have a chaotic mind like you, Klarion." Queen Bee stated. "He is logical. Amity Park is his best bet of stability for now…Until he realizes that the Lazarus Pit is his best bet."

Ra's grinned in agreement. "But I do believe that Talia has a plan to speed things up if need be…"

"I do have a question, though." Ocean Master spoke up. "Not about Joel, but Phantom. Even if he submits to our threats, will he really accept all of our plans for him?"

"We do not need him to agree immediately." Savage answered. "Just give it a few years for him to mature. Once he gets older, his wants in life will change, and he's already so close to Jinx as it is…"

* * *

><p>(Thursday-November 11, 2010)<p>

"Are you allowed to do that?" Dream questioned. "You talked to someone who wasn't dead or going to die…"

"Joel and Dani are exceptions to the rules. Just like Danny." Death mentioned.

"That much?" Despair blinked.

"Well…Not that much, but a little bit." Death smiled. "I can meet with them under the right connection. They lack Danny's natural connection to us, though."

"Why though?" Destruction questioned. "Why can you talk with them?"

"It's a complicated thing!" Delirium spoke up. "Hope! Joy! Endurance! The components of life!"

"Your outlook always astounds me." Destiny chuckled. "But remember, while those three things are the requirements to live, there are things that make life easier and sometimes worth living. Things like Knowledge and Love…"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-November 13, 2010)<p>

"Ha!" Donna Troy flipped her opponent and pointed a sword to the down Amazon's neck. "Do you yield?"

"Y-yes…" Alexa trembled. "I yield."

Donna raised his hand in triumph. She looked around the arena she was in and raised her sword into the air. She was met with roars from her fellow Amazonian women.

"Well, done, Donna…" Queen Hippolyta approached her daughter. "Thou did excellent."

"Yet I have not yet bested my elder sister yet. Where is Diana, by the way? I thought that she would be visiting today." Donna noted.

"Thy sister is busy in Man's World." Hippolyta stated. "There was a large attack on the States United. She said something about a massive snow storm. I believe she wanted to help ease the burdens of that the storm caused."

"Tsk…" Donna rolled her eyes. "If she keeps breaking her promises like this, then I might have to go after her in Man's World."

* * *

><p>(Monday-November 22, 2010)<p>

M'gann couldn't sleep. Her thoughts were consumed by her most recent exploits with her Team. She was beginning to hate Bialya. It was a country that seemed to cause her most difficult of hardships. First, Psimon wiped the minds of all of her teammates. Now, she was being blackmailed by Queen Bee because of her true Martian form.

The Martian girl thought that it would be settled when she put Psimon in a coma and destroyed all the cameras. He was the one with the knowledge of her true appearance after all, but that wasn't enough. Queen Bee knew too. M'gann thought about wiping the queen's mind, but the Bialyan leader threatened to have Garfield kill himself if she was harmed in any way.

Now, she was under the thumb of Queen Bee, and there was nothing she could do about it.

M'gann looked into one of the spare rooms to see Phantom, Spirit, and the new boy Joel sleeping. It was a really sweet sight. In any other circumstance, M'gann would have gushed at the scene. Right now, though, her mind was too focused on the difficulties she faced.

The heroine thought about telling Danny. Out of anyone, he was the one who was most likely to accept her monstrous true form. He understood discrimination after all.

'No…' M'gann shook her head. 'I can't let anyone know. Not even Conner or Danny…'

* * *

><p>(Monday-November 22, 2010)<p>

"It is one thing to see footage," Queen Bee mentioned. "But it is another to be in the presence of ascended ectoplasm. I was awed."

"I'm glad you finally see what I was talking about." Savage grinned.

"Even I'm impressed by the energy." Klarion mentioned. He actually looked serious for once. "I thought it was just a rumor until the Nocturne thing…"

"Where did that rumor even start?" Ocean Master questioned.

"Hmm…" Klarion paused. "Pariah Dark had those Observant guys look for the possibility of any powers that could rival his own. They said Nekron, anyone that steals his ring and crown, and an ascended form ectoplasm. I dismissed it at first. I mean, come on, they were basically describing a freaking angel…"

"It's strange how some things turn out like they do." Ra's chuckled. His words referred to more than just Danny's hidden powers, though.

* * *

><p>(Monday-November 22, 2010)<p>

"It is the second time that he reached that level of power." Destiny mentioned.

"It is." Death smiled.

"Hmm…" Destiny and Death walked through the abandoned facility of the Ghoul Project. Of course, nothing could see or touch them, but they could observe the fallout.

"How many more times will he have to use that power?" Death questioned.

"That's a spoiler." Destiny mentioned.

"Oh, right…My bad…" Death chuckled. "I guess…I want to interact with him again. It's nice to talk to people other than the dead and my siblings."

"Speaking of the dead…" Destiny paused at the arena where Agent Z and Phantom fought. "Agent Z…"

"Yes…" Death nodded. "Someone took his soul before I could get it. Do you know who? I don't care about spoilers this time."

"That's the thing…I don't know."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-November 25, 2010)<p>

_"Okay, so you went back to Cadmus…why?"_ Phantom's voice rang through Superboy's phone.

"Because I found out that there was another Superman clone…his name is Match." Conner explained. He was flying the Supercycle from D.C. back to Rhode Island.

_"What happened?"_

"I found him…fought him…put him back on ice…" Superboy grunted.

_"I see…."_ Phantom hummed. _"This…is a lot to take in Conner. Are you okay with what happened?"_

"Yeah…I just needed to talk about it. I'm heading back to the Cave. I'm sure M'gann's worried." Superboy sighed and patted Wolf who was at his side.

_"Are you going to tell her?"_ Phantom questioned.

"No, not yet. I just…I know that you wouldn't make a big deal about this or try to tell anyone." Superboy's voice answered.

_"Alright. I'll talk to you later. Happy Thanksgiving."_ Phantom noted.

"Yeah…Happy Thanksgiving." Superboy ended the call.

"Grr…" Wolf leg out a small whine. He sniffed the case of shields in Superboy's hands.

"I couldn't tell him…Not about these or Luthor." Conner frowned. "I just couldn't…

* * *

><p>(Sunday-December 5, 2010)<p>

Artemis sighed and crashed onto her bed. Today completely sucked. First she found out that she was only on the Team because her mom begged. Then, she found out that Red Arrow was trying to replace. And then…she messed up the mission completely.

"I'm such an idiot…" Artemis placed her hands over her face in shame. Why did she have to try and do everything herself? If she just did everything like they planned, then they wouldn't have failed. They would have won and might have captured Sportsmaster and Cheshire.

Rolling over, the blonde archer frowned at the thought of her family. Her father came by earlier. He was trying to pressure her into switching sides. Of course, she would never do that. Young Justice was more like family than her father ever was.

Still, she wished that she could talk to someone about this…

* * *

><p>(Sunday-December 5, 2010)<p>

"I did as you asked…" Jinx bowed before her bosses. "I told Phantom to warn Fenton."

"Excellent." Savage nodded. "He will need to be prepared for the day he is attacked."

"What if he cancels the conference?" Ocean Master questioned. "Isn't he fearful for his life?"

"There is only so much a man can take before he can't stand being pushed around anymore." Savage noted.

"Fenton has an extremely strong will. He won't take this threat lying down." Queen Bee agreed.

"It is likely zhat he will bring in Red X. Zhen, he will carry some weapons himself." The Brain mentioned.

"He'll probably have a few ghosts and heroes helping him discretely." Klarion scratched his chin. "But will that be enough if Freakshow really is behind this?"

"Good point." Ra's nodded. "Perhaps we should sent a few soldiers ourselves."

* * *

><p>(Sunday-December 5, 2010)<p>

"Look at me, Daddy!" Cissie King-Jones shouted as she jumped on her bed. "I'm like the archer girl!"

"Yes you are…" Bernell Jones chuckled. He remembered vividly how Green Arrow and his female companion saved him yesterday.

"Do you think that I can be that cool when I get older?" Cissie stopped bounced and looked at the Nerf bow and arrow in her hands.

"Oh…I'm sure you will be, Cissie." Cissie's mother, Bonnie King, grinned as she watched her daughter work with the bow. "I'm sure you will be…"

* * *

><p>(Saturday-December 18, 2010)<p>

"Who would have thought…The Tome of the Ancients." Freakshow grinned widely. "The key to our future."

"It is definitely the most plausible option." Lydia admitted. "A quick sneak attack on Scribe, and we have the book. The problem is that we will be in the middle of the Ghost Zone. If we can't access the true power of the Reality Gauntlet fast enough, we'll get cornered."

"True…" Freakshow nodded. "Well, we've waited this long. I'm sure that waiting a bit more won't hurt."

"Wait? For what?"

"Amity Park is a magnet for trouble. Eventually, something will happen to distract everyone enough to ignore the Ghost Zone."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-December 18, 2010)<p>

"Fenton did agree to a small partnership to capture Freakshow." Ra's noted.

"Just like that?" Ocean Master didn't seem convinced. "You did kidnap him before."

"He is a smart child." Savage noted. "He realizes the threat Freakshow posses to everyone. Pride is a small sacrifice for the greater good."

"Do you think that he will continue to work with us afterward, though?" Queen Bee questioned. "The Light could still benefit in a partnership with him."

"I suppose only time will tell."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-December 18, 2010)<p>

Nocturne trembled before his master. He disobeyed a direct order. Both Aragon and Hotep Ra stood a good distance away. They had not pity in their eyes. They were just glad that they weren't the recipient of the waves of rage being sent at their ally.

"Please forgive me, Master Nekron."

**Forgiveness? You are a Black Lantern. There is no such as forgiveness. The closest thing we have is punishment.**

"No, please. I will never disobey you again, Master." Nocturne begged.

**No, you won't.**

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Nocturne shouted out when a wave of black energy hit his chest and cut into it deeply.

**Hotep Ra. Aragon. Take note. This will happen to you if you ever go against my will. Do not harm or kill the half-ghosts. We still need them. Especially Phantom…**

"Yes, Master."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-December 18, 2010)<p>

"Did you hear?" Tula looked to her boyfriend Garth.

"Hear what?" Garth looked over at the red haired Atlantian. As they swam, the waved to their younger classmate La'gaan, who was working on his ability to increase his mass like a puffer fish.

"His Majesty is thinking about taking another protégé." Tula stated excitedly. "Apparently, because Kaldur is so busy with his Team, King Orion would like some more help in protecting the oceans. Not only that, he is thinking about taking more than one protégé."

"Really? Now that is interesting…" Garth eyed his girlfriend. "What are you thinking, Tula?"

"Oh, nothing." Tula smiled. "Just wondering how good Aquagirl sounds to the ear."

"Well, I think that it is very pleasing."

* * *

><p>(Thursday-December 30, 2010)<p>

Jinx could only watch in silence as Young Justice flew off. She told them everything about the attack on Amity Park, but she remained silent on the more important matter. The Light probably already took control of the League. And when Young Justice got there, they would face the same fate.

'Forgive me, Danny.' Jinx stated. 'But I couldn't tell you about that. I couldn't betray my father completely.'

At least both of them would safe after this. Savage would be free, and Phantom would be under the control of the Light. They would be safe, and that's all that mattered to Jinx.

* * *

><p>(Friday-December 31, 2010)<p>

Klarion frowned down at Savage. "Okay...I get the purpose of your mission for Phantom, but I have to say...It's a little creepy. Are you seriously going to have him do that for the whole time the other Leaguers are gone?"

"No." Savage shook his head. "He will return soon. When he does, I will make sure to delete the surveillance footage from the Watchtower."

"Why? Do you expect something to happen?" Klarion questioned.

"Old friend, if there is one thing I have learned in life, it is that anything than can go wrong." Savage noted. "It is always best to prepare for the worst situation."

"So is that what you call the task you gave Phantom." Klarion shuddered. "Preparing for the worst situation?"

"Yes. Yes it is..."

* * *

><p>(Friday-December 31, 2010)<p>

Freakshow held up Scribe by the throat. "Where's the Tome of the Ancients?"

Scribe just glared at him. "I won't tell you…"

"Yes, you will!" Freakshow shouted. He sent a surge of electricity through the Ghost Writer.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"No! Master Scribe!" Poindexter shouted.

"Shh…" Lydia was holding Poindexter down with her foot.

"Don't hurt him, you bully!"

Freakshow scoffed. "I'll stop hurting him when he tells me what I want to know."

"Fine! I'll tell you where the Tome is!"

"No…" Scribe pleaded from Freakshow's grasp. "You can't…AAAHHH!"

"Be quiet. Poindexter, right? Do go on."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-January 1, 2011)<p>

"I can't believe we left!" King shouted.

"The Light is so going to kill us." Jack shuddered at the thought.

"And we'll be on the run from the Justice League too…" Queen mentioned.

"Dude! We won't be able to participate in any extreme sports tournaments!" Ten looked horrified.

"Shut up. Everything will be fine." Ace looked back at the other members of the Royal Flush Gang. "The League is no threat if they don't come after me with the intent to kill, and if the Light comes after us, I'll kill those bastards. I always planned to kill them anyway. I'll rip the flesh from their bones…"

"Damn, Ace…" King paled in fear as he saw that the spark of anger from Ace caused the air to shift and the ground to shake. "What did the Light do to you to make you hate them so much?"

"You don't want to know."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-January 1, 2011)<p>

Ra's Al Ghul stared at the tube in front of him. "What is this? I don't remember this being in the reports."

"Oh that?" Lex Luther, who had been freed from League custody a few hours ago with the help of Savage, turned to face what Ra's was staring at. "That was dug up a few years ago. It's ancient, but for some reason some life still seems to be in it. It's quite fascinating."

"Oh?" Ocean Master questioned as he instructed their men to drag the Kryptonian clone Match and the original Roy Harper away. "That's strange. Where did you find it?"

"Metropolis." Lex Luther explained. "I was having my scientists examine it, but most are too afraid to get close."

"I can zee why." The Brain noted as he rolled over to the being. "It lookz az if ze is ready it kill anyzing that lookz at it."

"Shall we take that as well?" Ocean Master questioned.

"Yes…" Luther stared at perhaps one of the largest beings he has ever seen. The grey skinned giant seemed to be just a giant mass of muscles and rocky spikes. "Perhaps he will be useful one day."

Thus, the tube was dragged out. As it was moved, dust flew off the front to reveal two words.

Subject: Doomsday

* * *

><p>(Monday-January 3, 2011)<p>

Destiny watched as Phantom disappeared. "It is done…"

"Was it smart to give him so much advice?" Despair questioned. "This does borderline knowledge about the future."

"It was just a warning to prepare for the future." Delirium mentioned. "Nothing more, nothing less. He has no knowledge of the who, the what, they why, or the when."

"Or the absolute destruction that will soon come." Destruction nodded. "The kid really doesn't have a clue…"

"Then do you really think our warning is enough?" Dream questioned.

"We can only hope."

* * *

><p>(Monday-January 3, 2011)<p>

Walker groaned as he returned to the land of consciousness. His body ached, and he felt weaker than he ever felt before. That shouldn't be right. He took the modified Kobra Venom. He should be an unstoppable force…

"The girl!" Walker sat up rapidly. This caused pain to shoot across the right side of his face. He tried to reach for it with his left hand, but he found that it was gone.

"No…That bitch!" Walker jumped to his feet. He then tried to flare his energy, but he found that was impossible. In fear, Walker reached up and grasped at Inhibitor Collar around his neck. "No…"

Looking around, Walker finally realized that he was in a cell. He was locked up just like all the prisoners he kept before he abandoned the Ghost Zone. The warden was now the prisoner.

"No." Walker fell to his knees in defeat. "No…I refuse. I am the warden, not the prisoner. I swear, I don't care what I have to do...what I have to sacrifice. No matter what, I will kill everyone wearing that goddamn Phantom symbol!"

* * *

><p>(Monday-January 3, 2011)<p>

"So we get to stay?" Victor Stone questioned.

Silas Stone sighed. "Yes, we are going to stay. Your mother and I discussed it, and we think that it would be best to stay in Amity Park. In reality, it's safer than most locations we could stay, and we love our work here too much to leave, despite the…oddities."

"Yes! I can't wait to tell my friends!" Victor cheered.

"Be careful, though, Victor." Silas warned. "Your friends have the potential to be dangerous, and I don't want you to get hurt."

"Don't worry, Dad. I'm sure nothing will happen to me. The ghosts got our backs after all."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-January 4, 2011)<p>

"Damn, I'm tired." Nyx mentioned to Raven after their training was done.

"Yeah…I feel like I'm going to die…" Raven sighed tiredly.

"And to think…" Nyx groaned. "We have to do this three times a week."

"Do you want to get stronger or not?" Raven glared.

"I do…" Nyx nodded.

"Then shut up."

"Whatever, Gloom and Doom." Nyx grunted. "As long as I can start using my magic, I guess it will be alright."

She held up her hand and sent a surge of magical energy through her fingers. Black electricity danced around them.

"Awesome." She grinned as the black electricity traveled across her body. Even her eyes began to spark as well, and the white eyes of her eyes flashed black.

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-January 4, 2011)<p>

"Nicolai?" A blond woman questioned as she walked into the laboratory. It was filled with blinking machines and equipment.

"Agatha?" Nicolai Tillman looked up from his work. "What are you doing here?"

"We were supposed to meet an hour ago." Agatha Tillman sighed. "I figured you'd be here."

"OH NO!" Nicolai yelled. "I can't believe I did this…again…I'm so sorry, Agy! I was just so into my work. I'm almost about to make a breakthrough. I think I will soon manage to combine my, Fenton's, and Dr. Roquette's work to make an artificial limb that can act like real ones."

"Oh? That young blond woman?" Agathat frowned. "Is that what you were thinking about?"

"NO! OF COURSE NOT! I, NICOLAI TILLMAN, WOULD NEVER EVEN THINK ABOUT THINKING SUCH THINGS!"

"Hahahahahahaha!" Agatha laughed. "I know, Nic. Calm down. You know I like to tease you."

"Oh…" Nicolai blushed. "Sorry…for everything."

"It's fine. This is just who you are. Technology is one of your greatest loves after all." Agatha smiled. "Do you need some help?"

"Eh?" Nicolai blinked. "I thought you were taking the week off?"

"So were you, until you were struck by inspiration." Agatha giggled as she rolled up her sleeves.

"Yes, well um…"

"Come on, my airhead husband." Agatha smiled. "We have work to do."

"Yes…" Nicolai smiled. His wife was wrong about one thing, though. He loved her far more than he did technology.

And to think, he used to hate emotions.

* * *

><p>(Wednesday-January 5, 2011)<p>

"Spectra!" Bertrand hurried to his wife's side. "I came as soon as I got your message! What happened?!"

"Silly man…" The red haired woman chuckled. She was clearing aging, but it seemed to be a graceful and slow process. "I merely asked you to come over to my office for lunch. It didn't mean that there was an emergency."

"I'm sorry, but you never gave a reason…" Bertrand muttered.

"It's fine." Penelope smiled. "I love that you care enough to come running like that. Come let's eat."

"Woah…this is fancy…" Bertrand whistled at what could only be defined as fine dining. "What's the occasion?"

"I managed to convince a young woman to continue on even though her child passed away." Penelope explained.

"Eh? You do things like that all the time." Bertrand noted as he sat down. "Why celebrate this one?"

"I don't think we need a reason to celebrate life." Penelope smiled brightly. "Life is beautiful after all."

Bertrand chuckled. "You were always one to love beauty."

"Yes…but outside beauty is different than what I care about now…" Penelope sighed. After surviving the car accident, the woman who once obsessed with her own appearance quickly changed. After the group of random people she didn't even know pulled her from the wreckage, she realized that beauty wasn't was shown on the skin, but in the heart. "Tell me, Bertrand…I'm getting older now. Do you find me less attractive as I am now? Would you prefer a younger looking woman?"

Bertrand took her hand. "No. I've always loved you for more than your appearance. I always saw the beauty that was hidden deep within you. I'm just glad you found it, because now you're more beautiful than you've ever been, and even when we are old and worn, I will love you unconditionally."

"…Foolish man. Saying things like that." Penelope smiled as her eyes watered. "Actually, there was one more reason I wanted to talk to you. You see, I managed to convince the woman to live on because life always finds a way of continuing. New life always finds a way…"

"What?"

"Bertrand…" She took his hand and placed it on her stomach. "I'm pregnant."

Life truly is beautiful, especially when there is such joy in the world.

* * *

><p>(Thursday-January 6, 2011)<p>

"Are you sure you don't want to join the Council?" Vision questioned the ghost in front of her.

"No, I don't think that's where I'm needed." Undergrowth grinned. "I have other places to be. More people and environments need to help them."

"I can respect that." Vision nodded. "But the offer will always be open."

"Thank you. I will keep that in mind." Undergrowth bowed in respect. "Now if you will excuse me, Lady Vision, I have a river that I need clean."

"Of course." Vision watched as the plant ghost left. He was completely different now. Not only was he polite and humble now, Undergrowth also cares about everything on the planet, not just the plants.

It just goes to show how much a change in circumstances can influence things.

* * *

><p>(Thursday-January 6, 2011)<p>

Lydia watched the City of New York from above. She saw as they went about their everyday lives. They didn't even seem to question what they were doing. None of them realized that they looked like ants from this spot.

"…" Lydia looked up as lighting cracked across the sky. Rain began to pour down. The woman ghost was soaked in seconds.

She could turn intangible, but she didn't see the point. The water did not hurt her.

Sighing, Lydia finally began to question what she would do with her life. She had spent so much time with Frederich. The woman strived constantly to redeem him. That never worked out, though. Fred…Freakshow eventually betrayed her and brought about his own destruction.

Lydia was not strong enough to save him.

She should feel terrible about that. After all, he was the reason she even became a ghost. But she couldn't bring herself to care. Freakshow had thrown her aside like she was nothing. Thus, she now knew that the man she loved so long ago had long since died. All that was left was Freakshow, and even that was gone now.

Yet, she was still here. Despite not having…or not knowing about her obsession, Lydia was still here. That meant that she had some purpose that she needed to fulfill. There was a reason for her continued existence.

That sounded familiar. Danny Phantom was in that same situation a little over a year ago. Nevertheless, he continued on. He fought on and tried to live life.

But how did he do that?

…He found new love in the form of his family…

Lydia looked down at the city once again. There were billions of people on the planet. Not to mention the ghosts, Atlantians, and other special beings. So many people on one planet…

Perhaps at least one of them could provide her with the love she needed.

Lowering herself to the ground, Lydia began to change her appearance. It was one of the many new abilities that Freakshow had provided her with during his time with the Reality Gauntlet. Oddly enough, Phantom did not remove those powers. Lydia did not know the reason, but she was grateful.

Now appearing as dark haired woman with fair skin, Lydia stepped out into the world. It was time to start her new life.

* * *

><p>(Friday-January 7, 2011)<p>

The children didn't understand. Humans did not live long. Their time on this planet was very short and all they left was a memory. That was why quality reproduction was so important. Not only did it continue the prosperity of the human race, it also made sure that a part of you continued to keep on living. Passing your genes to the next generation ensured that not all of you died.

That was very important to Vandal Savage. So many of his children had died. He had buried hundreds of them. It was always painful. Only a parent that lost their child could ever possibly understand the anguish. And Savage experienced more times than he cared to think about. That was the single greatest burden of immortality.

Through everything, though, Savage took solace in knowing that a part of his children would always live on. His descendants were their legacy, so they must live. Savage did everything he could, but no one could control everything in this universe. Eventually, his bloodlines died off, and the memory of his children were gone forever.

There was still one descendant left, though. He only had one piece of his children still alive in the world. That was why he would do anything to make sure that descendant lived. Not that he ever thought of Jennifer like that. He always treated her like his daughter. That was why she called him Dad even though he was her ancestor from several millenia ago. They both knew that she wasn't really his daughter, but they never cared. The loved each other like a parent and child should, and Savage would make sure that Jinx lived a long and prosperous life.

Not only that, he would do everything he could to make sure that the legacy of his children continued not only to live, but to thrive. To do that, though, he had to make sure good genes were used in the process. There was no other way to ensure that his children lived on and that humanity would continue to grow. That was why he wanted Jinx with Phantom. He knew both instinctively and logically that any child they had together would be unbeatable.

Many would argue that the gap between humans and ghost would make such a process impossible, but that wasn't a problem to begin with. After all, considering her strange ectoplasmic and magical powers...

Jinx was the proof that ghosts and humans could reproduce.

* * *

><p>(Friday-January 7, 2011)<p>

"Now that everyone knows…" Polly questioned from Youngblood's shoulder. "What will you do?"

"Nothing." Youngblood shrugged.

"Nothing? But now people will begin to push you to use your full powers." Polly noted.

"So? It doesn't mean that I will." Youngblood stated.

"There will surely be even greater threats. You can't just pretend that you don't have power anymore." Polly mentioned. "What happens when Dani is in danger again?"

"I…don't know…" Youngblood sighed.

"You can't keep releasing the seal." Polly flew in front of the pirate ghost's face. "If you do, **she** will return."

"I know…" Youngblood frowned. "But I may not have a choice."

"You do have a choice." Polly stated. "Fun time in Amity Park is over, Charles. It's time to find another playground."

"But Dani…"

"Is over a decade younger than you." Polly glared. "Just because you trapped yourself in the mind and body of a boy won't change that. She won't care for you like that."

"But…"

"You already hold onto one fantasy, Charlie." Polly sighed. "That is enough."

"…Fine, we'll leave." Youngblood did not look happy, though.

"Good…" Polly landed on the pirate's shoulder once again. "This is for the best. Because if you release the seals too often, or if you die…Then Bloody Thorn will return, and if that happens, a lot of people will die."

* * *

><p>(Friday-January 7, 2011)<p>

"Ghosts…" Harm growled as he peered into the book in his hands. Most of the other inmates in Belle Reve scoffed at him for reading, but they didn't understand. They couldn't comprehend what he was after.

He was pure. He was perfect. He was unstoppable. Until the ghosts came into the picture that is. After he saw his sister, Harm was no longer pure. He lost the purity and was forced back into disgusting humanity. It was sinful.

Thus, he had to fix this if he ever wanted to be pure again. Harm had to destroy them if he ever wanted to become pure. Not just Greta, though. No, he had to put an end to all the ghosts. To do that, though, he would need a plan, and he would need help.

Luckily, Harm had the perfect plan. After all, the only thing that could kill the tainted ghosts was something as equally tainted. As for the partner...no...master, there was only one woman that could ever control him. The woman that enchanted the Sword of Beowulf, Morgaine le Fey.

"One day, Harm shall be pure again." Harm smirked as he peered down at the picture of the jewel in the book. "And on that day, the world shall be forever stained with ghost blood."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-January 8, 2011)<p>

"You want to do something similar to the Ghoul Project?" Savage questioned his old friend.

"Kekekekekekeke! Of course! After all, why should the ghosts get all the attention?" Klarion laughed. "Magic is just as powerful."

"I know, but it will be hard to pull off…" Savage stroked his chin. "It took a whole war to get the energy for the Ghoul Project."

"Don't worry, leave everything to me." Klarion's features became demonic. "It won't be all that hard. In fact, I think I can easily convince Ocean Master to help me."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I mean, he always goes on and on about wanting the Atlantian thrown." Klarion smiled demonically and rubbed his hands together. "By the end of all this, I will kill two birds with one stone."

"What are you planning?" Savage questioned.

"Oh nothing much. Just drain all the magic in the world for us to use." Klarion laughed. "But before I can do that, I'll need a helper. It may take a few years to grow, but I planted a few seeds that will come be my loyal lapdog in due time. Because I do think that Nyx has taken after me a lot more than stupid Pandora."

* * *

><p>(Monday-January 10, 2011)<p>

"So we're going to be training together, right?" Rose Wilson stood in front of Cassandra Cain and extended a hand. "Then I offer a truce from our fight in New York. We'll need to cooperate if we ever want to accomplish anything."

Cassandra was in wonder that the other girl couldn't remember their conflict in Amity Park. That Reality Guantlet really was something powerful. "Yes, New York…No harm, no foul."

"Fair enough." Rose shook the girl's hand. "You show a lot of potential. I look forward to working with you."

"Same here." Cassnadra nodded. "So, I suppose this means Deathstroke is now working for the Shadows."

"The Light, really, but same difference." Rose shrugged. "Whatever's most profitable."

"And you're okay with this?" Cassandra questioned.

"It's not like I have a choice." Rose mentioned. "My brother Jericho rebelled against Father, and I haven't seen him in years."

"I see…So once again, a child is forced into this life against his or her will. The adults seem to dictate everything about our lives." Cassandra nodded. "Did Deathstroke decide on your call name too?"

"Raveger? No, that was my idea. I love how it sounds." Rose grinned. "What about you, you come up with a name yet?"

"Actually, yes. I wanted a name that people would fear and would cause anger to my enemies for stealing one of their symbols."

"Oh, really? What's the name?"

"Black Bat."

* * *

><p>(Tuesday-January 11, 2011)<p>

"Mom!" Garfield Logan shouted. He ran to where he heard the crashing noise. "Mom!"

He found the origin of the sound crash. The boy stood at a waterfall. At the bottom of the waterfall was a smoking and scratched car. Despite this, there was something else that caught the boy's attention.

Red hair. His mother…was there. He could see her. She wasn't blinking. There was a shard of glass in her…

"Oh God…" Gar trembled in grief. Tears began to fall down his face. "Mom…Mom!"

He wanted to run up to her, but his legs had collapsed underneath him. Garfield fought to keep the bile down his throat. It was a battle he lost. "Bleck!"

On his hands and knees, Garfield looked up at the sight again. It was still just as horrifying, but he couldn't look away. The boy began to sob uncontrollably. "Mommy! Waaaaaaahhhhhhh! Mommy!"

Garfield rolled to the side away from the pile of vomit that had just exited him. The boy instantly curled up into a ball and continued to sob uncontrollably. He held himself tightly and imagined that it was his mom that was holding him.

In his grief and despair, he never noticed as his skin and hair began to turn green.

* * *

><p>(Wednesday-January 12, 2011)<p>

"Komand'r!" The red haired, orange skinned Koriand'r yelled as she ran to her sister. "Hey! Do you want to play with me?"

"I'm sorry, sister." The dark haired Komand'r smiled at her little sister as she walked through the massive halls of their royal palace. "I have my studies. I cannot play with you right now."

"Aw…" The eleven year old Koriand'r whined. "But you promised!"

"I did, but I will have to keep my promise later." The sixteen year old Komand'r noted.

"You always say that!" Koriand'r countered.

"That's because I'm always busy." Komand'r sighed. "Trust me when I say that I would prefer to play with you, but I need to study. As the next in line for the Tameranian crown, I need to be prepared for anything."

"Oh…Okay." Koriand'r's frowned.

"But do not worry. I will play with you later." Komand'r patted her little sister's head. "Now run along. Go have fun while you can."

"Okay!" Koriand'r ran off.

Komand'r's smile dropped as she watched her sister leave. In its place was a deep frown. Then, to herself, the girl whose name could be translated as Blackfire muttered. "Yes…go play while you can, little sister…"

* * *

><p>(Wednesday-January 12, 2011)<p>

"…And what are you supposed to be?" Batman questioned the other vigilante across the rooftop.

"Batgirl! Isn't is obvious?" The red haired girl noted. She was dressed in a self-made vigilante costume. On her chest was a familiar bat symbol.

Batman was not amused. "No, you're not. You're Barbara Gordon, daughter of the Commisionor."

"How did you figure it out?" Barbara questioned.

"It's obvious." Batman rolled his eyes. "What are you doing Barbara?"

"I want to help you. I want to make a difference like Robin does." Barbara noted.

"Sorry, but that's different." Batman stated.

"How?" Barbara questioned.

"He's…" Batman didn't know how to explain the difference without revealing their secret identities. "Never mind. Just go home, Barbara. I don't need any more help."

"What? Sure you do." Barbara glared. "Gotham is full of crime."

"We can handle it just find." Batman turned and began to walk away.

"Fine. Who needs you? I can fight crime on my own."

"Not if I tell your father on you…"

"Say what now?"

* * *

><p>(Thursday-January 13, 2011)<p>

"Interesting…" The Reach Ambassador to other worlds examined the footage. "These Earthlings have the ability to evolve and survive under the most trying of circumstances. Some of them might even be able to face off against the stronger threats in the universe. Not only that…they can live on after death. Ghosts…How fascinating."

"I thought you would say that." Black Beetle chuckled. "The ghost Danny Phantom and the ones around him are especially interesting. These four…Phantom, Plasmius, Spirit, and the new one Dusk have strange energy signals."

"Yes…Our new friends in the Light say that Dusk is a ghoul. Part human, part ghost." The Ambassador thought. "He was the most successful part of their Ghoul Project. But even then, he's very unstable."

"Then what of the other three?" Black Beetle questioned. "None of them have shown signs of being unstable."

"Perhaps they are ghosts that have gained a bit of humanity back…" The Ambassador noted. "It is impossible say. It was once thought that a certain family in Amity Park was the ghouls, but there is an enourmous amount of truth in the contrary. The only way to know for sure is to dissect them."

"Hahahahahahahahahaha!" Black Beetle laughed. "I think that can be arranged, but I don't think that they will go down without a fight."

"I'm sure you can manage." The Ambassador stated. "But…just in case. We should probably try to put the blue beetle scarab back on mode."

"Now?"

"No, no…" The Ambassador sighed. "We must wait for the opportune moment. The Light has laid a plan to get the Green Lanterns off Earth. We will have to wait for then."

"And then…" Black Beetle smirked. "The Earthlings…or more importantly the meta-Earthlings and ghosts will be ours for the taking."

* * *

><p>(Saturday-January 8, 2011)<p>

"…Where…where am I?" Agent Z groaned as he pushed himself off the ground to a standing position. "Am I in hell?"

It appeared as so. Fire was everywhere. Steam was rising off the earth below Agent Z. Despite this, darkness seemed to cover everything. This was truly what Agent Z thought that hell would look like.

"**Hell…That's a very appropriate way to describe my domain, mortal.**" A huge demonic voice boomed around Agent Z.

"W-what?" Agent was filled with fear. "What the hell was that?!"

"**Be careful how you speak, human.**" The demonic voice boomed. "**You are only alive because of me. Be grateful.**"

"I…don't understand."

"**When you died, I recreated your body. It took a bit of time because I needed you to be perfect.**" The voice explained.

"Who are you, and…why did you save me?" Agent Z questioned.

"**I am your new master and the reason that I revived you is simple. You will be my avatar on Earth. I have some tasks that need to be finished, but I can't do them here. It will be your job to accomplish my will.**" Four giant eyes appeared in the darkness.

"And if I refuse-AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Agent Z screamed in pain as his body felt like it was on fire.

"**Then I shall kill you.**" The voice chuckled.

"Ah…" Agent Z panted out. "I see…"

"**But if you follow me, then I shall give you what you want most.**" The voice noted.

"Oh?"

"**Yes, I shall give you your life back. Your family shall be returned to you. And most importantly, you will have your revenge on Danny Phantom.**" The voice explained.

"I see. That sounds perfect." Agent Z smiled. "I agree to your terms. Not like I have much a choice anyway. So…What is the name of my new master?"

"**I have been known by many names. The Devil. The Destroyer. The Terrible. But, you mortal, can call me Master Trigon. The being that shall soon conquer Earth.**"

* * *

><p>(Friday-January 14, 2011)<p>

"Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Darksied laughed. "The happenings on Earth are truly amusing."

"Master?" G. Gordon Godfrey questioned his master as the god sat on his throne.

"Even when he is weakened, Phantom managed to come back and defeats his enemies." Darksied chuckled. "He truly is impressive. Not to mention his family. They will make excellent allies."

"If I may, Master…." Desaad meekly spoke up. "Can I point out to you that the Phantom Family does not exactly agree with your methods?"

"Not right now they don't…" Darkseid nodded. "But give it time. Power corrupts. One day they will figure out that they are above the foolish mortals they try to protect. Right now, I look forward to watching them grow. It shall be an amusing show."

"Of course, Master." Desaad bowed.

"I feel like celebrating." Darkseid suddenly stated. "Prepare a feast and have my most beautiful slaves prepped for tonight."

"At once…" Desaad nodded and went to fulfill his master's will.

"I have never seen you so…joyful, Master." Granny Goodness noted.

"Of course, I just learned that I struck gold and oil at the same time." Darkseid explained. "Who would have thought that such a backwater planet could have such promise…"

"What do you mean?"

"The Phantoms…The Kryptonians…The Meta-Earthlings…And even…The Anti-Life Formula." Darkseid grinned. "By controlling that one planet, I shall conquer the entire universe at once."

* * *

><p>(Monday-January 1, 2046)<p>

"Hi, Grandma!" Luna Fenton shouted as she entered the little cave in the ground they called home.

"You know I hate being called that…" Despite being called Grandma, this woman couldn't possibly be past her mid-thirties physically. Not that people would notice this, considering that the missing limbs and scars across her face hid a lot of her features.

"I know, but I do it because I wuv you~" Luna cheered. Her neon green eyes and heart shaped face lit up with joy.

"Don't act like such a child." The woman sighed and turned back to her work. "You no longer have the privilege of that, Luna."

"Don't lecture me." Luna gained a dark look. "A has-been that never leaves that desk doesn't have the right to tell me to stop acting like a child."

"You act all high and mighty, but all you do is paint old symbols one walls, even though the symbols have long since lost their meanings."

"Not the symbol for hope! Not the symbol of my father! And at least I'm trying to do something to give people something to fight for." Luna glared. Her long white hair with pink highlights was pulled up into a pony tail. Her slited eyes flashed from green to pink. "What are you even doing, huh?!"

"Writing a message…" Danielle Masters turned back to her book and continued writing. On one side of the desk were three books. Obsession, Absolution, and Conviction. On the other side was a large stack of papers that read...

_The Memoirs of Danielle Masters_

* * *

><p>(Saturday-January 15, 2011)<p>

"**The Reality Gauntlet fiasco…really pushed it over the edge.**" The skeleton being wearing black robes noted.

"Lord Reaper…" Nocturne, Aragon, and Hotep Ra bowed before Nekron.

"**I finally managed to reform a body.**" Nekron smiled in delight. His skull head looked positively wicked as it moved into a grin.

"Are we going to being our assault soon?" Aragon questioned.

"**No. Not yet, at least.**" Nekron sat on a throne made of skulls. "**I used a lot of energy to create this new body. After all, I used the GIW War energy to create those rings for you, and I used the Reality Gauntlet energy to create my new body. If we want to plan to succeed, we need even more.**"

"What about the objects that we destroyed?" Hotep Ra questioned.

"**That's only a little bit of power compared to my true potential."** Nekron explained. "**At first, I just thought that they would be enough for my new body, but now…I have had a glimpse of a way to make me all powerful.**"

"What do you want us to do, Lord Reaper?" Nocturne questioned.

"**We can do nothing for now. Right now, we stay low.**" The Reaper noted. "**In a few years, we will act. I will need to create one more ring for my newest minion on the inside of the foolish Light, but that can wait. Right now, let's wait. Earth's chaotic nature will give us the energy we need.**"

"But what of the halfas?" Aragon questioned. "You wanted us to kill them at first, but now…you want us to leave them alone? What if they interfere?"

"**Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! Don't worry! I shall deal with the Phantom Family myself. I have a plan. After all, if you take away Danny Phantom, then the others will lose hope.**"

* * *

><p>(Friday-September 13, 2013)<p>

Clockwork sighed as he approached the Thermos. "Hello there, Daniel."

"_Oh? The great Clockwork decides to visit me. I am so honored…_"

"I figured that I should talk to you now." Clockwork noted as he changed from a child to an adult. "It feels like a good time to explain a lot. Like why I haven't just killed you yet."

"_Oh really?_"

"Yes. I should have just thrown this Thermos into the abyss with you in it. That way, the threat that you pose won't exist. But I couldn't do it because I knew that it wouldn't end well." Clockwork sighed. "All these years…and your part in the story shall finally come to pass."

"_You make no sense, old man. You always talked about everything like it's all one big story to tell._"

"No, life is made up of a bunch of small stories. Yours. Danny's. Spirit's. Dusk's…"

"_Some of those names are meaningless to me. Did I kill them in my timeline?"_

"In a way, yes. But their stories got extended. Mine, however, is coming to its end." Clockwork changed to his elderly form.

"_Oh? Do I get to kill you in the future? I've been dreaming of it for years. And now that I exist outside the timeline, your powers have no influence on me. Killing you will be so easy…I can picture your blood stained face as I beat it to a pulp."_

"No, it won't be you that ends my story." Clockwork chuckled. "That honor belongs to another Phantom."

"_What the hell are you talking about?"_

"I can't see anything else that happens after today. The future is now a mystery, even to me." Clockwork explained. "But…I'm still smart enough to know what might happen. I need you to be prepared."

"_You're not making sense._"

"When you get out…you will see. Remember this, if you flee from this world immediately, you will die." Clockwork stated. "I know that is all you care about. If you run away from Earth before the time is right, then not only will this world perish, you will die painfully along with it."

"_Why should I believe you?"_

"I'll tell you." Clockwork sighed. "It's a long story, but you must hear it all. I shall tell you the history of ghosts…"

"_I don't care about that."_

"But you will, because it will show you just how much danger we all are in."

* * *

><p><strong>The present is now completely revealed. Before we can move onto the future, we must first take a look to the past. Gather around the campfire and let me tell you a few ghost tales...<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to…**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	36. Ghost Tales

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"You think that you're the only ghost that has suffered? Wrong! Every ghost has his or her fair share of tragedies and hardships! But none of us ask for pity! For only the people with the strongest wills can ever hope to live on after death!"

Torch (Absolution Chapter 19)

* * *

><p><strong>Ghost Tales<strong>

The Reality Gauntlet. It was a tool meant to better the Earth. It would change reality in order to help improve humankind. The Gauntlet did just that. The lives of the beings of Earth were made significantly better. People were made happier and more content.

But that was only a temporary thing…

Unfortunately, the Reality Gauntlet had a consequence that no one could foresee. In exchange for incredible power beyond understanding, the weapon destroyed a simple barrier that the universe depended on. The barrier of life and death.

The people…the humans…would not immediately be sent to the afterlife anymore. No, they had a chance to come back. They had a chance to be something more. They would be something that was cursed to roam the planet in desperate need to complete an unfinished task, to complete their obsession. Until the day that they found contentment, they would suffer in the barrier between life and death…

But that was not the worst problem. No, the worst problem was another type of ghost. The Reality Gauntlet gave birth to a ghost that was created from an idea. In an instant, a simple thought could now come back and destroy lives.

And so it did…

* * *

><p>Time. The first ghost was obsessed with time. It was something everyone thought about. Every living creature lived on the concept of time. Each being only had a set amount of time to use. That's why everyone was obsessed with the concept of controlling time.<p>

People wanted to use time for their advantage. They always wanted more time for themselves and less time for their enemies. The living fought with desperation just to extend the amount of time they had. They were constantly thinking about time because it was an all-powerful force. It dictated everything.

That was why he existed. He lived because of their concept of time. Their thoughts and desperation gave him life. But he did not live for them. He lived to protect time from them. They would try to interfere with it. That much was certain. After all, that Savage man's desire to control such things was what created him in the first place.

One minute, he did not exist. The next, he was there. He floated above the man that was indirectly the cause of his existence. The large man was wearing a gauntlet meant to control time and space. This human wished to control the universe.

Not for evil purposes, though. No, Savage wanted to do good in this world. But good intentions were not enough. Try to fight reality, and reality will come back swinging.

That was the only time they fought, though. Death. Time. Reality. These were forces that were neutral. They cared not who you were or how you lived. Everyone was treated equally. Until someone tried to cheat that is.

And that was why he existed. He was meant to fight back, to control time. His existence would ensure that time would not be interfered with.

But for him to do that, he would need to have an understanding. He would have to understand things that no one else did. Truths about the universe were revealed to him as he formed. The Endless. The Beginning. The Monitors. The Presence.

The end…

The Phantom…

'Yes…' Clockwork noted as he looked down. 'I see. My job is not to interfere unless time itself is in trouble. And if I do interfere elsewhere…'

Bad things would happen.

* * *

><p>His first thought was a simple thing. It was so simple that even a toddler could understand what it meant. In fact, he could describe it in mere words.<p>

Kill.

Erase.

Destroy.

Simple thoughts, but terrible acts. And that's what he loved about them. They were simple but terrifying. This was especially true because life was so fragile.

Humans could die so easily. If one small thing went wrong, they would die. It wouldn't take much. A small blade could easily make a man bleed to death. If there was just a little pressure on a woman's neck, it would snap. And a child...Well, they were the most fragile of all.

He knew it as soon as he appeared in front of the lovely village. It was filled with happy people. The children were especially happy. Laughs and cries of happiness filled the air. There was laughing. There was joy. There was **life**.

It disgusted him. How could those things be so happy? They were merely bags of flesh waiting for their meaningless existence to come to an end. He knew it! Their very purpose for existence was to die! Why else would they constantly be thinking about it!?

Why else would they create a Reaper to come and kill them all?!

"**Die…**" Nekron spoke. Black energy formed around his hand. It was sent into the village. Unlike with most blasts, this energy did not explode. Instead, the black seeping energy caused everything to crumble to dust and die as their very souls seemed to be pulled out of their bodies. As this happened, everything seemed to decay. Buildings aged centuries in a second. Plants wilted away in a flash. Human bodies disintegrated into nothingness.

A few more blasts of energy and minutes later, there was nothing left of the village. All that was left was a crater. It was beautiful to Nekron the Reaper. There was no more life. Nothing was left only death.

Just like the rest of the world would soon be like…

* * *

><p>In times of crisis, humans look to leadership from the strong. When there is nothing that can be done to stop the suffering, people will look to anyone to give them hope. Humanity needs hope in order to survive. If there is no hope for tomorrow, then the purpose of life will meet its end.<p>

That was what it was like during the time of the Reaper. There was no hope. People suffered constantly. Death was more common than life. Many times people believed that there was no way that they would live to see tomorrow.

It was the Reaper and the forces he created that created this would of terror. Entire cities were destroyed. Lives were ruined constantly. Hope was killed.

For the humans, there was no one to turn to. No human could face the Reaper and have the chance of living more than a few seconds. Even that man, the man who made the world better by altering reality, couldn't face the Reaper. He was defeated easily. The Reaper merely laughed as the man's gauntlet proved useless against him.

In a single move, the man…Savage…fell. His body was destroyed. He was left a broken man. In time, the man would heal like he always did. Reaper, however, used his death scythe to leave a permanent reminder of the man's weakness. Along Savage's face were three long scars that would never fade.

With no one to turn to, humanity began to give up. There didn't seem to be a way out of the destruction. It seemed that there was no physical way to stop the Reaper. Nevertheless, the people continued to dream and to plan. Every day, humanity thought of new ways to stop the Reaper. They dreamed of a man that was powerful enough and smart enough to combat the destroyer.

It was this idea that brought Pariah Dark to life.

He walked through the destroyed village. It was the first place that the Reaper had destroyed. The blackened earth and sky spoke of the terrible events that happened here. The giant man in armor felt nothing as he eyed the piles of bone around him. He was not meant to feel sadness. If he did, he wouldn't be able to accomplish his goals.

The man with wild green hair and a pure white ashen face grimaced. He might have a chance to defeat Reaper under the right circumstances, but the Reaper was not alone. The destroyer had made an army of dark creatures of death. They would prevent Pariah from getting to the Reaper.

"I'm going to need help."

* * *

><p>"Who the hell are you?" The giant with crimson skin and blue swirling tattoos questioned.<p>

"My name is Pariah Dark, and I wish to speak with you." Pariah answered.

"Talk? Talking is for the weak!" The giant yelled. "I am going to act!"

"I am aware of that." Pariah nodded. The two of them stood in a clearing in the center of a thick forest. The trees around them stretched out and tried to reach for the clouds. "You are going to fight the Reaper."

"Of course I am!" The red giant roared. "That is the reason for my existence! I live to fight!"

"Yes…I have heard that you are the embodiment of battle and war. Humanity's bloody past given form." Pariah mentioned.

"Eh? You're still talking?" The red giant rolled his eyes. "Just get out of the way. I have a fight to get to."

"You won't even get close to the Reaper. Those creatures he created will stop you." Pariah noted. "If you wish to defeat the Reaper, then you need a plan."

"A plan!?" The massive man roared with laughter. He extended his hand and a condensed ball of shockwave energy and ectoplasm appeared. "This this my plan!"

"You…are a brute with no conscience." Pariah stated. "I have heard of you. You put people in danger when you try to fight. You don't care for others and respect nothing. You have no honor."

"Honor? What does honor have to do with anything!?" The brute yelled.

"Everything. Honor is respect. Honor is never breaking your word. Honor is fighting fair and never hurting the innocent." Pariah glared. "You have no honor."

"Fool! All I need is battle! And you have stood in my way for too long!" The red giant roared. "Move or I'll destroy you myself."

"…What is your name?"

"My name?" The brute scoffed. "Those weak humans have called me Colossus. A massive beast that cannot be stopped. That name will due."

"Fine then, Colossus." Pariah slipped into a fighting stance. "How about a deal? We fight. You win, and you never hear from me again. If I win, however, you have to agree to help me defeat the Reaper my way. With honor."

"Fine! It's not like I can lose anyway!" Colossus gained a large grin. "If you can actually defeat me, then I might just reconsider this ridiculous honor thing!"

"So be it…"

* * *

><p>"<strong>ROAR!<strong>" The large beast with white fur, sharp claws, and ice horns roared out at the intruder to his mountain. Green blood ran down the yeti's body from the wound inflicted by the intruder.

"Ah…" Pariah sighed. This fight was proving tiresome. The beast refused to stay down, and Pariah's wounds were beginning to pile up as well. "Are you done yet?"

"Grr…" The yeti glared. His eyes were slitted, and his teeth were formed in a snarl.

"This is tiresome, beast." Pariah noted. A snowstorm was raging around him. It limited his vision, and most likely made the ice beast stronger. "I only came to talk, but you refuse to communicate."

"Grah!" The yeti monster struggled to stay on its feet. It was shaking in pain.

"Please stand down." Pariah requested. "If you don't then I'll be forced to kill you, and I don't want to do that to a possible friend."

"…" The yeti stared at the giant of a man.

"My name is Pariah Dark, and I want to stop the Reaper." Pariah introduced himself.

"…Then you are a fool…" The beast growled out. "The Reaper cannot be stopped. I…have seen him. He killed my family. I was left alone to freeze to death… And I…I was turned into this!"

Pariah didn't flinch as a wave of anger and despair hit him. The Ghostly Presence was strong, but Pariah was stronger. "I believe it. Reaper is a foul evil being that must be stopped. I can defeat Reaper, but I will need help. I will need your help."

"And why would I help you?!" The yeti cried.

"I have heard about you. A wild beast that roars from the mountain. Everyone around this mountain fears you. Yet…you have saved many travelers that have come through here." Pariah explained. "That means that you are not a total monster. In fact, I believe you are quite kind under that fearsome exterior."

The yeti merely snorted.

"Tell me, what is your name?"

"…I doubt my old name is important now." The yeti frowned. "Now I go by Frostbite, because my freezing body is the last thing I remember from my old life before I died."

"Then, I ask you, Frostbite. Lend me your power." Pariah requested.

"You still haven't answered my question." Frostbite glared. "Why should I help you?"

"Because you are a good person. And…" Pariah smiled. "It is far better to be kind and friendly compared to fearsome and terrifying. Because what is life without friends?"

"…" Frostbite thought for a moment, then asked. "And you and I would be…friends?"

"Yes."

"…Then, join you I shall…" Frostbite stated. "Let's see if your words prove true."

* * *

><p>"Ahg…" The giant blue skinned woman groaned as she regained consciousness. She laid on a soft bed that cushed her aching wounds. Darkness covered the room like a giant blanket making it nearly impossible to see what was around her. She could, however, discern one image beside her.<p>

"You're awake." Pariah noted as he sat by her bedside.

"…Where…am I?" The woman with purple hair questioned.

"One of my hideouts." Pariah explained. "I found you after your attempt to kill the Reaper. You were in rough shape. I bandaged your wounds…"

"…Thank you…" The woman mumbled. She examined herself. Her clothes and armor remained untouched for the most part. There were bandages covering her body, but she knew that she hadn't been touched inappropriately while unconscious.

"Here." Pariah handed her a glass of water.

"My thanks…" The woman greedily drank the liquid. After she was finished, she added. "And to who do I owe a debt of gratitude."

"Pariah Dark." Pariah extended his hand.

"Pandora." Pandora shook the man's hand. "Or…at least that's what I think my name is. That's who people compare me to when I openly challenge the Reaper. They say that I open a box filled with chaos and death."

"I hate to say, but…I think it was foolish to fight the Reaper alone." Pariah noted.

"You are correct." Pandora sighed. "I thought that if I challenged him that I could defeat him. I was wrong. He…was ungodly strong. I couldn't believe it. My attacks didn't even get close."

"Yes, his strength is unparalleled." Pariah noted. "Except maybe…for me."

Pandora snorted. "And what makes you so strong?"

Pariah pointed to the ring and crown on his head. "These are the Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire. The humans' wishes to stop the Reaper led to the creation of these objects and me. My sole purpose is to defeat the Reaper. Unfortunately, I know that the Reaper won't fight fair. I need powerful allies to help me."

"And…you want my help?" Pandora questioned.

"Yes, please lend me your strength."

Pandora grinned. "If you're serious about bringing justice to the Reaper, then you can count me in."

* * *

><p>"Dance~ Cheer~ Sing~" A being that could be described as a clown danced around. His baggy clothes were black and white. The clown's hat stuck out wildly and was covered with tiny bells. The man's face was painted black on one side while his right side was painted white.<p>

"Yeah!" The children clapped and cheered for the cheerful man.

"Hahahahahaha!" Jester laughed as he juggled twenty balls in the air. In the next moment, all the balls burst in tiny explosions. The energy gathered in the air and then flew into the man's open mouth. Jester swallowed the energy and smiled.

Boom! Jester's stomach blasted out for a second and then went back to normal. Still smiling, the clown allowed smoked to fly out of his mouth and nose.

The children and large crowd behind them applauded.

"Hmm…" A deep voice from behind Jester caught his attention

Jester turned and saw Pariah Dark. "Did you come for the show?"

"No, but it was quite amusing." Pariah smiled.

"That's great!" Jester laughed. His pitch was high and cheerful. "There aren't enough smiles these days! They have forgotten what it means to be happy! That's why I'm here! I'm the Jester, the one who always strives to make others smile!"

"Is that why you created all these people?" Pariah Dark questioned.

"Eh?" Jester raised an eyebrow. His cheerful smile, however, did not move.

"These people. They are projections. Physical ones at that. Although, I do think that they would be destroyed by a gentle breeze." Pariah observed the crowd that was cowering before his massive form. "You have incredible power and skill."

"Meh…" Jester let his smile fall. He now looked sad now. With a wave of his hand the massive crowd and the city around them faded away. They now stood in a massive crater. "Power and skill are pointless if I can't use it like I want."

"And how do you want to use it?" Pariah questioned.

"I want to bring happiness back to the world! I want people to smile again!" Jester waved his arms around wildly. "Everyone is so sad! I can't stand it! I tried to help… But every time I try to entertain real people, they end up dead. That's why I settle for my projections. At least I know when they will be gone…"

"You wish for the world to be happier?" Pariah asked.

"Of course!"

"Then you have to do more than make jokes and dance around." Pariah stated. "You must act. Happiness will never be prevalent as long as Nekron is around. He needs to be stopped."

"I cannot defeat him." Jester sighed sadly. "He would kill me easily."

"Alone, yes. But not if you surrounded yourself with strong individuals." Pariah smiled. "I am creating group of fighters to stop the Reaper. Help me, and I promise you that the world will have a happier future."

"…I suppose I have nothing to lose." Jester giggled. "You have yourself a deal."

* * *

><p>"This…is impressive." Pariah Dark noted as he surveyed the area. Hundreds of Nekron's creations and monsters were left to rot in the area around him. These things had no blood because they were not alive technically. No, they were products of death. Each being Nekron killed ended up being one of his monsters. It was a sickening process.<p>

"Impressive? I suppose." The shadowy knight shrugged as he looked over the cliff to the dark horizon. "These things lose intelligence the further they are from their master."

"Is that why you are so far from Nekron?" Pariah questioned.

"No. It's because I have no orders…no purpose." The Fright Knight stated. "A blade can do nothing if not used by a wielder."

"Says the knight with no sword of his own." Pariah chuckled.

"Every blade I wield breaks…just like me." The knight sighed.

"You call yourself a broken weapon, yet you managed to defeat so many of these beasts." Pariah mentioned.

"It is not like these things have those cursed power rings of Nekron." Fright Knight clenched his hands. "Those ring users are too strong."

"For one person…for one sword, perhaps. But what about an armies' worth?" Pariah suggested. "I am creating a group to fight off the Reaper. I believe that you could be a great help."

"Hmm…" The knight slowly turned and faced the giant.

"You compare yourself to a sword with no wielder. If you truly want to be used, then I will be your master. Follow me into battle, and I will lead you to the correct enemies." Pariah stated.

"My master? And what makes you worthy of being the master of a knight that frightens everything in his path?" The knight questioned.

"Because I was born to be a king." Pariah mentioned.

"King, eh?" The Fright Knight laughed. "Very well, let's see how good of a king you'll be."

* * *

><p>"Are you the one they call the Ghost Writer?" Pariah asked as he walked into the bustling library. Books and papers flew all around the massive room.<p>

"My name is Scribe, but I've been called that from time to time. Both names describes my love of the written word well enough." The libriarian noted as he continued his writing and controlling of flying books. "May I ask who you are?"

"Pariah Dark, the man that shall slay Nekron." Pariah noted.

The Ghost Writer laughed. "Oh, I'm sure you are. Now tell you what you want, I'm kind of busy. I need to record the planet's history for future races to find."

"And why's that?" Pariah questioned.

"Because the entire human race is doomed." Scribe focused on his writing. "It's only a matter of time now."

"Not if we do something about it."

"We?" Scribe paused in his writing.

"Yes, I want you to help me fight the Reaper." Pariah nodded.

"I can't." The Ghost Writer turned to Pariah Dark. "I use powers that are similar to the Reality Gauntlet. You know that the Gauntlet doesn't work on him. How would my powers make a difference?"

"I'm not asking you to fight. I'm asking you to support us. With your abilities, you can alter the battlefield in our favor." Pariah noted. "With you, we can win, but if you don't help, we could easily die."

"You're probably going to die no matter what." Scribe noted. "And I prefer living. I don't see why I should help you."

"Tell me, what's the point of history if there's no future?" Pariah questioned. "You want to make sure people remember us, but if we don't stop Nekron, there won't be a world left to remember. He will erase everything. Please, don't let that happen."

"Wow…That was one corny speech." The Ghost Writer smirked. "But I suppose you are right. I suppose the whole point of remembering yesterday is to improve tomorrow."

* * *

><p>"This…is interesting…" Pariah Dark looked at the baron wasteland. At the center was a very small figure that was completely wrapped in purple cloth. If it were not for the eye peering at him from the purple pile, Pariah would have assumed that it was just a simple pile of clothing.<p>

Of course, that was odd enough considering the surroundings. The land around them was just coal black earth and a darkened sky above them. Nekron had already razed the land here and there was nothing left that the eye could see.

"I heard rumors…of a little girl that could fight against Nekron's beasts." Pariah Dark noted. "I assume that's you."

"Yes…" A small voice sounded from the pile. "I suppose that's me. I get tired too easily, though. I cannot fight too many without using all of my energy."

"Is that why you are out here?" Pariah questioned.

"Nekron won't return here. He already killed everything here. It will be years before anything living can survive here." The little girl mentioned.

"But a ghost can live here easily." Pariah nodded. "That's smart. Very smart."

"That's because I'm smart." The girl didn't seem arrogant. She seemed to just be aware where she stood. "That is my strength. That is how I fought off Nekron's monsters. If you can out think and out plan someone, you can always win."

"Very true…" Pariah was impressed. He peered into her green eyes and saw one of the most terrifying things a fighter could ever face. Knowledge. Intelligence. Cunning. Resourcefulness.

"Is there something you want?" The girl was a little worried. She had no knowledge or data on this being, but she could tell he was strong. His mere presence alone could make men fall to their knees in fear.

"I have created a group of people that are going to fight against Nekron, his Black Ring users, and his monsters." Pariah stated. "I have six followers of absolute strength and power, but I lack a strategist. No army can ever win on raw strength alone. We need intelligence and cunning to win."

"I see…" The girl's green eyes danced with amusement. "And you're asking a little girl for help in coming up with your strategy? That's a little strange, don't you think?"

"Perhaps, if you were a normal little girl." Pariah Dark noted. "But I can see that you are far more than that."

"…Yes, I am." The girl nodded. "What is your name, large man?"

"I am Pariah Dark. And you?"

"Before Nekron killed me, I was called Viola. Now, though, I have taken a new name, for I look to the future and see the most possible outcome." The girl rose from her spot. Some of the cloth fell to reveal her tan face and golden hair. "My name is Vision."

* * *

><p>The strategy was rather simple yet dangerous. They would do a sneak attack on Nekron before he was even aware that their group existed. That was their best chance. If Nekron realized that there was a threat, he would surround himself with his monsters and Black Ring users. Thus, they put a full out assault on Nekron before he couldn't even realize what happened.<p>

Their sneak attack managed to defeat all of the death monsters and the few Black Ring users that surrounded Nekron. The incredible power of the eight ghosts annihilated the protectors of the ghost of death. Nekron just laughed at this, though, and readied himself to fight.

The fight that followed leveled hundreds of kilometers of land. Nekron summoned all of his followers of death and destruction. All the black ring users and beasts of death returned to him. Luckily, Vision had predicted that this would happen. That was why she had Scribe, Frostbite, and Pandora set up traps all around the area. The blasts of altering dimensions, ice, and electricity stopped half of the backup before they arrived. The rest that made it to the battlefield quickly joined the conflict.

The war between the ghosts and Nekron's forces lasted three days. After nonstop fighting, agony, and death, the battle came to an end. Bloodied and exhausted, the ghosts stood victorious.

"We…did it…" Pariah was covered in his own blood and the blood of his enemies as he stood over the unmoving body of Nekron the Reaper. Pariah's large sword was stabbed into the skeleton's forehead.

"That was the best! Hahahahahaha!" Colossus roared out in laughter. He quickly sat down as his legs were about to give out. "A battle unlike any other! Could there be anything better?!"

"How about anything else…" Scribe was kneeling over the body of a Black Ring user. The human wasn't breathing anymore. The poor being had been corrupted beyond repair by Nekron. His skin was grey, blue viens showed all across him, and his eyes were pitch black.

Truth be told, they were lucky that Nekron only managed to recruit humans into his Black Ring Corps. If he managed to get something stronger like ghosts, the Reaper's enemies might have lost. Scribe could barely imagine the danger that would be caused if a ghost managed to gain a Black Ring.

"It could have been worse." Pandora stood tall and proud despite her injuries. "We all came out alive."

"Not…without consequences…" Frostbite panted out and held his now missing arm. He pushed his powers too far and reached a level of coldness that almost destroyed him. The state of Absolute Zero allowed him to defeat several Black Ring users, but he almost died in the process. Luckily, he came out with only losing a single limb.

"We knew that we might come out injured, but we are the ones living in the end which is far more than can be said for our enemies…" The Fright Knight stated proudly.

"No need to be so dark…" Jester sat on the barren earth sadly. He was looking forward to a time where he did not have to worry about war and death. Finally, people could smile again.

"He is correct, though." Vision was examining one of the Black Rings of Nekron. "All our enemies lie dead before us. We win."

"Damn, that is creepy coming from a kid." Colossus grunted.

Pariah ignored his followers and knelt above Nekron's corpse. It felt good to finally stand over this monster of destruction. This world will never have to face Nekron's evil wrath.

**Is that what you think, Pariah?**

…What?

**Do you really think you can kill me? My power revolves around death. How can you kill that which is tied to death?**

Pariah looked down at the corpse in fear. Why wasn't it dissolving? Why was he hearing Nekron's voice in his head?

**Foolish king to foolish people. I will not disappear this day. You can never get rid of me through this manner. This world will forever be scared by me. I shall tear this world in two.**

Nekron's body began to glow. It wasn't the sign of a dissolving ghost. The energy around the corpse was black and green. It danced around in great fury and hatred. Nekron's corpse was going to explode.

"GET BACK!" Pariah roared to the ghosts behind him, but it was too late.

They were all caught within a blaze of explosive energy. The energy blasted up in a massive wave. Oddly enough, it did not spread out like a normal explosion. Instead, it came to a complete halt as it flew up into the clouds. The energy poured up, and then disappeared into a green tear in the sky. After the energy stopped, that giant tear closed almost instantly, but then thousand smaller portals opened all around the area.

Surprisingly unharmed, the ghosts looked up in surprised. They were even more surprised as the Black Rings flew off of the dead users and through the portals.

"What…Just happened?" Collossus questioned.

Scribed adjusted his glasses and peered into one of the portals. "It's a tear in dimensional space. One to a new dimensions. Amazing."

Thus, the Ghost Zone was born.

* * *

><p>It was never easy to lose one of his children. After thousands of years, it actually became worse. Burying his own children over and over again was the greatest pain and curse he could have ever imagined. He loved them all so much. From the days he first held them, to the days that he had to watch them die. It tore his heart apart each and every time. The last five deaths hurt more than ever before, though. Their loss was worse because their death was brought about by his own foolishness. He created the Reality Gauntlet to do good, to better the Earth. With it, he planned to step up the evolution of mankind. Possibly to the point that he would not have to bury his children ever again.<p>

That was his single biggest mistake, and now he was paying for it. They were dead, and Savage would never see them again. No matter what happened, though, Vandal Savage promised himself that he would remember each and every one of his dead children's names.

Savage knelt before the five new graves. Each one showed a name that belonged to one of his beloved children. Tears rolled down Savage's eyes. "Why are you here, ghost?"

Pariah Dark stood behind Savage. "I have come for the Reality Gauntlet, Creator."

"Do not call me that." Savage scoffed. "I did not wish to create your kind."

"Yet you did." Pariah mentioned. "And now you must deal with us."

"Are you going to take over where Nekron left off?!" Savage whirled around and glared at the giant ghost.

"No. I have no interest in this world. Now that Nekron is dealt with, I will bring order and peace among my people, among the ghosts." Pariah Dark explained. "But it will not be in your world. We have one of our own now. It was formed from the backlash of Nekron's death."

"Then it is cursed and vile." Savage spat. "It is a final trick by Nekron."

"No, we have examined it fully." Pariah shook his head. "There is no sign that Nekron created this dimension for something to kill people. No, he did it to hide his Black Rings. It worked too. We cannot find them in our new zone and will have to wait for them to surface one at a time. Some already have, and we destroyed them. But it will take tome to destroy them all."

"Whatever. I don't care anymore…" Savage grunted.

"Well, I do. And I care about that cursed item on your arm." Pariah eyed the Gauntlet. "Give it to me."

"Why do you want it?" Savage questioned. "You know the harm that it can do."

"Yes, but I need it for one more purpose." Pariah mentioned. "Humanity will always fear us, but if they remember Nekron, then we won't ever live in peace. That is why I will alter their memories of everything that happened, and we ghosts will become a mere myth to the humans. Then, once that is done, I will separate the Gauntlet from the four energy stones and hide them all in separate places."

"And why not destroy it?" Savage questioned.

"The same reason you have yet to do it. It might be needed again one day." Pariah glared at the Gauntlet. "In case we need to fight against someone that can alter Reality. That will give us the control and power we need to fight them off."

"…" Savage took off the Gauntlet and threw it at Pariah. "Take it. Take it far away from me. I do not wish to see the vile thing ever again."

"Very well…" Pariah nodded as he caught the Gauntlet. He looked past the smaller man to the graves. "And…You have my condolences for your losses. I have a daughter myself now, or at least a girl that's close enough to me to be my daughter. I can't imagine what it must feel like to lose that."

* * *

><p>It was after the Reality Gauntlet was finally dealt with that the ghosts finally began to build the kingdom in the newly dubbed Ghost Zone. Luckily, it wasn't hard to get the ghosts that remained in the human world to enter the Ghost Zone. They were drawn in by the abundance of ectoplasm in the dimension.<p>

Seeing the power that Pariah Dark and his followers held, the ghosts did not cause any problems. In fact, the knowledge that they defeated Nekron made the ghosts awed by the eight ghosts. Seeing that Pariah was the leader, the ghosts quickly turned to him for guidance. Pariah was ready to lead. He created rules and systems for them all to live by, and no one argued against the strongest ghost in current existence.

It wouldn't take long until Pariah Dark was proclaimed the Ghost King. His rule was just and fair. No one had any complaints as peace reigned through the Ghost Zone. Every ghost was given his or her own domain to live in. Then, the castle of the Ghost King was built. It has here that the King and his Advisers lived, although each of the Advisers had a domain of their own.

In order to gain the most of the situation and live in the castle, ghosts offered themselves as soldiers and servants to serve the king. They were all treated fairly and kindly. The ghosts that were offered up as soldiers were trained by the Fright Knight and placed under the command of Colossus. With an army, hundreds of servants, and a loyal people, all that was left to make Pariah Dark's reign complete was an official coronation ceremony.

Pariah stood in his throne room. It was a massive room that was larger than most houses. Crimson red carpet and blood colored bricks covered the large hall. Hundreds of ghosts were kneeling all around the throne room. Their heads were bowed in submission and respect. At the front of the room were Pariah Dark and the King's Advisers.

"My people!" Pariah Dark announced to all the ghosts. "Today is a day of celebration! It has been three months since the Reaper was killed! In that time, we, the ghosts, have risen from the ashes of Nekron's hell and created a utopia for all ghosts to enjoy!"

Loud cheers spread across the room as Pariah's servants and followers praised him.

"Today marks the first official day of my reign!" Pariah announced. "You have all proclaimed me to be your king, and I happily accept! I shall rule you justly and without prejudice! By word, peace shall forever blanket the Ghost Zone under my reign! But I cannot do such a thing alone! That is why I am naming all of my most loyal friends and followers the Council of the Elite! These seven before you are given power and authority over the entire Ghost Zone! Only my power shall trump theirs."

Everyone cheered once more.

"And to each of my friends, I give the greatest gifts I can give! I give you titles that befit your greatness, and I give you the items that we worked so hard together to create." Pariah walked up to each of the King's Advisers.

"To the mighty Colossus, I give the title of the Great General which is signified by the Skeleton Key! He has complete authority and access over my army for his strength and charisma is unmatched! This key signifies his unlimited access to my resources!" Pariah placed the key in the brute's hands.

Colossus looked at the key. "You just want me to stop breaking down doors, don't you?"

Pariah ignored him, "To the beautiful Pandora, I give the title of the Controller of Chaos which is signified by the Box of Chaos! Her word on justice and law are absolute! She may use the box to hold all the chaos that our nature brings!" Pariah handed Pandora her box.

"Thank you, Pariah." Pandora nodded as she held her box.

"To the joyful Jester, I give the title of Wide Smile which is signified by the Mirror of Memories! He will work day and night to make sure that our existence is filled with joy by using the mirror to remind us of ghosts that have completed their obsession and ascended into the next life!" Pariah gifted Jester with a small mirror.

"Hehehehehe…" Jester took the Mirror. "Finally, the time for joy is here."

"To the ferocious Frostbite, I give the title of the North Wind which is signified by the Infi-map! My friend will monitor the gates of our kingdom, and his roar shall blow like the wind and shall freeze the souls of our enemies!" Pariah passed a scroll to the yeti ghost.

"I am grateful, my friend." Frostbite grinned hugged to map to his chest.

"To the knowledgeable Scribe, I give the title of the Ghost Writer which is signified by the Tome of the Ancients! He will be the one who records the greatest stories of them all for future generations to learn from!" Pariah lifted a large book towards the Ghost Writer.

"It will be a pleasure." Scribe admired the giant tome.

"To the fearsome Fright Knight, I give the title of the Guard of the Ghost Zone which is signified by the Soul Shredder! His power and skill will strike fear into all that threaten to break our peace! One strike of his blade will forever trap our enemies within their own nightmares!" Pariah placed the blade in the Fright Knight's hands.

"My Liege." The Fright Knight bowed before his king.

"And to the genius Vision…My daughter," Pariah knelt down and gently placed a necklace around the young girl's neck. "I give the title of the Undefeated Strategist which is signified by the Avian Necklace. Her instructions and strategies have made all this possible, and her insight will only grow as her birds help give her a new perspective on the world."

"You honor me, Father." Vision beamed up at her adopted father.

Pariah smiled at the girl then turned to address the people once more, "Now let us celebrate! For the peaceful reign of Pariah Dark starts now!"

* * *

><p>"Why must you keep doing this, Spectre?" Pariah Dark sighed. He stood within the dungeons beneath his castle. Dark shadows were cast on the grey walls and floor by the burning torches that lined the walls. "Every time I give you a chance to be a part of my kingdom, you go on a rampage. Ever since you first formed, all you've done is cause me problems. I cannot give you so many chances, so tell me...why do all this when you know that you will only be stopped by me and my Advisers."<p>

"It is in my nature, Ghost King." The Spectre was chained to the wall of the dungeon. His entire body besides his head was restrained by chains and locks. "I must avenge the wrongs committed by the guilty. Every sin must be punished by death."

"Fool, you killed a man for telling a small lie. That is just petty." Pariah frowned deeply. "Such an act of murder is punishable by death. If you wouldn't just regenerate, I would kill you myself."

"So instead you lock me up once more?" Spectre questioned. "How long will I stay here this time until you let me go?"

"Forever." Pariah crossed his arms. "You need restraints. That much is clear. If your killing instincts are not suppressed, you will go on a rampage. I cannot allow that. As long as I remain in power, you shall remained imprisoned."

* * *

><p>"Of course…huff…I'll join the Council…huff…Your Majesty," Vortex bowed before the Ghost King in his throne room.<p>

"It will be on a trial basis, of course." Pariah sat in his throne and peered down at the living storm. "You have proven your power and your loyalty, but I can see the sparks of insanity in you. I have to wonder if you would be so tame if I was not around to control you."

"That won't happen…huff…though…huff…will it?" Vortex grinned and raised his head. "Your reign…huff…will last…huff…forever. So I will…huff…always be under control."

"Very true." Pariah nodded slowly. "But still, you will be monitored. Remember, you have to earn the trust of not only me, but each member of the Council of the Elite to be one of my official Advisers."

"I…huff…understand."

* * *

><p>"We humbly accept your offer, Ghost King." One of the ghosts that had an eye for a head bowed.<p>

"Suck up…" Clockwork sighed and shook his head.

"Be quiet, fool!" Another of the eyeball ghosts snapped. "Show respect to the king."

"I respect the king, but I don't respect you who licks his boots." Clockwork sighed.

"So you do respect me, Clockwork?" Pariah Dark peered down at the Master of Time. "And here I thought that you hated me."

"My refusal to join your court has nothing to do with my feelings for you." Clockwork mentioned. "I just don't play well with others."

"I see…" The Ghost King stroked his chin. "I can understand that. Colossus is not one for orders either, but he still plays his role."

"And pray tell, what is my role?" Clockwork questioned.

"The leader of the Observants."

"Your majesty!" The first of the newly dubbed Observants looked outrage. "We do not need leadership other than you."

"I cannot monitor you all the time, and I trust Clockwork." Pariah mentioned.

"But he didn't even help fight the Reaper despite his power!" The second Observant argued.

"I cannot intervene. I cannot alter how time is supposed to go during that battle. I was not meant to help stop Nekron, and thus I didn't." Clockwork's adult form shifted to that of an old man. "The time for my interference will eventually come, but that will not come until the Fate Changer arrives."

"Fate Changer…" Pariah looked to the Observants to see their reaction. They seemed confused. That was odd considering their words on the 'ascended ectoplasm.' He was already going to discuss the white ectoplasm with his Advisers, but maybe this had more merit than a myth that the Observants spouted on about. "And pray tell, who is the Fate Changer, a person who apparently not even my Observants know of."

"You will meet him eventually." Clockwork shifted into a child. "But not for a long, long time…"

"Hmm…" Pariah did not look pleased. "Will he be a threat? The whole reason I have enlisted the Observants is to predict any possible threats to my kingdom."

"He is both the greatest threat and the greatest hero to both worlds." Clockwork mentioned. "But I can say no more than that."

"…Fine." Pariah sighed. "Are you sure that you don't wish to join my cause, Clockwork? You can make the future a better place instead of just watching it."

"Then it's funny that you enlisted these eyeballs who only watch time like it's a straight line." Clockwork laughed. "But no, I won't join you. I will just stay in my domain and wait."

"And wait for what?" Perhaps it would be best not to mention this Fate Changer thing to the Advisers. It felt like the Master of Time was trolling him with this.

"For the time that this universe needs me to act…" Clockwork stated.

* * *

><p>The reign of Pariah Dark was a long and prosperous one. For centuries, people were happy. Everything was peaceful. All was well with the Ghost Zone. That is, until Pariah Dark began to change. It was small changes in demeanor at first. He became more irritable and quick to anger. People just shook it off by saying that it was stress. Eventually, though, the King's Advisers became concerned as the Ghost King became crueler and more sadistic by the day.<p>

"Pariah, you were the one that taught me about honor." Colossus stood before the Ghost King's throne. "So, out of everyone, I should know that what you're doing is not honorable at all."

"That is where you are wrong, Colossus." Pariah Dark scowled. "I am well in my rights as King to do as I please. That is my honor."

"But the taxes, the unjust laws, the cruel use of your army..." Colossus frowned back to his old friend. "It's all too much. The ghosts are miserable. Thousands are suffering by your degrees!"

"So? They are merely peasants." Pariah Dark shrugged. "Who cares what they go through."

"You once did!" Colossus gave Pariah a desperate look. "You cared for everyone. Every decision you made was for the betterment of everyone. Now, though, you don't even seem to care. You're nothing like the honorable man I used to know."

"Enough of this! Your words bore me!" Pariah Dark snarled. "I am the Ghost King! My word is law! What I says goes, and I won't be questioned by you!"

Pariah Dark had changed. His power and absolute authority made him a completely different person, and everyone could see it. That was the most logical answer to what happened. Of course, no one ever noticed that within the closed doors of his chambers a thin black glow outlined the Ghost King's crown and ring.

In the end, Nekron left a far bigger impression on Pariah Dark than anyone ever realized.

* * *

><p>"I believe that drastic matters will need to be taken." Vision noted to her companions. Over the years, she had grown from a little girl into a beautiful woman. She was well known for her beauty, but she found all of her suitors lacking something. None of them seemed to challenge her intellectually.<p>

"She is right…" Frostbite sighed as the group of six were meeting in a darkened hallway. They were far from the ears of the Ghost King. "His majesty has lost his senses."

"Then I shall fight him and bring him back to his senses." Colossus argued.

"You have already tried that, Colossus." Scribe mentioned. "We might…have to take more drastic measures."

"Do you mean rebellion? Treason?" Jester let his usual smile drop. "But the King has done so much for us…"

"It doesn't matter." Pandora shook her head. "He has gone mad with power and has begun to execute people unjustly. We cannot let this continue."

"Agreed. No matter how painful this is…" Vision shifted uncomfortably at the thought of betraying her father.

"…There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of honor in all this, but…Pariah does need to be stopped." Colossus sighed. "And we can't have him going on a rampage to kill everyone. Alright, Little Vision, what's the plan?"

"I think that we can convince Vortex to be neutral in this matter, so the first real obstacle is the Fright Knight." Vision noted. "He is blind with loyalty."

"What? I don't want to fight against our friend!" Jester objected.

"We may not have a choice." Scribe mentioned. "He won't stand for it if we go against his lord. Not as long as he is blind to Pariah's madness."

"But we have to at least give him a chance…" Pandora argued. "He is our comrade after all."

* * *

><p>Fright Knight looked around at the people he was proud to call comrades. They surrounded him on all sides and explained what their plan were. "You plan to betray the king."<p>

"We do…" Vision nodded.

"After everything he has done for us? After he led us to glory?" The Fright Knight stared accusingly at them.

"This is not the ideal situation, but Pariah must be stopped, friend." Frostbite mentioned.

"Do not call me that!" The Fright Knight hissed. "Have you forgotten that he was the man that gave us hope when all else was lost!? Have you forgotten that it was him that led us to the defeat of Nekron!? Must I remind you how he considers us all his family!?"

"You are right. We owe him so much, but Pariah has become a monster." Pandora argued.

"So? Monster don't deserve loyalty?" The Fright Knight spat.

"He's killing people! He's causing misery everywhere he goes! He no longer cares for the smiles and happiness of the people!" Jester argued.

"I know!" The Fright Knight was close to tears. "But he is all I know! I have sworn myself to serve the king! If there is no king, what purpose do I have! I must have a king to serve…And until another one has shown himself, I cannot betray my Lord."

"So we must find another ruler?" Colossus scoffed. "No one else can rule the Ghost Zone."

"That is not what I mean." The Fright Knight sighed. "A King doesn't need to have a crown and throne. He must inspire hope and loyalty. He must be just and with moral character. He must be strong yet humble. He that is King must inspire me to be more than what I am."

"And does Pariah do those things anymore?" Scribe questioned.

"No…But he is the only one who ever has." The Fright Knight shook his head. "And I cannot forget that…Even if you can."

"Don't think us so heartless…I, Uncle Col, and the others…We do not wish to betray Dad, but it is the only way." Vision looked terribly saddened. "We shall seal Father into a coffin that I have built, the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, and we will seal it with the Skeleton Key."

"…I cannot support this plan." The Fright Knight sighed.

"Then you will oppose us, friend?" The Frostbite gained a saddened look.

"Yes, I must."

"You do realize…" Pandora showed that she was carrying a pumpkin. If his sword was stabbed into the pumpkin, he would be sealed away. "That there is no way you can hope of defeating all of us."

"I know." The Fright Knight unsheathed his blade.

"So be it." Colossus grunted.

The fight began. It only took a few seconds for the Fright Knight to be overwhelmed by the sheer power the other six ghosts had. He went down fighting, though, and for that he was given the utmost respect.

It was after this was done that the ghosts turned their attention to the Ghost King. Colossus and Vision ordered everyone out of the castle so they could confront Pariah Dark. At the sight of the treason, Pariah Dark went into a rage, but not even he could fight against the excellent teamwork and power of the ancient ghosts. They stripped him of the Ring of Rage and forced him into the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep.

They were applauded for their actions. The ghosts cheered and praised them endlessly for stopping the evil Ghost King. None of the group that would later be called the Ancient Six cared, though. They mourned the loss of two of their family that would never get the peace that all ghosts desired. Pariah Dark and the Fright Knight would remained sealed without hope of escaping.

* * *

><p>In order to keep the peace, the Ancient Six formed a council of only the strongest ghosts. Vortex quickly joined, but he was the only one. Clockwork said that he couldn't interfere while the Observants argued that they already did enough by not informing the Ghost King of their plan. Thus, those seven formed the Council of the Elite.<p>

They kept mostly the same laws from when Pariah was uncorrupted. Things quickly became peaceful once more. There was a problem, though. Without Pariah to mediate them, the Council quickly began to argue. Their strong personalities clashed. Constant arguing formed from their meetings. Nothing got accomplished, and things remained stagnant for a long time.

Eventually, people stepped up to shake things up, though. Weaker ghosts grew restless and wished to search the human world to fulfill their obsessions. The Observants wanted a voice without direct involvement. Even Vortex began to stir the pot by creating troubling weather the human world.

All those things could be dealt with, though. They could keep everything in line. Things were stressed, of course, but they persevered. Eventually, the final straw fell and broke the camel's back. That straw was the Spectre.

* * *

><p>After the fall of the Ghost King, the seals holding the Spectre had weakened to the point that they could no longer hold the powerful ghost. Once again, the cloaked ghost went on rampage as soon as he obtained a little freedom. Colossus was the one that stepped in to stop the rampage.<p>

Two titans clashed. Their blows caused the ground to crumble and the sky to bleed. During the time that they fought, hundreds died. Thousands of domains were destroyed. The Ghost Zone was torn apart. Hell rained down until finally, the battle finally stopped.

"Son…of…a bitch…" Colossus huffed and heaved. His body was covered in burns, cuts and bruises. The worst of the wounds was an obscenely deep gash that ran from his shoulder to his opposite hip. "If you were an honorable foe…I would have considered that my greatest fight."

The Spectre did not answer. He was instead staring down at Colossus's massive fist as it was sticking through his chest and out his back. Green blood poured out of the wound in waves.

"Gah…" Colossus pulled his arm out and allowed the Spectre to fall. The green cloaked ghost fell onto a small slab of ground that miraculously wasn't damaged during their fight.

"I…lost…" Spectre coughed out.

"You did." Colossus grunted as he fell back onto his back.

"You do realize…I'll reform eventually…" The Spectre groaned out. "I'm…the spirit of vengeance…I was created…to never end…Revenge always comes back…"

It was true. The Spectre might eventually resurface. He was a unique ghost in that he could not really die. He, like the magical lords of order and chaos, existed on a different plane of existence. He merely used the ectoplasm as a mean for a vessel. Just like Doctor Fate and Klarion the Witch Boy.

"Then, I guess I'll just have to be there to stop you." Colossus mentioned as the Spectre began to dissolve. "But damn, I'll need a rest first. I could really use a good nap..."

* * *

><p>The consequences of the Spectre's rampage were wide and harsh. Colossus was weakened and wounded. He was even given a long scar across his chest and torso. His weakness required him to sleep and rest, and so he did. Colossus went into a deep sleep and no one knew when he would wake up. While he slept, he left a large red monster ghost to guard his Skeleton Key because he was was afraid he would lose the key if he did anything else.<p>

It was not soon after this that the human world began to rapidly change. While not perfect, both worlds were far better off than the times of Nekron and Pariah Dark. Seeing the new joy and hope, the tired Jester grew satisfied with the work he done to bring happiness to a dreary world.

"My friends..." Jester smiled to his friends that stood around the meeting table. "It seems that my obsession is nearly complete."

"W-what?" Frostbite's eyes widened.

"Yes," Jester nodded. "I have found contentment with my life and am ready to move on to the next world."

"But...there's still so much to do." Pandora argued.

"There is. Unfortunately, I won't be around to see it." Jester noted as balls of light began to rise off his body.

"Wait!" Scribe stood and gave Jester a desperate look. "We've already lost so many friends! We can't lose you too!"

"I'm sorry, but I don't have to choice." Jester chuckled as his body began to disappear. "It's my time to go. Don't act like this is a sad occasion, though. I'm ascending! Smile, my friend! Always smile!"

"Yes..." Vision nodded as she forced the tears to stop flowing. "It's...I-It's a happy occasion...W-we must smile..."

"Hehehehehehehe! That's right! Smiling will always make it better." Jester grinned widely.

"B-but wait! Where is the Mirror of Memories!?" Pandora questioned as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "We can't let it fall into the wrong hands!"

"Don't worry about the mirror..." Jester's body was almost gone at this point. "It's an object that's only meant to bring happiness. I made sure that it can't ever be used for evil..."

* * *

><p>With two of their members gone and Vortex soon abandoning the Ghost Zone, the Council of the Elite quickly grew exhausted and stressed. Eventually, the stress caused them to lash out. Every meeting they had was no longer productive because the Council would break out into arguments. They could no longer push themselves to govern the Ghost Zone. After days of arguing, the Council of the Elite was eventually disbanded.<p>

Thus, the Ghost Zone was allowed to govern itself. There was chaos, but the thoughts of causing too much chaos was quickly squashed by the threat of the more powerful…S-rank ghosts from crushing them. Many ghosts allied themselves with the different members of the ex-Council.

Frostbite's group moved into his domain. They lived in solitude and guarded over the Infi-map. It was a bit of a boring life, but they were safe and among friends.

Pandora's group took a far more active role in the Ghost Zone. Pandora stopped crime from escalating and used her box to keep the chaos under control. In fact, she often went to the human world to stop chaotic threats such as Klarion, Morgan le Fey, and the various demons that Etrigan fought against.

Scribe the Ghost Writer went back to the role he had before he met Pariah Dark. He began to build up his library. Mostly, he stayed alone, but there were special occasions that he came out and enjoyed the company of others. Despite any ghost's arguments or pleads, he did not take anyone under his wing. He had no use for followers or an apprentice right now.

And finally, Vision…

* * *

><p>"Mistress Vision." One of her servants bowed before her. Vision sat in her garden. She was very proud of her domain and worked to make it as beautiful as possible. "Some of the other servants are beginning to question what it is that we need to do. We have been inactive for years."<p>

"We don't need to do anything." The veiled woman stated. "There is nothing left that I need to do."

"But…" The servant argued.

"Are you arguing with me?" Vision questioned coldly.

"N-no! O-of course not!" The servant shook in fear.

Vision sighed. Once again, no one argued with her judgment. That was the way it had always been. No one questioned her strategies, not even Pariah Dark. When she decided something no one argued. It was boring. "I shall keep an eye on the happening in both worlds. If something is worthy of my attention, I will take action. Until then, though, I shall wait and let the Ghost Zone govern itself. Until the day I am needed once more…"

* * *

><p>Hotep Ra was always good at taking orders. That was always his job. He was a servant to Pharaoh Duulaman. The mummy ghost always allowed his every moment to be dictated by others, and he hated it.<p>

Even now, as he lay dormant in his coffin, he could fill his rage build. Always the servant. That seemed to be his destiny and his curse. He was trapped in this coffin until the mirror saw the image of Duulaman once more.

That meant there was nothing he could do but plan and think. Once he was free, he would trick the new Pharaoh and push himself into power. That way, he would never have to take orders again. He would no longer be anyone's servant.

Hotep Ra was going to be his own man. No one would order him around. All he needed was power. Once he was free, he would obtain power and freedom. Yes, that is exactly what he was going to do. Now, all he had to do was wait, and eventually he would have the power to be his own man…

He would no longer be a slave.

* * *

><p>I wish.<p>

I wish.

I wish.

That was all she ever heard. People telling her what they wanted. She listened and obeyed. Desiree granted every wish in an attempt to find her own happiness. All she ever felt was bitterness, though. Why did they deserve to get what they wanted? Why didn't she ever get what she wanted?

What she wanted was her freedom. She was cursed to forever grant wishes. Every man and woman that found her lamb grew greedy and wished only for themselves. Desiree took great pleasure in twisting their desires to something nightmarish. They deserved it for their greed.

Many times, when she was trapped in her lamp, Desiree dreamed of better things. She dreamed of one kind soul that could come along and not be selfish. That one person wouldn't wish for wealth or pleasure. No, that person would wish for her freedom. That person would wish that she never had to grant a single wish with ever again.

The genie ghost knew the truth, though. That was only a dream. No one would ever wish her free. No man was that selfless. So, she would be trapped forever granting wishes, and the only thing that she would have to comfort herself was her dreams. Her dreams of that one person that would arrive and grant her wish for once.

* * *

><p>"Brother…" Dora knelt before Aragon's thrown. "The outside world is changing."<p>

"So what?" Aragon snapped. "I do not care for those stupid humans."

"But…The way they are changing…I believe that it could help us prosper." Dora explained.

"And who told you that you could think!" Aragon sneered. "Know your place, sister! I am king, and you are merely a wench!"

"But brother. It could make us all stronger…"

"No!" Aragon jumped to his feet. "I like things the way they are! I am king in this era, so that is how things must stay! Stupid girl! If you keep trying to dethrone me, I will have you thrown in the dungeon!"

"B-but I would never even think…"

"Exactly! Don't think, woman!" Aragon laughed. "That is my job. I know what is best for my land."

"Y-yes, brother…" Dora whimpered.

How Dora hated her afterlife. This was what she had to endure with every day. This was her fate. She wished every day that she could escape, but Dora knew that her brother would track her down and punish her if she ever ran away. She was stuck here in her torment praying that something would happen that would allow her to escape her fate.

At least there was one thing she could look forward too, though. The annual ball was coming up. It was the only time of the year that she was happy. She couldn't wait for that night where she actually felt like a princess instead of a worthless puppet.

'I want to go to the ball…'

* * *

><p>"Why…huff…the hell…huff…are you attacking me!?" Vortex screamed as the ghosts held him down.<p>

"Vortex…" An Observant floated above the weather ghost. "Your destruction has gone on long enough. You shall not threaten the Ghost Zone with your foolishness anymore."

"You…huff…fool! I…huff…am a member of…huff…the council!" Vortex sneered even as they forced a collar to regulate his powers around his neck.

"The Council of the Elite is disbanded." A second Observant noted. "And it was one of their last degrees that we can deal out punishments to the S-rank ghosts if needed. That way, they won't abuse their power."

"WHAT?!" Vortex's eyes widened. "But…huff…they promised…"

"Promises mean nothing!" The first Observant exclaimed. "You have killed hundreds since the fall of the Ghost King! Even if the ex-members of the Council were still active, they would kill you themselves! You have officially fallen from grace!"

"NO! I…huff…REFUSE!" Vortex yelled as he was forced into a cage designed to stop his powers. "I…huff…WILL NOT…ACCEPT THIS! I AM VORTEX…huff…THE GREATEST STORM! YOU…huff…CANNOT CONTAIN ME FOREVER!"

"We don't have to…" The second Observant noted. "We just need to wait to vote on whether to kill you or not. It should only take a few hundred years."

"…" Vortex gave them a disgusted look. "Okay, is that part of my punishment, or are you just really slow to act?"

"Both."

* * *

><p>He felt the noose be tightened around his neck. The man would have lashed out at the man tying his neck, but his arms were restrained. He hated this. He hated them. They were the ones that unjustly imprisoned him.<p>

William did nothing wrong. All he did was stop a few soldiers from taking advantage of a woman. He may have killed them, but he had no other options. They were ready to kill him and the girl. He had no choice but defend himself.

Unfortunately, no one would listen to him. It was like he was speaking another language. His words fell on deaf ears. No one cared that all he wanted to do was protect that young girl. William could still see that girl's face. Her grateful blue eyes stared up at him as he pulled the soldiers off of her.

William would never regret saving that girl. Even after spending years in prison, he didn't regret it. It was the right thing to do, but sometimes good people get punished for doing the right thing. That was one of the terrible facts of life. It wasn't fair, but it was true.

That was one of the many reasons he was alone all his life. He was a 'lone wolf' so to speak. Always alone, but before the incident, he was always free. That was what mattered. He was free even if he didn't have a friend.

These last few months were different, though. He was trapped in a cage like an animal. The soldiers treated him like vermin. Every day was filled with boredom and despair. He hated prisons so much. He wanted to tear the place down.

Now, though, he wouldn't have to worry about that. He was being hanged this very moment. The sneers of the soldiers sickened him. They thought that this was punishment, but they were wrong. The freedom of death was far more merciful than being trapped like an animal.

Sighing, William looked up to the sky. It was night and the moon was shining bright. Grinning, the hairy man couldn't help but give out a howl. It was a good night to die.

* * *

><p>Without rules there was only anarchy. That was what he always believed from the moment he started working as a sheriff. He would be the justice that put all the criminals behind bars. That was his job. To help people by enforcing the rules.<p>

But things did not go as planned. Not even the good people followed the rules. The rich and corrupt were allowed around the law, and he hated that. So, he tried to do something about it. He wanted to bring them to justice as well. Things did not go well, though. The rich did not like having to follow the law. They didn't like that he wouldn't be bribed. They just didn't like him.

So, they had him killed. They placed a bounty on his head, and some fool called Jonah Hex collected on it.

What a bunch of punks. Of course, those entitled assholes never thought that he would come back and kill them all. They broke the rules, after all. At that point, Walker couldn't exactly remember what rules they broke, but he knew that they did so. And that was all that mattered, even if he never found that damn cowboy that shot him in the head.

People that broke the rules deserved to be punished. That was logical. And it was his job to make sure the rules were enforced. But as a ghost, he wasn't allowed to force the rules in the human world. It was against the rules. So, he decided that he would enforce the rules in the Ghost Zone.

Now all Walker needed was a prison and a lieutenant. Perhaps that new ghost Bullet could help…

* * *

><p>They always laughed at him. He proclaimed to be the greatest hunter in the Ghost Zone, but they scoffed. He was far too small to be a threat. Skulker was a bug compared to the rest of them. That made him the weakest. To them, he wasn't the hunter. He was the hunted.<p>

Fools. All of them were fools. Did they truly forget what it was like to be human? The human body was a lot weaker than the animals that were hunted. Yet, humanity was at the top of the food chain despite being physically weaker. For good reason too. The humans were smart in how they killed.

Instead of relying on physical force, they relied on their brains and machinery. Because they did this, they were the top hunters in their world. It was this aspect of humanity that Skulker admired. The weak can make themselves strong with the right equipment.

So, that's what he would do. Skulker would equip himself with powerful enough weapons to take down even the strongest ghosts. Then, no one would laugh at him. No one would deny him his title of the Ghost Zone's Greatest Hunter.

* * *

><p>All he ever wanted was a single friend. Nothing more, nothing less. Klemper just wanted companionship. Yet, everyone ran from him. They called him a deformed monster. People mocked his voice and hunched stature.<p>

Many times, people would throw rocks at him. No one wanted him around. Despite only wanting one friend, Klemper couldn't get a single person to even look at him with anything less than contempt. Many nights were spent crying instead of sleeping. He couldn't help that he was born in such a way.

Things only got worse when he grew ill. When they heard that the freak was ill, people jumped at the chance to lock him away. They didn't want to chance the illness spreading from Klemper. That was what they said at least. Klemper wasn't stupid though. He knew that they just wanted him out of the way.

He was annoying, and his face disgusted them. So, they locked him away. He was a nuisance, so they didn't want to deal with him. It was a sad cruel fact. Kelmper had to accept it. He had to live with it. He had to die with it.

In the end, it wasn't the illness that got to him. It was the coldness that finally caused his body to give out. Klemper died of hypothermia while locked in the basement of an isolated cabin in the woods. Not only that, he died alone and without a friend in the world. As he passed, a single thought passed through his mind...

Why wouldn't at least one person give him a chance?

* * *

><p>It all started with a simple dream. One dream formed an idea. That idea grew among the populace of earth. Sleep. Dreams. Nightmares. They existed on a different plane. It was dreams that showed the past, present, and future. Sleep allowed people to view their deepest desires and greatest fears.<p>

Humanity worshiped sleep and dreams. The land of unconsciousness belonged to the gods. Only a higher power could possibly give birth to such lands filled with absolute pleasure and devastating fear. There was no other explanation.

It was these lines of thought that eventually gave birth to Nocturne.

He was born from the human worship of sleep and dreams. The mortals desired a deity to control their dreams. That was why they thought of such beings as the Sandman and Morpheus. Humanity demanded a ruler of dreams, so they created one.

Nocturne started out as a benevolent force. He moved around the Earth giving people good dreams. It was the least he could do for the beings that gave him life. Eventually, the power got to him, though. The absolute control he had went to his head. He loved the fact that he could control people's dreams.

In a single instant, he could change the sweetest of dreams into the darkest of nightmares. Holding such power was incredibly intoxicating. It empowered him. Nocturne loved it like a drug. Eventually, though, it wasn't enough. He needed more power. The sleep ghost created Sleep Walkers to do his bidding, but he had his limits.

If only he had a larger power source…

* * *

><p>Sydney Poindexter didn't know if there was anything worse than a bully. They were cruel and vicious. Bullies abused their powers to pick on the weak. It disgusted him. People with power shouldn't abuse it. They had to use their powers to protect the weak.<p>

Only, no one ever did this around him. Everyone, and he meant everyone, looked down on him. They picked on him and insulted him with glee. It was sickening, yet there was nothing he could do about.

Even after the incident at the school...Poindexter couldn't escape. His entire school reformed into the Ghost Zone. He was trapped here with those ghost bullies with no escape. Every day, he suffered from their cruel word and physical abuse.

Poindexter would give anything to get away from these people. He was sick of the suffering. No matter what he did or said, they wouldn't stop. They just laughed and pushed him around some more.

What he wouldn't give for the chance to change things. If he had the power, he would make everything right. No one would be a bully and no one would suffer. Unfortunately, he was weak, and there was nothing he could do to change his situation.

Nothing.

* * *

><p>Vlad Masters hated Jack Fenton. He really didn't need much justification to such a claim. A lot of people held Jack Fenton in disdain. Very few would ever question him for saying such a thing about the brutish oaf.<p>

Unlike any other person, though, Vlad had a very good reason for hating Jack Fenton. The huge man ruined Vlad's life with his idiotic actions. The dumb experiment with the Ghost Zone ended up covering him in ectoplasmic radiation and giving him Ecto Acne. His youth was squandered in the hospital. The love of his life was stolen. His entire future was shattered.

Or so he thought.

It appeared that the accident actually gave him the powers of a ghost. The scientist in Vlad was awed, while the opportunist in him smiled in glee. Controlling the powers took time, but eventually he did it. Eventually, he gained control over his curse and turned it into a gift.

Through the use of his powers, he rigged things in his favor. Bets, investments, and stocks only ever went in his favor with a few key overshadowings. He quickly gained a fortune, and the first thing he did was clear the acne and regain his looks.

Everything paid off in the end. The training and abusing his powers gave him a more athletic body, wealth, and his looks. Add on his natural charm, and he was quickly boosted into the highest standing of life. He soon found himself enjoying his new place in society.

Vlad tried to move on with his life. He really did. The halfa did everything that culture told him that he needed to be happy. He had exotic food, expensive wine, and beautiful women. In fact, he was a bit shocked by how they flocked to him. Vlad was never so popular before despite his intelligence. It seems that he was now the alpha male.

Those women were boring, though. They lacked the depth and intelligence that Maddie had. No matter what he did, he couldn't stop thinking about her. It seemed that he gained a bit of the ghost's instincts of obsessive behavior.

Still, he did almost manage to move on. He found a single woman that stood out. Her name was June Moone, and she was one of the most intelligent women that he ever met. Not only that, she a deep spiritual insight on things. He was awed by her beauty, intelligence, and spirituality. Vlad was certain that he loved her and wished to be with her. For a while, the thought that he could move on from Maddie.

But then, she disappeared. One day she was by his side, the next day she was gone. Vlad was left alone once more.

Vlad quickly grew bitter and angry at every thing. Why did nothing ever go right in his life? Why couldn't he ever find someone that would accept him and make him happy? But he knew the truth. Deep in his hate filled heart, he knew that it was Jack Fenton's fault.

He never found happiness because of Jack Fenton's blunder. For years, the bitterness built up. He festered and seethed to the point where he could think of nothing else but revenge. So, he decided that eventually, he would have his revenge.

Jack Fenton would be killed, Maddie would be his, and Vlad would be happy. That was all that mattered.

* * *

><p>Emotions were garbage. They held people down and made life much more difficult. That was the one thing Technus realized when he researched his past life. It was his emotions that made him act like a fool.<p>

He was betrayed by the woman he loved. She took his research and gave it away. Years of his life were wasted away. His entire life was ruined by her, and he hated her for it. Technus wanted to hunt her down and kill her.

No…He couldn't do that. The ghost could not allow himself to be controlled by emotions any more. If he did that, he would bring himself to ruin once more. Technus could not let that happen again.

He needed to be like the machines. Cold. Calculating. Unfeeling. That was the way he needed to be if he ever wanted to accomplish anything. If Technus ever wanted anyone to remember his name, he would have to forsake his emotions…his care for humanity and live for himself.

He, Technus Master of all Technology, would never let his emotions get the better of him again.

* * *

><p>These humans were disgusting little bags of flesh. They cared nothing for the planet they lived on! Just look at their cities. Filth. Pollution. Even the so called 'parks' area mockery to nature. It was all so disgusting because the humans were disgusting.<p>

Undergrowth could feel the planet cry out in anguish. Every drip of pollution was slowly bleeding away the life of the planet. Yet, no one seemed to really care. Nothing was done to right this wrong. Could they not hear the tears of nature? Were they deaf or merely ignorant?

The nature ghost tried to be peaceful at first. He really did. But every little bit of good he did was undone by billions of humans polluting the planet without a care in the world. Every day, it was the same thing. He accomplished nothing because of them, and he felt his rage continue to grow.

The humans didn't deserve this planet! They didn't appreciate its beauty and power! How they became the dominant race, Undergrowth would never know. Humans were pathetic, and they deserved to be extinguished. Yes, that was what he would do. Undergrowth would save the planet by eliminating the greatest threat, the human race.

* * *

><p>Pandora stared down at the creature that Klarion had created. He tried to reverse the flow of her box and absorb some of her energy. Then, he combined the energy in an attempt to create a monster that could not be contained by her box and was too powerful for her to beat. The thought of such a being scared Pandora.<p>

Fortunately, Klarion had failed to make a monster. The combination of their energy did not react the way he wanted. Instead of a monster, Klarion got a surprise. The energy formed not into a beast, but into a child. A baby.

The Lord of Chaos was so shocked by this development, he did nothing as Pandora attacked. The shocked demonic Witch Boy was pushed back and forced to flee in order to avoid Pandora trapping him in her box. He disappeared into a dark red portal and did not return to the battlefield.

With that dealt with, Pandora turned her attention to the baby. Her first instinct was to slay the child. It was created to be a monster. That may very well be its true nature. It may just be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Eventually, it could grow strong enough to kill her, and Pandora could not allow that to happen. She had to kill Klarion's monster.

Or at least, that's what she thought as she approached the baby. She came up to it with her spear raised and ready to strike. As soon as she saw the baby, though, Pandora froze.

"Gah…" The baby girl lifted up her arms to Pandora. Her skin was blue and her hair was purple like Pandora. While the infant's eyes were deep soul piercing purple. The baby peered up to her with an innocent and pure gaze.

Without a second thought, Pandora threw the spear away in disgust. How could she even think about killing something so innocent? This child did not get to choose how it was created. The baby girl had no sin. If Pandora harmed this child, then it would be her that would be the monster.

"Gah...ah…WAAAAH!" The baby girl suddenly cried out. She lacked any clothes, so she was most likely cold. She was probably hungry as well.

Pandora instantly acted. She ripped off some cloth from her skirt with two of her many arms and carefully picked up the baby with the free hands. The ghost of justice then gently wrapped the baby in the cloth so that the baby girl would be comfortable and warm but not constricted. "Shh…Shh…It's okay…" It took a moment for the baby to calm down, but she did. The tears stopped, and the innocent red orbs looked up at her once again.

Peering at the child, Pandora instantly fell in love. This was her baby. She came from Pandora. Even if Klarion meant it for evil, Pandora didn't care. She already adored this little girl more than life itself.

"You need a name…" Pandora whispered to her child. "You came from the shadows…but you will live in the light…Nyx. Your name is Nyx, my beloved child."

* * *

><p>Johnny 13 did not remember a lot from the time when he was alive. What little he did remember, he forced himself to forget most of the time. The memories were too painful. He was reckless on his bike. It was bad. For some reason, his regret didn't come from not being able to live more for himself. There was something he was supposed to do. There was something he was responsible for…<p>

And he failed.

The guilt ate away at him. Johnny desperately wanted to fix what he did wrong, but he couldn't remember what it was. Nothing he did jogged the memory. It was just a blank blur of regrets and guilt. So, he did the only thing he could. He did everything in his power to erase the feelings that plagued him.

Johnny did everything he could to distract himself. He flirted. He fought. He took risks on his bike. Nothing, however, stopped the emotions from flooding in. It was torture for a long while. Alone, he suffered.

Everything changed one day, though. It was the day Kitty came into his life. The guild faded the instant he saw her. He felt relief for the first time in a long time. Johnny loved her the moment he saw her. He had no idea why, but she looked familiar. Yet, at the same time, she was different.

Johnny didn't care, though. For the first time in a long time, he was happy. He had more companionship than just his bad luck shadow. The guilt was gone.

For some reason, though, Johnny thought that he was forgetting something very important.

* * *

><p>"Rack!" Polly sat on Youngblood's shoulder. "You did well."<p>

"Whatever…" Youngblood muttered. "So the seal will keep Mom under wraps, right? Along with my powers?"

"Yes…" Polly nodded. "Everything will be sealed away. Thorn, your powers, your knowledge, your age…Everything. That is the price."

"…If you know all that, why don't I know all that?" Youngblood questioned.

"Your maturity and knowledge were placed into me." Polly noted. "Every bit of maturity you get will be placed into me."

"I see…" Youngblood nodded. "Well…Everything works out the, right? I get to keep all my promises to Mom."

"Yes, but remember, if you release the seal too often, then it won't work anymore." Polly noted. "You will age into your prime permanently and Thorn will become unhinged."

"That's okay. It's not like I'll ever have a reason to release the seal."

* * *

><p>People seemed to go their entire lives with their eyes closed. At least that's what it seemed like at least. None of them every noticed the smaller things in life. It was like it was beneath them to look at the things around them, the things that made their lives what they were. Despite being ignored, though, those forces continued to march on knowing that if they disappeared; things would get extremely complicated.<p>

That was the mindset Andrew always had. It was the small things in the background that made everything work. Just look at a play. The audience only cared about the actors on stage. They didn't care at all for the people behind the curtain, though. No one even took a second to thank the people who built the set, worked the lights, and made the actors presentable. If any of those people disappeared, though, the play would be ruined. There were always understudies ready to replace the actors, but the actors were nothing without the people out in front.

Andrew recognized that. He respected that. The man always made sure to think and appreciate the people and forces that worked behind the scenes, because without them, everything would go to hell. It was this line of thought that drove him to live the way he did. He worked in the shadows to manipulate the events happening in the light. The man did it all. Politics, business, and religious affairs were all controlled from the background. Andrew contributed more to shaping his world than most of the people that the populace would consider the main players in the game of life.

Still, there were times that Andrew felt unappreciated. Once his job was done, he was forgotten. It was always the same. When he was no longer useful, people would no longer care. He did take great satisfaction in knowing that those people would be nothing without him, but the envy still existed sometimes. Even though he knew that he would hate the spotlight if he was thrusted into it, the man still desired a bit of attention. That was human nature, though.

Despite all he accomplished in his life, Andrew was not completely satisfied. He felt that he had more to accomplish. Thus, he fought back. He fought to live on, and he turned to the background once more as a new being, as Amorpho. Once more, he was just a faceless man in a crowd. With his new powers, he knew that he control the world as he saw fit. It would be easy. That would only work if he lived in the background once more, though. The man craved the spotlight still.

So, he decided to test the waters. He pulled pranks with other people's face. It would be a good way to test how it would feel to be the center of attention. Plus if things went wrong, he could always go back to the shadows. Still, it wasn't a big enough test. He knew that he would have to do something bigger to see if the spotlight was as glamorous as it seemed.

"I guess I'll just have to try something more." Amorpho mentioned to himself one day as he twirled his cane. "But it can't just be anyone in any situation. It has to be someone who has a lot of attention, is beloved, and is someone...someone that notices the people in the background."

The only question was...did such a person exist?

* * *

><p>"Beware! I am the Box Ghost!"<p>

"Oh, go away, you little bug." A larger ghost swatted the Box Ghost away like a fly.

The Box Ghost flew across the Ghost Zone and landed on a stray meteor. His crash caused pieces of the rock to shatter across the area. This was a surprisingly common occurrence of him. Stronger ghosts liked to use him as a punching bag.

When he died, Cliff…The Box Ghost thought that things would be different. He was always the guy that was in the background. No one took noticed of him when he worked on loading and unloading ships, and no one noticed him now. It didn't matter how much he shouted out.

All he wanted was a little attention. No one seemed to care, though. They all saw him as an annoyance. He wasn't a threat. He wasn't a friend. To them, he was nothing.

And not matter how loud he yelled or how tough he acted, that would never change.

* * *

><p>Frederich was crying over her grave. He was on his hands and knees as unashamed tears rolled down his face. It was a sad sight, and not one that she ever wanted to see. She couldn't move on and leave him like this. He needed her. That was why she came back.<p>

Lydia stood behind him with her hood up. Her red eyes gazed at him. "Frederich?"

The man froze in shock. He slowly turned with a disbelieving look on his face. "Lydia?"

Lydia reached up to lower her hood and show her new green skin and glowing red eyes.

"You're…a ghost…" Frederich slowly got to his feet. He reached out to her but pulled his arm back as if he was going to be burned.

"…I am…" Lydia took his hands into hers.

"But…Why?"

"Because you still need me, and that's more than enough reason to stay."

* * *

><p>"Excuse me, sir?" The Lunch Lady questioned to ghost in front of her. "Could you please tell me where the lunchroom is?"<p>

"Lunchroom?" The spider ghost scoffed. "Lady, this is the Ghost Zone. There is no lunchroom."

"No…lunchroom?" The green skinned woman seemed confused.

"Yeah, lady. You must be new." The spider ghost sighed. "This is the Ghost Zone, and your presense means that you're a ghost now. That means you're dead."

"NO LUNCHROOM!" The Lunch Lady's white hair waved around in anger. "HOW AM I SUPPOSE TO SERVE THE MEATLOAF WITHOUT A LUNCHROOM!?"

"Well, crap…" The spider muttered. "Another crazy. Just what the Ghost Zone needs…"

* * *

><p>"Ellie!" Trever Zempell shouted out as he ran through his burning home. The firemen outside and even his father tried to keep him out of the building, but he couldn't leave his sister to die. She was still in here, and Trever had to save her. "Ellie!"<p>

The teen ran through the flames to Ellie's room. He instantly kicked open the door and ran inside. Trever saw his sister unconscious on her bed. The flames surrounded her in a blaze.

"Wake up!" Trever ran to sister. He didn't care as the flames burned him. Ellie was more important. "Ellie, wake up!"

She didn't stir, though. The smoke must have gotten to her. Hoping that she wasn't dead, Trever picked her up. "Come on!"

Trever began to run back through the house. He didn't get far, though, before a piece of the ceiling fell down and crushed him beneath burning wood. His torso was completely trapped beneath the chunks of the ceiling.

"Gah…" Trever groaned and looked up. He saw his sister lying in the flames. The teen reached out for her, but he couldn't move. "Ellie…"

Trapped in the flames and smoke, Trever could do nothing but watch as his sister was consumed by the flames.

* * *

><p>"Penelope!" The green goop of a ghost flew to the shadowy woman.<p>

"Huh?" The female ghost peered at the strange ghost. "How do you know that name?"

"Penelope, it's me Bertrand!" The green goop ghost grinned.

"Bertrand…" She recalled that name. It was the name of an associate back when she was alive. The memory was fuzzy, though, just like everything else. "What happened to you?"

"I couldn't live without you!" Bertrand beamed up at her. "So, I followed you…"

"Followed me…" Spectra looked at him in horror.

"Yes. Like always." Bertrand didn't remember a whole lot from his life, but he remembered his love for Penelope.

* * *

><p>"Mmhhh…" Cujo whined as the security dog pulled on his collar.<p>

"Are you sure, doc?" The security guard questioned. "I mean, the dogs could still be useful."

"Nonsense!" The doctor snorted. "We are upgrading our security tenfold. No human could possibly get into Axion Labs after tomorrow."

"But to kill all the guard dogs…Can't we just give them away?" The security guard shifted uncomfortably. He had a soft spot for dogs.

"No, no. We can't have any possible leaks in information." The scientist noted. "We don't know if the experiments caused any changes in the dogs' physiology, or if someone could extract memories from the dogs' minds."

"But still…" The guard looked down in pity at the puppy.

"Enough. This facility doesn't need those filthy animals anymore. They're obsolete, and when things are obsolete, they must be replaced. Permanently."

* * *

><p>"Smile!" A goth girl with black hair that was half down and half up in a ponytail. She wore dark makeup, a black shirt that still revealed her midriff, a black platted skirt with purple tights underneath, and black combat boots.<p>

To the side of the girl was an African American teen that had the same build as Danny. He wore a red beret, yellow shirt, and thick glasses. He was watching the scene with curiosity.

The flash of a camera went off.

"Okay…" A boy named Danny Fenton stated. He held a white jumpsuit in his hands. "I showed you the portal. Can we get out of here now? My parents could be back at any minute. Besides, they say it doesn't work anyway."

"Come on, Danny," Sam Manson walked in front of the powerless Ghost Portal. "A portal to the Ghost Zone! Aren't you curious? You got to check it out."

"You know what…" Danny looked into the portal. "You're right. Who knows what kind of awesome, super cool things that could be on the other side of that portal?"

* * *

><p><strong>And that is the final bonus chapter for the story. With the past and present completely revealed, it is time to focus on the future. Like with Absolution, the next story will have a Preview. This time, though, the Preview will not be placed at the beginning of the next story, but instead at the end of this story. On May 11, 2015, the Preview will be released as the last part of this story. At the same time, the first chapter will be released under the next story named "Conviction."<strong>

**Thank you all for reading and please remember to...**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	37. Our Conviction

Disclaimer: I own nothing

"I'm not Superman, so I can't say anything big like I'll protect everyone on Earth. I'm not a modest guy who will say it's enough if I can protect as many people as my two hands can handle either. I want to protect a mountain-load of people." Kurosaki Ichigo (Bleach)

* * *

><p><strong>Third in the <strong>_**Obsession**_** series**

**The Struggling Warrior presents…**

_What would you give up for the people you love?_

_What would you sacrifice for the good of humanity?_

_What would you do just so life can continue?_

_Everything? Nothing? Something in the middle?_

_Do you even really know?_

_Well, I do. I know what real sacrifice is. I know the pain of giving up one friend for another. I have experienced real loss. I have suffered just so that others can have joy._

* * *

><p>"The world is going to end." She said with tears in her eyes. "This world will burn and there is nothing you can do about it."<p>

"Yes there is!" Phantom yelled. "There is always something that can be done."

"No…there is only two options now." The girl cried. She knew the truth. "Both of which involve death."

"Whose death? Yours? Everyone's?" Phantom questioned angrily. "Because I'm not willing to give up any of them."

"You don't have a choice…"

"There's always a choice."

"Why are being so stubborn!? My death will save the world! Are you actually willing to risk the world for one worthless girl!?"

"Yes…" Phantom hugged her tightly. "Because I would never sacrifice my sister."

* * *

><p><em>Do you know what it feels like to feel helpless?<em>

_Do you know how painful it is to watch your friends suffer for you without the ability to help them?_

_Do you know what it is to see your friends disappear from your eyes?_

_I know this pain so well._

_Despite my best efforts, my friends and family continue to disappear._

_I can't stop, though. I must save them. I must bring us all together. I must prove that I'm not the little girl that needs protecting._

* * *

><p>Spirit was sobbing. This was so hard! Why?! Why did he have to die!? She didn't mean for him to get hurt like that! She was trying to protect him! Why did this have to happen?!<p>

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The halfa girl screamed up into the heavens.

She could feel their eyes watching her. Her friends...her comrades…they didn't understand. Yes, they were saddened. Yet, they didn't truly understand. They didn't know the true extent of what happened.

Spirit had just caused a ghost to give up his obsession.

* * *

><p><em>Have you ever been pushed to the breaking point?<em>

_Have you ever looked into the dark abyss as the world seems to try to push you in?_

_Have you ever been to the point where you lose the will to fight?_

_I highly doubt that you can even begin to understand._

_The universe itself seems to want to break me beyond repair and scatter the pieces._

_I can't let it do that. Life has too much value to give up. I must preserve that life. I have to fight on. If not for me, then for everyone else at least._

* * *

><p>Silence. That was all Dusk heard despite the vast amount of noise around him. The battles, the shouts of pain, the miniature war…they all meant nothing to him anymore. Right here, right now, all the ghoul cared about was what was happening in front of his eyes.<p>

Blood…

There was so much blood…

Could a body even hold that much blood? Dusk didn't think so. Yet, there it was, and it was everywhere. It stained his clothes. It covered the ground. It was even on…that thing...that demon.

This what not what he planned. Dusk never intended for things to go like this. He was trying to preserve life, not be the cause of its end. It was too late now. The blood had been spilt. The monster was ready to go for the kill, and Dusk was helpless to stop it.

Staring at the demon, Dusk felt something odd. He felt anger. He felt outrage. He felt hatred.

This…was hatred. What Dusk was feeling was the desire to see another being's existence. He wanted the monster to leave and never return. Not only that, he wanted it to suffer…Yes, he was going to make this thing suffer.

"You…" Dusk pushed himself to his knees. "I…want to…kill you."

That was a horrifying thought. Dusk was a pacifist. He went out of his way to prevent violence and death. Now, though, all he wanted to do was to cause pain and suffering. The halfa should be disgusted, but, instead, he was eager. He wanted this thing dead.

"I'm going to kill you…I'm going to kill you…" Dusk merely whispered at first. It was like he was dipping his toe in the water, but now he was going in for the cannonball. With all the venom he could muster, the halfa yelled, "**I'm going to kill you!**"

* * *

><p><em>Protecting all of them might be impossible, but I don't care. <em>

_I have to try anyway._

_Hey, they call me the "Fate Changer," right?_

_Maybe I can live up to that name._

_But I can't do it alone._

_To do this, I have to have the help of my family_

* * *

><p>"There's nothing you can do now." Nightwing noted.<p>

"What the hell are you saying?" Phantom glared at his long-time friend. "Of course, there's something I can do."

"This is no longer your responsibility." Nightwing explained. "Let me and Batman handle this."

"No." Phantom shook his head. "I can't do that. I can't just abandon a friend. You know that. If I was the kind of person who abandoned the people closest to him, then Young Justice wouldn't even exist anymore. You all would have died a long time ago."

"I know," Nightwing nodded. "But this is now out of your hands. We don't want you to interfere. You might…overact."

"Overact? Are you kidding me? You think I'll kill that psycho, is that it?"

"No…Maybe…I'm not sure."

* * *

><p><em>It won't be easy.<em>

_Even with all my training, my foes are still vastly stronger than me._

_I always had a stubborn streak, though._

_Hey…Can't just let the boys have all the fun, after all._

_But to do this…to bring my friends out of the darkness I'm going to need help._

_I'm going to need the support of my family._

* * *

><p>"We're leaving soon…" M'gann stated to the younger girl.<p>

"I know." Spirit didn't look up. She continued to look at the picture in her hands.

"Are…you ready?" Superboy questioned.

"Not sure." Spirit sighed. "I don't know what I'm going to do…"

"This is important." M'gann noted. "People…our friends are in danger. If you don't think you can handle this..."

"I can handle it!" Spirit looked up and glared at the two aliens.

"I know." Superboy nodded to his fellow clone. "But I know what it's like to be conflicted. To feel pulled in two different directions. It's not easy. Can you handle it during the mission?"

"Yes. I can." Spirit nodded.

"And if you're forced to fight your friend?"

"…I'll do what I have to."

* * *

><p><em>I'm not sure how long I can last.<em>

_The orphanage, the Shadows, the Ghoul Project, and all my other trials…It adds up very quickly._

_But I will endure._

_I will continue to push through the difficulties._

_This won't be possible on my own, though._

_To survive, I need the assistance of my family._

* * *

><p>Dusk quickly jumped to his feet. Despite the fact that the sneak attack was quite strong, Dusk didn't care about the pain. His Numbing ability had already kicked in was numbing the pain of the wound. He would have to do something about the bleeding, but his quicker than normal healing would stop the blood flow soon enough.<p>

"No…It's…" The normally composed Joel felt himself break out into terrible sweat. His face lost all its complexion. He had heard stories, descriptions, and even saw a memory of this guy, so Joel recognized him instantly.

The being before the ghoul was tall. He had broad shoulders and was incredibly muscular. This was easy to tell with his tight black and white outfit that even had a cape. The man's skin was blue, his teeth were fanged, and his hairy was like a white fire. As Joel stared, a forked tongue slipped out and waved about.

The most noticeable thing for Dusk, however, wasn't any of this. No. The symbol on the man's chest spoke more everything combined. It was the same symbol on the clothes of Dusk, Spirit, and Phantom.

It was a flaming DP.

"Speechless? I would be to. You better not stay that way, though, boy. Because we have a lot to discuss, little halfa." Dark Dan smiled sharply.

* * *

><p><em>We will fight for our beliefs.<em>

_We will protect what matters._

_We will cherish our loved ones._

_We will bring peace to ourselves and others._

_Together, we will prevail._

* * *

><p><em>This is our…<em>

"One day, you'll have to choose between love and being a hero."

"There is no possible way for you to defeat me."

"It's alright…This is the ending that I chose."

"It's time to finally grow up."

"We all owe them a debt that can't be repaid, and we will fight for them until our dying breath."

"No! I refuse to lose like this!"

"People died, and I was responsible for three of them. How am I supposed to live with myself?"

"Death…is the single most powerful force there is."

"Long live the Ghost King!"

"For them…for the people that matter to me, I'll sacrifice everything that I have. Body, soul, and spirit…None of that matters if I can't protect my family."

**CONVICTION**


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